BYU/Troy Game Set To Be Played After Sun Belt’s Trojans Test Negative For COVID-19
Sep 25, 2020, 3:46 PM | Updated: 3:49 pm
LINCOLN, NE - SEPTEMBER 15: The stadium reflects off the helmet of safety Will Sunderland #10 of the Troy Trojans before the game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium on September 15, 2018 in Lincoln, Nebraska. (Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)
(Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)
PROVO, Utah – Fans of both BYU and Troy can start getting excited about a game being played on Saturday night in Provo. Troy’s athletic director Brent Jones shared a message on social media that the Trojans football program tested negative for COVID-19.
. @TroyTrojansFB COVID-19 tests came back negative and we are off to BYU! #BeatBYU pic.twitter.com/6T5eGeJm0m
— Brent Jones (@brentjones4) September 25, 2020
Welcome to 2020, where anything that is schedule isn’t guaranteed to happen amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
No. 18 ranked BYU will host Troy in front of an empty LaVell Edwards Stadium when the game kicks off at 8:15 p.m. (MDT). Originally, BYU intended to have 6,000 fans in attendance at LES. But a spike in COVID-19 cases throughout the state of Utah, especially the cities of Provo and Orem, left Utah Governor Gary Herbert to put those cities back into a phase “orange.”
BYU/Troy navigating the challenges that come with COVID-19
Both teams enter the game with 1-0 records and have had to navigate the unprecedented challenges that come with this season. Earlier this week, BYU starting quarterback Zach Wilson revealed that he had a case of COVID-19 this past summer. Wilson’s experience with COVID only lasted four days.
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Protecting Wilson is BYU’s offensive line. They’ll be down a player in starting offensive guard Tristen Hoge, who is experiencing pneumonia after battling a case of COVID-19 himself earlier this month.
Last week, BYU’s game against Army West Point was postponed due to a small number of COVID-19 cases within the Cougar football program. A matchup BYU hopes to reschedule at a later date.
🏈 Troy Trojans (@TroyTrojansFB)
🗒️ #OneTROY with a long trip out to Provo
🆚 BYU Cougars #GoCougs #TROYvsBYU
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🛫 MGM – 3:12pm CT
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Track Here👉🏼: https://t.co/PPGcNHnOvO pic.twitter.com/c2xgO3tHfR— Sports + Aviation (@SportsAviation) September 25, 2020
The Trojans from Troy University, located in Pike County, Alabama, are located in a county down in the southeast that currently has a 263 COVID case rate per 100,000 persons in the last 14 days.
These details highlight the challenges these college football teams are faced with to make a game happen in the pandemic.
Saturday night’s game in Provo will mark the first time that the two programs have ever met in football. The game was added to each program’s schedule in August when conferences changed their fall schedules. This matchup is part of a two-game series with BYU returning a visit to Troy to open the 2026 season.
No. 18 BYU vs. Troy
Kickoff: 8:15 p.m. (MDT)
TV: ESPN
Radio: KSL Newsradio (102.7 FM, 1160 AM)
Location: LaVell Edwards Stadium (No fans)
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (Saturday from 12–3 p.m., KSL Newsradio). Follow him on Twitter: @Mitch_Harper.
