Rutgers will not suspend QB Teel for punch

From NCAA College Football Information & Resource

September 22, 2008

5th-yr. senior Mike Teel will not be suspended after punching a teammate.

Rutgers head football coach Greg Schiano said Sunday that quarterback Mike Teel will not serve a suspension following the physicality between Teel and teammate Glen Lee last Saturday.

Right before the final buzzer sounded in Rutgers' 23-21 loss to Navy in Annapolis, Teel threw a punch at Lee as he came off the field just after throwing an interception that sealed the Midshipmen's win. Lee was actually encouraging Teel to keep his head up but unfortunately, Teel misunderstood what Lee was trying to do and that's when he swung one at the sophomore.

"In my eyes, it could be a great teaching opportunity, as what not to do when frustration sets in and bubbles over," said Schiano, who insisted that the incident was over and done with. "But Mike has apologized for what he did. There's no excuse for what Mike did. It was inappropriate behavior and not something I or my coaching staff condones. But to make that the reason (to suspend Teel) doesn't make sense. We're a close-knit group and it was just an event that bubbled over. There is no reason to make any change."

Schiano also said that there was no reason to suspend his quarterback and that he understood what Lee, a reserve defensive back, was trying to do.

"He was trying to tell Mike that we don't hang our heads. Glen's intent was great. It was just taken the wrong way," he added.

Teel told reporters that he was sorry for what he did and said that he lost his cool.

"He was telling me to keep my head up and to get off the field," Teel said. "He was doing the right thing and what I did was so totally wrong."

For his part, Lee wanted to put the incident behind him, saying that what happened "was a family oriented thing."

The loss to the Navy dropped the Rutgers to an 0-3 start, marking the first time the Scarlet Knights fell in such a predicament since Schiano first handled the team in 2001. He and the rest of the Rutgers football squad will have a chance to snap their 3-game losing skid at home as RU hosts Morgan State this weekend.

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