Texas Tech football reports 75 positive coronavirus cases since June

When the Texas Tech Red Raiders narrowly managed to escape an upset at the hands of the Houston Baptist Huskies on Saturday in Lubbock, the game was surely made closer by the absence of around a dozen players from the lineup, including graduate transfer linebacker Collin Schooler.

Since returning to campus in June, the team has dealt with significant coronavirus outbreaks — the school reported on Monday that 75 of the 123 players on the active roster have tested positive for COVID-19. Of those cases, six are active, down significantly from the 21 active cases that the program reported in late August. That means that more than 60 percent of the active roster has contracted the novel coronavirus, one of the highest numbers in the country.

The issues with the disease in Lubbock stand in sharp contrast to the situation at Texas, which did not have any reported issues with players contracting the virus in the lead up to the season. In fact, the Longhorns haven’t announced any new positive tests in the football program since 13 players were positive during the on-boarding process in June.

It’s a remarkable accomplishment for Texas. Head coach Tom Herman and his players have confidence in the team continuing to make the right decisions. If that is the case in less than two weeks and the Red Raiders continue to struggle in those areas, it could give the Longhorns a further advantage in Lubbock.