Nebraska’s No. 1 I-Back Is Suspended

Nebraska’s Dahrran Diedrick was suspended for the Cornhuskers’ opener Saturday against Texas Christian after the I-back was arrested last weekend in a disturbance at a Lincoln, Neb., bar.

“My decision to suspend Dahrran for this game is not based on this situation alone, but rather a combination of the incident and how I addressed the team just prior to the incident occurring,” Coach Frank Solich said.

Solich cautioned his players after the publicized arrests of running back Thunder Collins and kicker Josh Brown in June. Brown was suspended for the opener and Collins was entered in a pretrial diversion program.

Collins was listed on the depth chart as the Cornhuskers’ No. 1 I-back.

Diedrick, a junior, and backup middle linebacker Tony Tata spent about an hour in jail early Sunday after being arrested for disturbing the peace in separate incidents at the same bar.

Diedrick was kicked out of the bar after a disturbance around 12:30 a.m. Sunday. Police said he was yelling at the bar owner. After he refused to leave, Diedrick was arrested for failure to disperse and disturbing the peace. He is scheduled to appear in court Sept. 12.

Tata is recovering from a knee injury and can’t report to the team until after Saturday’s game, so Solich said he will rule on Tata’s status later.

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Oklahoma Coach Bob Stoops, who left the Sooners earlier this week to be with one of his children who underwent an undisclosed medical procedure, returned to campus. Oklahoma opens the season Saturday against North Carolina.

Houston’s KRIV-TV reported that Devard Darling, a receiver whose twin brother Devaughn collapsed and died in February during a conditioning drill at Florida State, will transfer to Washington State. Darling said the school will appeal to the NCAA to waive a rule that would force him to sit out the season, citing the circumstances surrounding Darling’s transfer.

Florida cornerback Lito Sheppard told the Orlando Sentinel that he has won an appeal of a one-game suspension for testing positive for marijuana and will suit up for the Gators’ opener against Marshall. . . . Ball State running back Anthony O. Jones was one of four students arrested on drug charges after police raided an apartment near campus. Coach Bill Lynch reportedly dismissed Jones from the team after Muncie, Ind., police raided the three-bedroom apartment of Jones’ brother Marcus, 26, on Tuesday night. Police recovered $7,000 worth of cocaine and marijuana, a gun and cash.

Maryland receiver Guilian Gary suffered only a sprained neck when he was injured during practice on Tuesday. A date for his return has not been targeted. . . . The NCAA has denied Texas Tech’s appeal to allow defensive back Tory Mitchell, a transfer from Miami (Fla.), to play this season. The appeal was based on a personal family hardship for Mitchell. He will have three years of eligibility remaining after sitting out this season.

Michigan State tight end Chris Baker will miss two to four weeks after tearing cartilage in his left knee and linebacker Ivory McCoy will be out four to six weeks after breaking his right foot during Tuesday’s practice. . . . The NCAA honored Lehigh for having the highest graduation rate among Division I schools from 1994-2000. The school had 94% of its athletes earn degrees. Northwestern and Duke tied for second at 90%. . . . David Cress, a 41-year-old graduate student, has filed a lawsuit against Centre College and the NCAA to regain a final season of eligibility he was awarded last year. The NCAA originally granted Cress two years of eligibility and he played for Centre last season. But the second year was unexpectedly revoked by the NCAA in January in a letter based on a different interpretation of its rules.