Houston-North Texas Game Canceled, Contact Tracing Strikes Again

The Houston Cougars 2020 season will have to wait another week after it was announced Wednesday that Saturday's game against North Texas has been canceled, according to Denton Record-Chronicle reporter Brett Vito, who reports the game cancelation is due to contact tracing. Four athletes in the North Texas athletic department have active cases of COVID.

That leaves Houston with another empty Saturday after having last Saturday's game against Baylor canceled and not likely to be played this season. It was the same case a week ago when contact tracing cost the teams a game.

"Following student-athlete, coaching staff and inner personnel being tested three times each week since August, there were a total of four positive tests this week," North Texas said in a statement. "Those people are in isolation and their close contacts have been identified. The succeeding contact tracing of those positive tests left the football program unable to field a team for a game this week."

Houston has now lost the chance to play openers against Rice, Memphis, Baylor and now North Texas. The next game on the Cougars schedule is October 8 against Tulane (1-1).