Spurrier Suspends Mitchell After Arrest

South Carolina starting quarterback Blake Mitchell was arrested after a bar fight Wednesday and has been suspended from playing.

Mitchell was booked for simple assault, a misdemeanor, police said. He was released Wednesday afternoon after a bond hearing and avoided reporters as he left jail.

A Columbia, S.C., police report said Mitchell, 21, punched Kylan Ertzberger in the left eye during a fight in a bar near the university.

Ertzberger told police Mitchell approached him about 1:45 a.m. and “initiated a verbal confrontation.” Ertzberger told Mitchell “he did not like that the subject tried to enter [the bar] with underage girls.”

Coach Steve Spurrier said he wanted to wait for all the facts to come in before judging Mitchell’s actions. Although he suspended him, Spurrier said Mitchell would remain on the team.

“I was disappointed he got into a little fight. If he was out with his girlfriend and he wasn’t drunk or whatever ... that’s what college kids do,” Spurrier said. “I went to college once. But we were in before 1:30. In our day, 12 was a late night.”

The team does not have a Tuesday night curfew, but players are encouraged to be in around midnight, Spurrier said.

Mitchell has completed 28 of 44 passes for 247 yards with one interception and no touchdowns for the Gamecocks (1-1).

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Indiana Coach Terry Hoeppner was resting comfortably after doctors operated on his brain for 3 1/2 hours to remove a growth, his son told the Indianapolis Star.

“He was awake and asking how everything went,” Drew Hoeppner said.

Hoeppner was expected to miss two to four weeks. Doctors were uncertain what caused the growth that was found during a routine MRI exam Friday.

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Clemson offensive lineman Roman Fry won’t face serious charges in the accidental death of assistant track coach Jarrett Foster.

Fry pleaded guilty to reckless operation of a jet ski that struck Foster in the head earlier this summer. Fry was fined $257.50 by the state Department of Natural Resources, his attorney said.

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Florida State linebacker Derek Nicholson, who was expected to miss Saturday’s game because of a right ankle sprain, practiced Wednesday and will be in the lineup against Clemson.

“I am playing Saturday,” Nicholson said. “It was pretty bad [after the Troy game], but I have been waking up every morning and rehabbing. It has healed pretty decent.”