Bowl Notes : Deion Sanders Will Play in Sugar Bowl

Florida State All-American cornerback Deion Sanders will play in the Jan. 2 Sugar Bowl against Auburn despite his arrest in a shopping mall scuffle, coach Bobby Bowden said Monday night in Tallahassee, Fla.

“Based on the facts presented to me, I do not feel that it would be fair to prohibit Deion Sanders from playing in next Monday’s Sugar Bowl,” Bowden said in a prepared statement.

“I met with Deion to get his account of just what happened. I delayed my decision until I had talked with other individuals regarding the situation and only after I had satisfied myself as to what happened did I determine that his eligibility should not be affected,” Bowden said.

Sanders, 21, was arrested Christmas Eve after an incident in a Ft. Myers gift shop and was charged with battery on a police officer and disorderly conduct. He was released Saturday night after posting $2,600 bond, police said.

Sanders met with Bowden on Monday and then went on to a workout with teammates. Florida State players were scheduled to practice briefly this morning before boarding a flight for New Orleans, where they meet Auburn in a matchup of 10-1 teams.

C.W. (Hootie) Ingram, Florida State’s athletic director, agreed that Sanders should play.

“I met with Coach Bowden when he returned from Christmas vacation and helped him review the situation,” Ingram said. “I agree with his conclusion that the incident should not affect Sanders’ eligibility for the Sugar Bowl. I contacted President (Bernie) Sliger about the decision and we released our statements as soon as all parties were made aware of it.”

USC, after a break for Christmas, resumes practice today at UC Irvine. The team will be quartered at the Irvine Marriott.

Instead of staying on campus to practice, Coach Larry Smith wants his team to have a bowl experience while changing its surroundings. He did the same thing last year while preparing for Michigan State.

USC flanker John Jackson, a junior, was named to the All-American academic team. He has a 3.21 grade-point average. He became the 18th Trojan football player to receive the honor. A few players will appear in college all-star games after Monday’s Rose Bowl game. Quarterback Rodney Peete and split end Erik Affholter will play in the Hula Bowl game Jan. 7 at Honolulu. Tailback Steven Webster and offensive tackle John Guerrero will play in the Japan Bowl the same weekend.

Then, on Jan. 15, Peete, Affholter and tight end Paul Green will play for the West team in the East-West Shrine game at Stanford Stadium. Smith will coach the West team.