Tennessee football coach Jeremy Pruitt and multiple players and coaches have tested positive for COVID-19, meaning the Vols will not be able to play in the Dec. 31 AutoZone Liberty Bowl against West Virginia, sources told ESPN.
Tennessee’s tests were conducted under SEC protocol on Sunday, and those results were returned Monday morning after Tennessee accepted the bowl invitation. The players and staff within the Tennessee program who tested positive were retested on Monday to confirm the results. Tennessee also conducted a second round of tests on Monday for everyone in the soccer program. Due to the combination of positive tests and subsequent contact finding, Tennessee does not have enough players or coaches to participate in the game of bowl.
The Vols lost 34-13 to Texas A&M on Saturday and closed the regular season with a 3-7 record. Assistant coaches Derrick Ansley and Jay Graham both missed Saturday’s game with COVID-19-related issues, sources told ESPN.
Tennessee is the first SEC team to be unable to play in a bowl game due to COVID-19 issues.
Sources told ESPN that the Liberty Bowl or Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl could potentially be an army landing site. The latter would be an option, especially if Mississippi State slid to Tennessee’s spot in the Liberty Bowl. Leger went 9-2 but is not in a bowl game.