Report: Justin Hilliard's Presumed False Positive Sidelines Him for Penn State Game
According to Austin Ward of Lettermen Row, the Ohio State football team is dealing with its first pandemic-related hiccup of the regular season. The only catch, is that its reportedly a sticky situation because it involves a false positive test.
Senior linebacker Justin Hilliard reportedly won't be available to play in Saturday night's game, as multiple sources with direct knowledge of the situation confirmed to Lettermen Row that Hilliard took a rapid response test that came back positive after he arrived in Happy Valley. But as is protocol, the senior took a second test and produced a negative result.
Despite the false positive, Hilliard isn't allowed to play vs. Penn State—but he will be allowed to stand on the sidelines and continue to travel with the team because there is no concern of him spreading the virus.
Ohio State does not release any specific data pertaining to the virus and its student-athletes and the school has been extremely cautious about keeping its players and staff isolated.
“It’s an ongoing deal,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said before the season. “This is going to go on for a while, and we have to continue to be vigilant in that area, not get fatigued with following all the protocols, doing what we have to do and making the sacrifices that have been made. That’s been everybody. And that’s not easy to do. It’s an emphasis every single day. I’ve made it my vow to the players that I’ll bring it up every single day.
“We talk about it every single day because it’s that important.”
The fact that Justin Hilliard ultimately tested negative is particularly frustrating for Ohio State, but they will have to settle for him being on the sideline tonight.
