Alabama head football coach Nick Saban received a negative result on a coronavirus test he took Thursday, according to an announcement from the University of Alabama on Friday.
Saban would require three negative tests 24 hours apart to meet the SEC protocols and take his place on the sidelines for Saturday’s much-anticipated game against the Georgia Bulldogs.
The university also noted that the famed coach remains asymptomatic and isolated in his home, as he has been since first receiving a positive test result on Wednesday.
Saban’s first positive result came from an outside lab that Alabama was using in addition to the SEC-mandated testing, according to the university’s Friday afternoon announcement.
“Should he have three negative PCR tests through the SEC appointed lab, each 24 hours apart, the initial test would be considered a false positive pursuant to SEC protocols and he would be allowed to return,” advised Jeff Allen, director of Sports Medicine for the Crimson Tide, in a statement.
A PCR test is the gold standard of coronavirus detection that uses a molecular reaction to determine if the virus is present in a human.
Saban is now presumably awaiting the results from a PCR test administered sometime on Friday, and would need to take and get the results of another on Saturday before being cleared to be on the sidelines.
Alabama and Georgia play Saturday at 7:00 p.m. CT on CBS.
Henry Thornton is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can contact him by email: [email protected] or on Twitter @HenryThornton95
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