Tennessee Football opts to not play in Liberty Bowl

Tennessee Football was planning on going bowling to take on West Virginia in the Liberty Bowl, but the Vols are backing out and ending its season.

On Sunday, Tennessee football accepted a bid to play in the Liberty Bowl against West Virginia. After a day of thinking the Vols would have one final game before ending the 2020 season, the athletic department drops a bomb and announces they will not participate in the Liberty Bowl, and the season will come to an end.

Volquest reported multiple positive COVID tests after Tennessee’s loss to Texas A&M, which has prompted Tennessee to remove itself from the Liberty Bowl.

The timing is interesting, with rumblings about Jeremy Pruitt possibly being on his way out if he violated any NCAA rules while on the recruiting trail.

I’m not saying that’s the reason the Vols backed out of the Liberty Bowl, but it had to play a factor unless there was an absurd amount of positive COVID tests.

To clear the air, Tennessee football’s Twitter account shared a statement on the matter, but with the announcement that all team activities have been paused and the 2020 season is over, it didn’t say how many players or staff tested positive for COVID-19.

Pruitt did release a statement to inform Vol faithful that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and is feeling mild symptoms, but he’s doing fine.

"“Earlier today, I was informed by our medical staff that I have tested positive for COVID-19, and I immediately began isolating at home,” Pruitt said. “I am experiencing mild symptoms but doing fine. We are obviously disappointed that we will not be able to play in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl, but the health and safety of our student-athletes will always remain our top priority. I am especially proud of our team and medical staff in safely navigating through a unique season where we played all 10 of our regular-season games.”"

I would consider the 3-7 Vols being unable to play in the Liberty Bowl as an opportunity to not be embarrassed again on national television. Of course, it comes at the hands of some players and staff testing positive for COVID-19, and I hope everyone that’s affected by the virus makes a full, speedy recovery.

Now Tennessee fans can put its entire support behind the Tennessee basketball team who is currently in the top-ten as Kentucky is having one of the worst starts in program history. Let’s feed the floor.