Indiana head football coach Tom Allen knows the impact Covid-19 can have on a football team all too well.
After the virus stopped the Hoosiers this spring and summer, Allen had a clear message to his team -- be careful and stay safe.
And for weeks and months, the Hoosiers were careful and safe, able to play when many other Big Ten teams were not.
But, all that came to an end this week, as the Hoosiers had to shut down football operations following a spike in Covid-19 numbers.
Indiana Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Scott Dolson shared with Indiana broadcaster Thursday night during the Inside IU Football radio show that signs of an issue appeared last Saturday at Wisconsin. Dolson said on air that he received a positive result from an antigen test and isolated himself, but the result turned out to be a false positive.
"We had concerns Saturday at Wisconsin, and the concerns continued into Sunday and Monday," said Dolson, adding the concerns prompted him to reach out to Purdue athletic director Mike Bobinski. "I called Mike and he said he was getting ready to call me as they had issues as well. We decided we would let testing take place and see. Unfortunately, the trend continued."
As a result, the Old Oaken Bucket game, slated for Saturday at 3:30 p.m. in Bloomington, was canceled.
"We were obviously disappointed, but our program has been incredible from a medical standpoint," Dolson said.
Allen echoed those sentiments, stating not playing the Bucket Game has provided a "sick feeling" for the Hoosiers.
"There's no doubt it is a blow. You have an awesome team performance and come back and we had some issues on game day that carried over. Our guys could sense things were concerning. We went to virtual meetings and the guys are awesome, have handled it well," Allen told Fischer.
Allen said he has been asked a hundred times about Indiana and how its prepared against Covid-19 and his answer has been the same -- stay safe and stay locked in.
"We are one bad day away from this thing blowing up and infecting our locker room. It's been a constant struggle, and we are fortunate to get to this point. It's been something no one has ever had to deal with before," Allen said.
Allen said the Hoosiers are using the stoppage time as a time to get healthy and rested and ready to go when they can resume football.
Previously, Allen has said he constantly tells his players to wash their hands, wear their masks, take care of themselves and make sure they are socially distanced when out in public.
Dolson was asked if the spike in tests could have ramifications past this week, and Dolson said that remains to be seen, stating the program is handling things "day by day."
"It could. We are hopeful to get it contained quickly," said Dolson, who added that the health and safety of his players is the number one priority.
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