Cris Carter Suspended--Marijuana Reported

A day after suspending All-American wide receiver Cris Carter from the Ohio State football team, Buckeye coach Earle Bruce said he was sorry to have to take such a step but believed it was necessary.

“What can I say? I’m disappointed that it happened; I’m sorry it happened. I hope that everything is worked out, corrected, and we can get on with it,” Bruce said Thursday before one of his team’s spring practice sessions.

Although Bruce has said only that the suspension stemmed from “a violation of team rules,” the Columbus Dispatch in today’s editions quoted an unidentified source close to the Ohio State athletic department as saying Carter was suspended because of use of marijuana.

Carter, the leading receiver in Ohio State history, who will be a senior this fall, was unavailable for comment.

The team physician, Dr. Robert Murphy, would neither confirm nor deny the newspaper report.

“There have been several reports, and I’m not going to comment on any of them,” Murphy said.

The newspaper’s source said Carter tested positive in a drug test last week. Football team members take regular drug tests at Ohio State.