Florida State football will sit out another week after the ACC announced its upcoming game against Duke is canceled. The conference says Duke will now play Miami on Saturday, Dec. 5, instead.
The move marks the third consecutive game the Seminoles have not been able to play due to coronavirus concerns. The school’s matchup against Virginia, originally set for Nov. 28, was postponed this past weekend due to not having enough players.
“Our team underwent the mandated third-party testing yesterday and learned late last night that we had one positive test. Contact tracing this morning determined that, with opt-outs and injuries, we had just 44 scholarship players for the game, with some position groups depleted almost entirely,” said Athletic Director David Coburn in a statement following the postponement.
It was doubtful any of those players would make it to the Duke game.
The cancellation came the day-of the game, and done in a similar fashion to Clemson, which had already traveled to Tallahassee to play. That game, which was supposed to be played Nov. 21, was canceled mere hours before kickoff in a move that disappointed members of both teams, angered fans and Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney, who took repeated jabs at the FSU program. That game was cancelled because medical staff didn’t feel comfortable playing after a Clemson player was allowed to practice and travel with the team while showing symptoms of COVID-19 and later testing positive.
FSU estimated it lost $2 million due to that cancellation. Now, with the loss of the Virginia game and Duke, the money problems are mounting and time is running out for making up the dates. According to the ACC, all its teams have two open dates. But FSU has now missed three games.
Florida State University isn’t alone in trying to juggle health concerns along with the need to keep football revenues flowing. Other key matches at other schools have been postponed throughout the season.
The NCAA also keeps a running list of postponed and canceled games.
The University of Virginia has already had one game moved. It was supposed to play Virginia Tech on Sept. 19. That game is now Dec. 12.
FSU has also been pushing to reschedule its game with Clemson, but no date has been announced.
