JT Daniels and George Pickens enter COVID protocols

On Tuesday, December 21st, it was announced Georgia’s backup backmost JT Daniels tested affirmative for COVID-19, the quality was archetypal reported by the Athens Banner-Herald.

The quality was besides confirmed by UGASports. Additionally, according to a study by UGASports, Daniels, who is vaccinated, volition beryllium backmost successful clip for the Orange Bowl successful Miami Gardens connected December 31. 

Wide receiver George Pickens has entered the COVID protocol aft investigating positive. However, his vaccination presumption is uncertain. On Wednesday, it was announced Georgia would connection booster shots successful the combat against COVID-19.

The ‘Dawgs person re-instituted disguise mandates wrong their facilities successful an effort to mitigate the risks from the emerging omicron variant. 

Conversely, the Michigan Wolverines person not had immoderate COVID-related setbacks since past season. Also, they received their booster shots Wednesday. Right tackle Andrew Steuber says the protocols and fearfulness of missing the biggest crippled successful their careers to this constituent has played a relation successful maintaining the Wolverines’ corporate subject heading into the Orange Bowl.

“That’s been a increasing interest of ours,” Stueber said. “We’ve implemented masks successful meetings, maintaining societal distancing. A batch of radical are taking their meals to spell now, not truly sitting excessively much. It’s a batch safer present retired determination – a batch of students person near the campus. The booster’s retired determination now. We person a full-team booster changeable tomorrow, truthful that volition beryllium good. I deliberation everyone understands the gravity of the situation, to person an outbreak present would beryllium devastating to a batch of people. So knowing the interest determination is simply a large thing, truthful we’ve taken the due precautions there.”

On Wednesday afternoon, the College Football Playoff Committee issued a connection which addresses the worst-case scenarios which would necessitate the postponement, adjacent forfeiture, of games if teams are incapable to enactment owed to COVID-19 considerations.

Here are the pursuing 3 scenarios comparative to the College Football Playoff semifinals:

1. Playoff Semifinals (Cotton and Orange Bowls) if 1 squad is unavailable to play, the unavailable squad shall forfeit the crippled and its hostile would beforehand to the nationalist title game.
2. Playoff Semifinals (Cotton and Orange Bowls) if some teams are unavailable to play successful 1 semifinal, the semifinal crippled would beryllium declared “no contest,” and the squad winning the different semifinal crippled would beryllium declared the CFP National Champion.
3. Playoff Semifinals (Cotton and Orange Bowls) if 3 teams are unavailable to play – The semifinal crippled successful which 2 teams are incapable to play would beryllium declared “no contest.” In the different semifinal game, the squad incapable to play shall forfeit the crippled and its hostile would beryllium declared CFP National Champion.

Georgia is scheduled to question to Miami connected Sunday arsenic they hole for their College Football Playoff semifinal matchup against Michigan. However, playoff teams volition person the enactment of arriving conscionable 48 hours earlier kickoff connected New Year’s Eve.

Media days astatine each crippled tract volition beryllium held virtually retired of an abundance of precaution. 

“As we hole for the Playoff, it’s omniscient and indispensable to enactment into spot further precautions to support those who volition play and manager the games,” College Football Playoff Executive Director Hancock said successful a statement. “These policies volition amended support our students and staffs portion providing clarity successful the lawsuit worst-case scenarios result.”

Per the email, the changes were made based connected a proposal from the Management Committee during a video teleconference connected Tuesday.

Most telling successful the email, is the imaginable script of a no-contest successful the nationalist title game. 

“If a team’s unavailability is determined aft the Playoff Semifinals person been conducted, the nationalist title crippled successful Indianapolis whitethorn beryllium rescheduled to nary aboriginal than Friday, January 14. If 1 squad is capable to play and the different is not and the crippled cannot beryllium rescheduled oregon is rescheduled and cannot beryllium played, past the squad incapable to play shall forfeit the crippled and the different squad shall beryllium declared CFP National Champion. If some teams are incapable to play connected either an archetypal oregon rescheduled date, past the crippled shall beryllium declared “no contest” and the CFP National Championship shall beryllium vacated for this season.”

“We surely privation we were not successful this position,” said Hancock, “but the lone liable happening is to instrumentality immoderate actions we tin reasonably instrumentality to amended support those who play and manager the game.”