One of the biggest unknowns when it comes the suspensions of three LSU players -- aside from whether there are actually suspensions as the school refuses to acknowledge their existence -- is just how long the suspensions will last.
The Daily Reveille broke the news that starting cornerback Tyrann Mathieu and leading rusher Spencer Ware would be suspended for the upcoming Auburn game for failing a drug test, while the Associated Press later reported that top nickel corner Tharold Simon would be suspended as well. The school’s student paper added that the suspensions could be for multiple games, putting in doubt the availability of two starters and a top reserve for the Alabama game in two weeks.
Or, based on at least one report, the players could be available for the Nov. 5 showdown between the top two teams in the latest Associated Press poll and BcS rankings.
ESPN.com‘s Mark Schlabach is reporting that while the players have been suspended indefinitely by head coach Les Miles, there is a chance they could return for the game in Tuscaloosa. That return would be based on the players meeting several requirements, although we’d assume “importance in keeping the Tigers on track for an SEC title and a shot at the national championship” would be high, so to speak, on the list of said requirements.
“There are some requirements in place which the players have to complete before they’ll be allowed back on the team,” a source familiar with the situation told Schlabach. What those specific requirements would consist of is unclear.
It’s also unclear if these reports of failed drug tests constitute a first or second offense. Per LSU’s drug policy for student-athletes, a second failed drug test would prompt a suspension for 15 percent of that sport’s games or a suspension of up to 30 days. That 15 percent for football would represent a rounded-up number of two games, which would preclude any of the trio of players from playing in the Alabama game if this was their second case of dirty urine.
As has been reported by other media outlets, Schlabach writes that the players are facing sanctions for having tested positive for synthetic marijuana, which is one of multiple recreational and prescription drugs for which the university tests.
That weed substitute, more commonly referred to as K2 and which was developed at Clemson University, is described by one “pharmacologist” as “an herbal substance sold as an incense or smoking material that remains legal in the United States. The products contain one or more synthetic compounds that behave similarly to the primary psychoactive constituent of marijuana... THC.”
High Times describes it as “some really good s---.”