LOS ANGELES — A red equipment truck with "UTAH UTES" painted in white across the wind deflector idled in a Rose Bowl tunnel Friday morning, waiting for the arrival of the team bearing its name.
It would never come.
UCLA's home opener against Utah scheduled for Saturday at the Rose Bowl was called off after another positive COVID-19 test involving the Utes, giving the Pac-12 Conference as many games canceled as played in the season's early going.
It was the first cancellation of a game involving the Bruins and the second in as many weeks for the Utes, whose roster has been ravaged by the novel coronavirus. The Pac-12 declared the game between UCLA and Utah a no-contest and said in a statement that the Utes did not have the minimum number of players available as a result of positive tests and resulting isolation of other players per contact tracing protocols.
Utah athletic director Mark Harlan told ESPN radio in Salt Lake City that the team had 17 positive cases overall and 11 additional players in quarantine, though those absences would seem to leave the Utes above the minimum threshold of 53 scholarship players needed for a game.
"We have been on the edge all week and with a positive test today, we can't move forward," Harlan said in a tweet. "Devastated for our team, our fans and this whole state."
It was not immediately clear if UCLA would be able to stage a makeup game this weekend. The Bruins (0-1) are next scheduled to play at Oregon on Nov. 20.
California was also in search of a game this weekend after learning that it would have a game called off for a second consecutive week despite only one positive test on its roster. The Golden Bears' opener had been wiped out by strict contact tracing protocols ordered by local health officials and their game Saturday against Arizona State was declared a no-contest because of positives involving the Sun Devils, including coach Herm Edwards.
The Pac-12 now has canceled four games, matching the number it has played and illuminating the challenges of starting a season as viral case counts soared across the country. It felt like the conference had reached its Rudy Gobert moment, a season on the precipice like the NBA was in March after the Utah Jazz star's positive test presaged the widespread shutdown of sports.
"I share in the disappointment felt by our football student-athletes, coaches and staff at the news of the cancellation of our home opener (Saturday) against the University of Utah," UCLA athletic director Martin Jarmond said in a statement. "Disappointment aside, there's no question it was the right decision. The health and safety of Pac-12 student-athletes, coaches and staff remains our guiding principle. As we have said all along, this season is all about remaining flexible, and our team will stay ready to play."
Utes coach Kyle Whittingham said on Monday that his team barely satisfied the minimum threshold of 53 scholarship players available, adding that scout-teamers were moving up to the first team and walk-ons were preparing to play. The game against UCLA, originally scheduled for Friday, was pushed back one day to bolster its chances of taking place.
Utah left guard Nick Ford tweeted Friday that Los Angeles County officials were not allowing him to play after being exposed to COVID-19 even though he had received "20-plus negative tests" over eight days. A City of Pasadena spokesperson said the city's protocols would not prevent the game from proceeding but required a 14-day quarantine for anyone who had been a close contact of someone who tested positive.
"Disappointment and frustration are both understatements for the way I feel," Ford wrote. "When it's finally my time to step back on the field ... feel bad for whoever I'm going against."
UCLA completed its opener after one player tested positive in the week before the game. The Bruins were spared the fate of other teams that have had to cancel games because they did not have to quarantine a wide swath of players, though the player who tested positive remained out this weekend, coach Chip Kelly said.
A daily testing system designed to spare the Pac-12 season has instead imperiled it. Conference officials acknowledged Friday that a testing error had led to multiple Stanford players being held out of a game against Oregon last weekend even though subsequent testing showed that the one player suspected to have the virus was actually negative.
"We apologize to the Stanford football team and its supporters, and especially to the student-athletes who were held out of the game as a result of the testing protocol errors," the Pac-12 said in a statement that served as little consolation after the Cardinal's 35-14 loss to the Ducks. "We are working with our game day testing partner to ensure this type of error does not occur in the future."
UCLA juggling its schedule within a season is rare but not unprecedented. A game on the road against Miami in 1998 was rescheduled for later in the season because of Hurricane Georges. A game against Arizona State in 2001 was postponed until the end of the season after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11.
Several UCLA players said earlier this week that the team had completed energetic practices while operating under the assumption that the Bruins would play the Utes.
"In terms of the game, that's something that we don't have any control over," tight end Mike Martinez said. "So all we can control is focusing on our fundamentals and our effort every day in practice. So as a team, I think that's just our focus every day. And then we just let the rest happen."
