Troy's game against No. 15 Coastal Carolina on Saturday at Veterans Memorial Stadium has been postponed due to a combination of positive COVID-19 tests and injuries to a specific position group within the Troy football program.
Troy, Coastal Carolina and the Sun Belt Conference are working together on a date to reschedule the game, which will be announced at a later date.
"While postponing a game is never an easy decision to make, it was the correct one in this instance as the health and well-being of our student-athletes and staff are of the utmost importance," Troy athletic director Brent Jones said. "I would like to recognize and thank the Sun Belt Conference staff and officials from Coastal Carolina for their collaborative approach and effort to come to this very difficult decision. I would be remiss if I did not thank our amazing staff of medical professionals and athletic trainers for their expertise in guiding us through these unprecedented times."
Although Troy hasn't had a large number of players test positive for COVID-19, a combination of COVID issues and injuries would have prevented a position group from fielding enough players for the Coastal Carolina game. The teams will work with the Sun Belt Conference about a potential makeup date, although there are no mutually open weeks. Troy's game against South Alabama, originally set for Oct. 3, was pushed back to Dec. 12 because of COVID-19 concerns with South Alabama.
Coastal Carolina, which already has achieved the highest AP Poll ranking for a Sun Belt team in league history, was aiming to become the first Sun Belt team ever to start a season at 8-0. The Chanticleers are next set to play Nov. 21 against Appalachian State.
Troy, which fell to 4-3 with a loss last week at Georgia Southern, is next scheduled to play Nov. 21 against Middle Tennessee.