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STAR-ADVERTISER / AUG. 3
Construction at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex.
Citing the surge in COVID-19 cases, the University of Hawaii football team is withdrawing from the nationally televised EasyPost Hawaii Bowl on Christmas Eve at the Ching Complex.
“The recent surge in COVID-19 cases has forced us to not participate in the game,” UH athletic director David Matlin announced on Twitter. “We are disappointed for our players, coaches and fans.”
“We are disappointed our season has to end this way,” UH coach Todd Graham said. “As competitive as we are and as much as want to play the game, we cannot put the health and safety of our student-athletes at risk.”
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser learned there were at least 30 members of the program — players, coaches and staff — who are in quarantine following positive test results for the coronavirus. That number includes several starters on offense, mostly the offensive line.
Memphis, the bowl’s other participant, did not report any positive results.
There will be no replacement team, so the game will be canceled.
It also is not known if the Rainbow Warriors will have to forfeit their participation fee. Each team reportedly was to receive the financial value of $1.2 million, a payout that also must cover meals, lodging, and transportation. The UH assistant coaches were set to receive a month’s salary as a bowl bonus. Head coach Todd Graham was entitled to $20,000 for qualifying for the bowl, and another $20,000 for winning it.
The Warriors reported that nearly all of the players, coaches and staff received immunization shots. There were a few exemptions for health and religious reasons.
Last week, UH began testing when some players reported symptoms that were confirmed to be COVID-19 exposures. In accordance with state protocols, those who tested positive were placed into isolation for 10 days.
The Warriors practiced Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and today at the Ching Complex in UH’s lower campus in Manoa. But following today’s practice, it was determined that a health/safety threshold had been surpassed, making it too much of a competitive disadvantage for the Warriors to field a team.
The Warriors had checked into the Moana Surfrider on Sunday. The Warriors already received their gifts from the bowl.
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