Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer will miss the upcoming season due to COVID-19 issues, the school said on Monday.

The 73-year-old coach has been out of the squad since April, when the delta variant of the virus was spreading in the United States.

“This COVID situation is real and we have to be very careful and treat it with great respect,” she told reporters in February after Rutgers returned from a six-week hiatus for the virus.

Team spokesman Matt Choquette said last month, when the coach skipped Big Ten media day, that Stringer was concerned about the lack of testing this season compared to last season, of the highly contagious nature of the delta variant and its desire not to pass the disease on to it. -one-year-old girl, who required special care since she contracted spinal meningitis at the age of 2.

Stringer has 1,055 wins in her 50-year coaching career and is fourth all-time in Division I wins. She would begin her 27th season with Rutgers. Associate head coach Tim Eatman has replaced Stringer since April and will remain in that role.

He was also responsible when Stringer missed the final games of the 2018-19 season due to exhaustion.

Stringer signed a five-year extension in April. The contract guarantees compensation of $ 5.5 million, starting at $ 1 million in the first year, as well as performance and retention bonuses.

The Scarlet Knights finished 14-5 last season, losing in the first round of the NCAA tournament to BYU. The team graduated star Arella Guirantes from the WNBA, and outstanding freshman Diamond Johnson transferred to NC State.

Rutgers opens the season Tuesday against Saint Peter’s.