CFL’s Argonauts Suspend Wagner After He Leaves Camp

The Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League have placed former San Diego State running back Darrin Wagner on the suspended list after Wagner left training camp last week.

Mike McCarthy, Argonaut vice president/general manager, said Wagner attended just three practices after camp opened June 13 before saying he had to go home because of personal problems.

“I said, ‘I wish you could have solved them before you came to camp so we didn’t spend all that money on you,’ ” McCarthy said. “It teed me off. We were counting on seeing what he could do, and he didn’t stick around long enough to give us a chance.

“We tried to help him out. I felt he had the ability, which he does. You never know what’s inside.”

Wagner, 20, redshirted during his freshman year at SDSU in 1988, then rushed for 720 yards and scored 11 touchdowns in seven games for the Aztecs last season. But he was suspended on Nov. 5 after missing several practices without permission. At that time, he led SDSU in rushing and the nation’s freshmen in rushing and all-purpose yards.

Wagner then left school and signed a two-year deal with the Argonauts in April. Had he made the team, a source said, the contract was for a little more than the CFL average, which is $43,000 a year (American).

McCarthy said he will keep Wagner on the suspended list until his contract is up so that no other CFL team can sign him. He said he will not take Wagner back.

“Once they leave, that’s it,” McCarthy said. “I’ve been burned too many times. He ain’t here; he’s gone. That’s it. It’s out of my mind.”