Baylor Bears Football Season Opener Postponed

The Baylor Bears' 2020 season opener against Louisiana Tech has been postponed.

News 10 report  Baylor confirmed the report in a press release Tuesday night.

Baylor's season opener was supposed to happen on Sunday, September 6 in Houston against Ole Miss, but that game was cancelled as well because of COVID-19 concerns.

Both Athletic Directors expressed their disappointment in having to postpone the game, but both also said it's in the best interest of their athletes, staff, and fans.

Baylor Director of Athletics Mack B. Rhoades wrote:

"[I]n the interest of the health and wellness of our student-athletes, coaches, and staff, we are confident in this unfortunate but necessary course of action. To the Baylor and Louisiana Tech student-athletes and communities, we share in your disappointment and look ahead to resuming play.”

Louisiana Tech Director of Athletics Tommy McClelland had this to say:

"We are obviously very disappointed that we will not be able to open the season this weekend at Baylor. However, with the number of recent positive COVID19 results and contact tracing, it is simply not possible. We would be putting our student-athletes at risk.Baylor's season opener is now set for Sat., September 26, at home against Kansas."

McClelland attributed the increased health and safety concerns to the impact of Hurricane Laura, stating that many of the protective measures in place against COVID-19 throughout August were no longer possible as student athletes were forced to find places to stay or take in displaced relatives in the wake of the storm.

"The days leading up to this outbreak, we had a stretch of three weeks with only one positive case," McClelland said. "So the protocols we had in place were working prior to Hurricane Laura."

Baylor plans to inform ticket holders via email of developments and adjusted game dates.

It's a shame to see this happen, as some college football would bring a lot of joy to folks right now. But hey, the health and safety of these athletes and the fans is the top priority.