Pitt canceled its scheduled football practice on Thursday after several players displayed “symptoms that can be associated with COVID-19,” according to a team statement.
Pitt athletic director Heather Lyke said that the team will resume practice on Friday.
“Our medical team decided it was in everyone’s best interest to temporarily pause our Thursday training camp activities so that we could test symptomatic players per our protocol,” Lyke said in a press release. “Based on negative test results received late today, it has been determined that we can safely resume practice on Friday.”
Pitt opened training camp on Aug. 7 and held five practices before pausing workouts on Thursday.
The Panthers have not publicly revealed the results of their COVID-19 testing since bringing football players back to campus in July. Thursday’s cancelation was the first time that Pitt had to pause its return to play protocol for the football team since it has been instituted.
Pitt did not immediately respond to a request for a clarification on whether the negative tests referenced by Lyke were specifically from those players that exhibited symptoms.
The Panthers and the rest of the ACC are currently slated to go forward with the 2020 season. The ACC presidents met on Thursday afternoon, and according to multiple media reports, made the decision to carry on with the season, despite cancellations from the Big Ten and Pac-12 earlier in the week.
One other ACC schools had its practices interrupted on Thursday, as Syracuse paused its practices over player concerns about the testing protocol, according to Syracuse.com.
NCAA president Mark Emmert announced on Thursday that there will not be fall NCAA championships held in 2020, though the College Football Playoff operates outside the purview of the NCAA and could still be held with teams from the ACC, Big 12 and SEC participating. Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby said on Wednesday that the CFP committee had not made a decision on how to move forward at that time.
Pitt is scheduled to start its season on Sept. 12, though the Panthers do not have an opponent for that date. They had been scheduled to host Miami University (Ohio), but that school has postponed its season to the spring along with the rest of the MAC. Pitt is still searching for a non-conference opponent for that date, a team source told Pittsburgh Sports Now.
One day cancellation? How is that safe? Ford should opt out right now.
The tests came back negative. What’s so hard to understand?
Just like Florida State tests came back negative.
WTF? Ford has a better chance of injury, car accident, getting hit by lightening, and other natural causes than the Covid 19 virus effecting him. Look at the actual stats of those under 25! You’re just mad because PSU and the Big 10 needed the ticket sales to meet their budgets, so they had to postpone the their season.
Does Pitt really want to talk about ticket sales? Lots of tarps laying around already so shouldn’t be a problem with no fans.
If the chances are so low then why did Twyman opt out?
Frank James now that Penn St football is cancelled this your new hobby? Just remember your school harbored a serial child rapist for 40 years. Empty seats and tests for a virus that are inaccurate at best pale in comparison to the cover up of crimes against children. You seem like the type of guy that was okay with that as long as the wins kept piling up.
Editing posts. That’s funny.
That is all you have? I was right. You were okay with Sandusky and what he did with those kids.
That’s all you got? Falling back on the easy insult? Of course I’m not OK with anything that scumbag did. You ok with Narduzzi’s racist behavior former players called him on?
Now that is funny. Comparing a child molester/convicted rapist to a coach that is NOT racist and has not committed a crime. If you read the context of that whole situation you would know that. Why are you commenting on a Pitt fan page? I still do not quite understand. On game days this Saturday will you blare seven nation army, dress all in white and dance around your basement since you will not have anything else to do?
Have you signed your Covid-19 non-liability waiver yet, Frank?
Frank James:
***Please do us a Huge favor, and stay off this site if you are going to spread negativity. There is enough of that to go around and we don’t want to read that here!
That post is more laughable than editing on a chat board.
This cancellation is proof Pitt will be able to safely play football this year.
Close surveillance, quick response, and transparency were displayed by Pitt.
These are the factors that build trust in Pitt’s commitment to student health.
And, no, you don’t get to know the names of players who had symptoms.
You don’t need or deserve that info. Have you never heard of the HIPAA law?
Great response Clark. Spot on.
New inexpensive saliva test with quick turn around is now available. $4 per test is
one more reason we can go forward with football.
Also see link to Outkick article on Pittsburgh Sports Now. University of Michigan cardiologist labels article that led Big Ten to cancel football statistical gibberish.
Youngest patient considered in study was 49.