Sunday, erstwhile starting quarterback Maty Mauk was suspended by Missouri for the remainder of the 2015 season for violating unspecified team rules. Not surprisingly, an off-field incident was the tipping point for the football program.
Citing multiple sources with knowledge of the situation, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has reported that Mauk’s suspension came four days after an off-campus incident involving the player and an unidentified male outside of a downtown Columbia drinking establishment. The incident came a handful hours after Mauk had apologized to the team, three days after he was reinstated from a different suspension.
From the Post-Dispatch:According to two sources, hours after Mauk apologized to his teammates, Mauk and another man engaged in a verbal confrontation outside of downtown Columbia bar The Field House shortly after midnight.
The scene was relayed to Mizzou’s administration, and after athletics director Mack Rhoades conferred with Pinkel, Mauk was suspended for the rest of the season, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.
One source said Mauk “didn’t fulfill set expectations” of his initial suspension.
Between 11:09 p.m. and 1:14 a.m., Columbia police were dispatched to the area on Broadway four times for various incidents, but a police spokesman confirmed that Mauk was not mentioned in any reports taken that night.
Mauk was suspended in late September for, again, violating unspecified team rules. Head coach Gary Pinkel has steadfastly refused to reveal the reasons behind either suspension.
A return to the Tigers is not guaranteed as the school stated in its announcement of Mauk’s suspension that his status will be reevaluated at season’s end.
Freshman Drew Lock has started the past four games under center, and the Tigers are 1-3 in that span. Mizzou (4-4) need to win two of its remaining four games (vs. No. 20 Mississippi State, vs. BYU, vs. Tennessee, at Arkansas) to avoid a bowl-less postseason for the first time since 2012, its first season in the SEC, and just the second time the last 11 seasons.