Following up on the arrest of Michael Floyd, Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly has released a statement addressing the legal situation their star wide receiver finds himself in.
And, at least team-wise, the situation he finds himself in is “indefinite suspension”.
“I’ve spoken to Michael Floyd and his mother and, in light of what took place this past weekend, I let him know he has been suspended indefinitely from football team-related activities,” Kelly said in the statement. “Football needs to take a backseat at the moment while Michael gets his life in order, and while I don’t know when Michael will be reinstated, it will not happen until Michael demonstrates he has successfully modified his behavior and the legal and university disciplinary matters have run their respective courses. What’s most important right now is Michael focusing on maturing and developing more as a person while working to improve his decision-making processes.”
Floyd was arrested early Sunday morning by university police and charged with a drunk-driving offense. According to the police report, his BAC was .19 -- more than double the legal limit -- and he failed three field sobriety tests. Floyd was pulled over at 4 a.m. for running a stop sign.
He spent seven hours in jail before being released on a $500 bond. A May 2 court appearance has been scheduled.
“First of all, I want to apologize to my family, friends, teammates, coaches, the University and the extended Notre Dame family for my behavior this weekend,” Floyd said in his own statement. “I understand the gravity of the decision I made and how it could have had catastrophic effects on myself and others. I’ve talked to Coach Kelly and I accept the decision he made. I absolutely recognize that I have many things to work on to become a better person and will need to regain the trust of all whom I have hurt within my immediate family and the Notre Dame family. I fully intend to spend the immediate future improving myself to become a better member of our community.”
As this was Floyd’s second alcohol-related legal scrape since coming to South Bend, it will be very, very interesting to see how the university handles the length of his punishment. As noted by the Fort Wayne Gazette, former Irish tight end Will Yeatman was suspended for the balance of the 2008 season after the second of his two alcohol-related arrests in September.
Of course, at the time of his second brush with the law, Yeatman had just eight receptions for 45 yards and zero touchdowns. Floyd, on the other hand, has 171 catches for 2,539 yards and 28 touchdowns for his career, and is closing in on several all-time Irish receiving marks.
It’s a tad bit easier, to say the least, to sit the former down for almost an entire season than it would be the latter, who is widely regarded as one of the top receivers in the country. Again, it will be very interesting to see how this plays out, regardless of which direction it ultimately goes.