ST. LOUIS — Missouri wide receiver Dorial Green-Beckham was suspended indefinitely Monday for an unspecified violation of team rules, three months after he and two friends were arrested on suspicion of felony drug distribution when police found a pound of marijuana in their car.
Coach Gary Pinkel announced the suspension without mentioning the January incident in which the standout receiver was arrested in his Missouri hometown of Springfield. No criminal charges have been filed in that case against any of the three men arrested.
“It’s unfortunate, but it’s the right thing to do for our football program, for the athletic department, and also for Dorial,” Pinkel said in a prepared statement. “We have high standards related to the expectations that come along with being a Missouri Tiger, and Dorial has not met those recently.”
Pinkel said he consulted athletic director Mike Alden on the suspension, which includes spring practices and other team activities. Green-Beckham will continue to have access to the football team’s academic resources.
Green-Beckham was also charged in October 2012 with marijuana possession in Columbia and later pleaded guilty to second-degree trespassing. He and two teammates were reportedly smoking pot in a campus parking lot near Memorial Stadium.
Green-Beckham led Missouri with 59 receptions as a sophomore last season and scored 12 touchdowns, including a school single-game record of four scores against Kentucky. Some recruiting services ranked the 6-foot-6, 225-pound receiver as the nation’s top prep prospect coming out of Springfield Hillcrest High. He caught six passes for 144 yards and two scores in the SEC championship game against Auburn and was considered the Tigers’ top returning pass catcher.
“Representing Mizzou and our fans is a privilege, and we’ll work with him during this process,” Pinkel said. “It’s been disappointing to have this, and other issues which have taken place lately. It’s frustrating, because we work very hard to instill responsibility and discipline in our young men so that our program represents Mizzou the right way. These actions aren’t representative of those expectations, and we are addressing these issues head-on.”
Springfield police have said they first stopped the Jeep Cherokee driven by John McDaniel because of an expired license and then searched the vehicle after an officer smelled marijuana.
Court records show that Patrick Prouty said he owned the drugs but said his supply was for personal use. McDaniel said he had hidden one gram of marijuana in the car’s glove box. Police found no drugs in the possession of Green-Beckham, who denied McDaniel’s assertion that the three men had just smoked a marijuana cigarette in the car before being pulled over.
Tyson Martin, Green-Beckham’s attorney in the Springfield drug case, could not be reached for comment Monday.
Last week, Missouri basketball player Zach Price was suspended after being arrested twice for allegedly assaulting his roommate and a woman.
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