The Holiday Bowl between UCLA and No. 18 North Carolina State has been canceled after a wave of positive COVID-19 cases in the Bruins’ defensive line room, according to The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman. The game was scheduled for 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
UCLA announced it wound not participate in the game less than five hours before the game was scheduled.
The Bruins were down to just two interior defensive lineman yesterday, according to Feldman, but had more positive tests on Tuesday. Without enough players in the unit, UCLA felt unable to safely field a prepared team for the Holiday Bowl in San Diego. These two teams have not played since 1960.
The Holiday Bowl marks the fifth bowl game that has been canceled in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, joining the Hawaii Bowl, Military Bowl, Fenway Bowl and Arizona Bowl. Additionally, the Gator Bowl replaced Texas A&M with 5-7 Rutgers and the Sun Bowl poached Central Michigan to play Washington State in the Sun Bowl.
The decision marks the end of both teams’ seasons as it is too late to find a replacement for the game. NC State finishes the season 9-3, the fourth season of at least eight wins in the past five seasons under head coach Dave Doeren. UCLA finished 8-4 to reach eight wins for the first time since 2015 under fourth-year head coach Chip Kelly.
