Reports broke on Twitter shortly after 8:00 PM Thursday night that Clemson quarterback and Heisman Trophy front-runner Trevor Lawrence had tested positive for Covid-19, and under the ACC protocol, he will have to quarantine for 10 days. That will take him out of Saturday’s game with Boston College, and could possibly sideline him for the follow week’s game at Notre Dame.
Mike Garafalo and Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network first reported the news with the following tweet:
Soon after that tweet, several Clemson media sources confirmed the news and confirmed that Lawrence will not play this Saturday against Boston College. And shortly before 9:00 PM, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney issued a statement confirming all that had been reported:
“Trevor has authorized us this evening to announce that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and is now in isolation. He is doing well with mild symptoms but will not be available for this week’s game against Boston College. While we certainly will miss Trevor, this is an opportunity for other guys to step up and we’re excited about competing against a very good BC team on Saturday. Go Tigers.”
Around 9:15 PM, Lawrence tweeted out his own confirmation:
So what is next for Lawrence or any athlete who tests positive? Here are the guidelines as published by the ACC:
Pursuant to CDC guidance, a student-athlete who tests positive for COVID-19 shall be isolated for at least 10 days from the onset of symptoms/positive test and at least 1 day (i.e., 24 hours) has passed since recovery defined as resolution of fever without the use of fever-reducing medications and improvement of respiratory symptoms (e.g., cough, shortness of breath). A student-athlete’s medical treatment will be determined by institutional medical staff, and be considered unavailable for training, team/group activities or game play until the student-athlete has both completed necessary isolation and had a medical clearance by team physicians. Consistent with NCAA Constitution 3.2.4.19, the institution’s medical staff must have unchallengeable autonomous authority to determine medical management and return-to-play decisions related to student-athletes.
The date that Lawrence first suffered the onset of symptoms is crucial as it pertains to the Notre Dame game a week from Saturday. Considering Lawrence sat for Zoom media interviews Tuesday afternoon, you can conclude the symptoms did not become apparent until later that day or Wednesday. However, ESPN did report Thursday night that according to school officials, Lawrence would be eligible to return for the Notre Dame game if there are no additional issues related to Covid.
The top ranked Tigers opened as 32 point favorites against Boston College. The line had settled during the week at 31 points, but Thursday night it had dropped to 28 points.
With Lawrence out, true freshman DJ Uiagalelei is expected to get the start at quarterback. He’s completed 12 of 19 passes for 102 yards and has rushed for 32 yards. Lawrence has passed for 1833 yards and 17 touchdowns with 2 interceptions this season.
