Fresh off an upset win at Kansas State, Arkansas State announced Tuesday that its game against Central Arkansas on Saturday will be postponed to Saturday, Oct. 10 as the Red Wolves program deals with a "depleted position group." The university's announcement did not mention COVID-19 specifically, however, the team was missing nine starters and 13 players from its depth chart in their victory at Kansas State on Saturday. The school's announcement said it is "unable to assemble a full two-deep depth chart at a specific position group due to player unavailability."
"We are obviously disappointed for the student-athletes participating from both schools, as well as both coaching staffs and fan bases," Arkansas State athletic director Terry Mohajir said. "We are excited that we've rescheduled this game to be played at Centennial Bank Stadium on Oct. 10. While no one wanted this outcome, the health and safety of our student-athletes will always come first. We will remain diligent in our health and safety protocols, and we look forward to resuming our 2020 schedule next week against Tulsa."
The Arkansas State-Central Arkansas game is just the latest game scheduled for Saturday to be postponed, joining Virginia-Virginia Tech, BYU-Army and Memphis-Houston as scratches from this week's slate.
Arkansas State opened its season with a 37-24 loss at Memphis on Sept. 5, and the Tigers are now dealing with a COVID-19 outbreak within their own program. Central Arkansas, which competes at the FCS level, is playing a nine-game schedule this fall that includes games in back-to-back weeks against Eastern Kentucky in October. The school was featured in the first college football game of the season when it beat Austin Peay 24-17 on Aug. 29.
"During these unique times, these situations are bound to occur,' Central Arkansas athletic director Brad Teague said. "We have seen it across the nation. We were definitely ready and looking forward to competing against the Red Wolves, but we absolutely understand that the health and wellness of our student-athletes has to guide all our decisions."
