When the Arizona Wildcats play the 2021 college football season, they'll be one of — if not, the most — vaccinated teams in the Pac-12.
During Arizona's media day on Wednesday, Arizona first-year head coach Jedd Fisch revealed 115 of the UA's 118 players have received a COVID-19 vaccination — a 97.4% rate.
That's a five-player increase from July 27, when Fisch said at Pac-12 media day that eight players were unvaccinated.
Fisch is "hopeful" the remaining three unvaccinated players will decide to get the vaccine.
Arizona head coach Jedd Fisch says unvaccinated players will have to wear masks indoors and be subjected to different protocols than those who are vaccinated. pic.twitter.com/hiQppVIF1S
— The Wildcaster (@TheWildcaster) August 4, 2021
"I just think that it will be an incredible message," Fisch said. "It'll be a great message to the world, the state of Arizona and to the campus. If there are a few guys, for one reason or another, who choose not to (get the coronavirus vaccine), the Pac-12 has come out with a set of guidelines, as has our own physicians."
In coalition with the Pac-12, unvaccinated players will be subjected to different protocols than the other 115 players, including mask-wearing indoors and stricter quarantine procedures, if they test positive for coronavirus.
"The biggest one, non-vaccinated players — indoors — will have to wear masks, and that's through the Pac-12 guidelines," said Fisch. "Other than that, they have to go through testing protocols that vaccinated players have to go through, and they will additionally have to go through quarantine rules, if they become exposed, that vaccinated players will not have to. They can't test out in the same way that vaccinated players can test out of close contact.
"So, the Pac-12 has given us pretty strict guidelines, our team doctors have reiterated those guidelines, but we are in a very good place. A lot of things would have to occur for those three guys to run into any of those problems."
New Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff said during Pac-12 media day that eight teams in the conference have reached the 80% vaccination threshold, with four above 90%.
Arizona begins fall training camp Friday at 8:30 a.m.
