Gator Bowl makes decision on Texas A&M's availability, per report

COVID-19 is starting to take its toll on the sports world yet again as several leagues and college basketball have been hit hard by the spreading of the virus. Now, add college football to the list.

Texas A&M will not be able to participate in the Gator Bowl because they don’t have enough players to play the game, Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated reported.

The bowl game is now scrambling to find a replacement, but it would only be a possibility if another team can’t play. The Aggies were expected to play Wake Forest.

Because of a COVID outbreak, Texas A&M is unable to play in the Gator Bowl, sources tell @SINow. Aggies don’t have enough available players.

Gator is searching for a replacement bowl team, sources say, but the only way that's possible is if another bowl is impacted.

— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) December 22, 2021

This was not a surprise after Billy Liucci of TexAgs reported earlier this week that football operations have been shut down since Saturday because of a COVID-19 outbreak within the program, of mainly vaccinated athletes. The report added that the team has met via Zoom since Saturday as, “multiple positions have been hit particularly hard.”

Here’s an update following the initial news report:

Per Aggie AD Ross Bjork:
A&M is currently down to just 38 scholarship position players and the Ags have just 13 available scholarship players available on defense. That includes Covid, opts outs, transfers and season-ending injuries.

— Billy Liucci (@billyliucci) December 22, 2021