Clemson coach Dabo Swinney ripped into the Florida State administration on Sunday night, one day following his No. 4 Tigers being force to postpone their game against the Seminoles after the teams' medical staffs could not agree on moving forward. At issue was a symptomatic Clemson player whose Friday COVID-19 test came back positive on Saturday morning after he had already traveled with the team to Tallahassee for the game.
"If the standard to play was zero positive tests, then we would have never had a season," Swinney told reporters on his weekly teleconference. "This game was not canceled because of COVID. COVID was just an excuse to cancel the game. To be honest with you, I don't think it has anything to do with their players. I have no doubt that their players wanted to play and would have played. Same with the coaches. To me, the Florida State administration forfeited the game."
The revelation of a positive test from within Clemson's traveling party apparently gave Florida State pause about playing the game, even if it was rescheduled to Sunday or Monday. No makeup date has been set as of this time, but Swinney did not seem too keen on the idea of returning to Tallahassee this season.
"If they want to play Clemson, in my opinion, they need to come to Clemson or they need to pay for all expenses," Swinney said. "Other than that, there's no reason for us to play them. We were there, we were ready and we met the standard."
While speaking with reporters on Monday, Seminoles coach Mike Norvell sounded as though he was willing to assist with that. He also made it clear that no one at Florida State was intending to forfeit the game.
Norvell says he's "absolutely" hopeful the Clemson game will be played. He's also "excited" to see it played in Tallahassee. If contributions need to be made financially, he says he'll sign up to make one. #FSU
— Matt Baker (@MBakerTBTimes) November 23, 2020
Norvell: Football coaches are not doctors. Some of us might think we are, but there’s a reason why those advisors are able to make those decisions from the information that is provided. #FSU
— Matt Baker (@MBakerTBTimes) November 23, 2020
Sources told CBS Sports on Saturday the player in question tested negative twice during the week. There was no contact tracing needed because that player's roommate was not on the trip. The player was isolated when his positive test was revealed.
