Officials from the Big Ten Conference on Thursday announced that Michigan State sophomore defensive end William Gholston has been suspended from this Saturday’s game after punching Michigan lineman Taylor Lewan during his teams 28-14 victory last weekend.
Gholston was suspended under Big Ten Conference Agreement 10.01.1.A.1 which reads:
“Striking or attempting to strike or otherwise physically abusing an official, opposing coach, spectator or athlete.”
After his suspension the league then publicly reprimanded him for his actions while Gholston released the following statement through Michigan State:
“I deeply regret momentarily losing my composure late in the third quarter of last Saturday’s game against Michigan.” Gholston added, “Although provoked, my response was inappropriate. Coach (Mark) Dantonio regularly reminds us that actions have consequences, and I will be better prepared to handle these circumstances in the future. I look forward to my reinstatement.”
Big props go out to coach Dantonio and his staff who immediately pulled Gholston from the game after his punch, while they could be seen scolding him on the sideline because of his actions.
In a statement about the incident Dantonio said that Gholston:
“Is a tremendous and extremely caring young person. In the heat of the moment, he momentarily lost his composure. Football is an emotional game of split-second reactions. It was an unfortunate incident. We look forward to his reinstatement.
“Our coaching staff and players respect the game, and our players are taught to play the game the right way. This is a physical and emotional game. During the course of a contest, there are individual confrontations that sometimes escalate. The stakes — as well as the emotions — are always a little higher in a rivalry game. We will continue to stress the importance of maintaining one’s composure during the heat of competition.”
Punch a player, lose a game, that sounds like a fair assessment by Big Ten Conference officials. Do you think a one game suspension was too severe or the right penalty for his assault on another player?
