Gophers Cancel Saturday’s Game Against Northwestern

The Minnesota Gopher football team has cancelled a second game due to a large COVID-19 outbreak among its players and staff. The Gophers were slated to take on Northwestern on Saturday, with the game now considered a no-contest by the Big Ten Conference.

The team previously cancelled its game against Wisconsin on November 28th, the first time the rivalry was not played since 1906.

In total, 47 players and staff members have tested positive for COVID-19 since November 19th. The total positives include 21 players and 26 staff members.

“The health and safety of our student-athletes, coaches and staff continues to be our main priority,” said Gophers Director of Athletics Mark Coyle in a statement released Monday morning. “The last couple of days have shown a decrease in positive cases, but not to the point where we are able to return to competition. We are disappointed not to be able to compete against Northwestern on Saturday, but we need to continue to focus on following all CDC and MDH guidelines and slow the spread of the virus.

"We will now shift our priority to doing everything possible to compete at Nebraska on December 12, and our decisions will continue to be guided by our medical experts.”

The Gophers are 2-3 on the season, with the aforementioned Nebraska game scheduled to be their season finale.