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<H1 =red>LSU's Perrilloux indefinitely suspended</H1></H1>
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Miles: Quarterback violated team rules
<DIV =byln>Tuesday, February 19, 2008
By James Varney
BATON ROUGE -- LSU quarterback Ryan Perrilloux's troubled career hit another sour note Monday, as Coach Les Miles announced he had indefinitely suspended the Tigers' expected starter this season for a violation of team rules. It was the third such disciplinary measure imposed on Perrilloux since last May.
Sources at the university familiar with the situation said Perrilloux's infractions involved missing classes, workouts and at least one team meeting, all violations of a private agreement Miles and Perrilloux reportedly reached last season.
Perrilloux's situation could be even more dire, according to school officials who said Miles still is mulling the situation. Miles was unavailable for comment, but said in LSU's terse, four-sentence statement that the quarterback's status for spring football, which begins Feb. 29, is uncertain.
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Miles canceled a slated Monday press conference at which he planned to announce coaching changes because he feared questions about Perrilloux would overshadow what he wanted to be a bright day for his assistants, school officials said. Late in the day, LSU issued another press release announcing the promotion of secondary coach Doug Mallory and linebackers coach and special teams coordinator Bradley Dale Pevoto as co-defensive coordinators, and the hiring of Joe Robinson, formerly on the staff at Arizona, as the special teams coach.
Perrilloux has had several scrapes with the law in the past 14 months.
The first was the revelation in January 2007 that federal and local investigators wanted to question Perrilloux about an alleged counterfeiting ring in the River Parishes. That issue largely petered out when federal officials made it clear they did not regard Perrilloux as a major player in their probe, and he was never charged.
Perrilloux was cited by Baton Rouge police last May after allegedly trying to board a riverboat casino with another person's identification. Miles suspended Perrilloux after that incident, and the signal-caller who emerged from East St. John High School as perhaps the most celebrated recruit in the nation during the 2004 season, did not participate in any team drills and functions last summer.
Miles reinstated Perrilloux on the eve of the August preseason camp but then, during the team's bye week in late October, Perrilloux was involved in a fight at the Varsity nightclub on the edge of campus. While some individuals first accused Perrilloux of wielding a gun in that fracas, videotape showed no gun was ever involved, and the accusers begged off their story when pressed by Baton Rouge detectives. Again, Perrilloux was not arrested.
But with negative publicity about the incident distracting the team before its anticipated showdown at Alabama, Miles again suspended Perrilloux, and the sophomore did not travel to Tuscaloosa, Ala.
It was after that second suspension that the coaching staff reportedly spelled out strict guidelines Perrilloux had to abide by or face possible dismissal. That program appeared to be running smoothly, and Perrilloux was voted the Southeastern Conference championship game's MVP in the Tigers' victory over Tennessee that vaulted LSU into the BCS championship game.
Between the SEC title game and the BCS championship against Ohio State, Perrilloux, who usually is off-limits to the media, spoke with the press, and his tone and words appeared to reflect the knowledge the starting quarterback at a major program must follow a stricter behavioral code than that permitted the average undergraduate -- exactly the sort of philosophy the coaches wanted to see in the probable starter in 2008. Perrilloux was quick to praise starter Matt Flynn, who handled his lengthy time as a backup with undimmed competitive ardor and class, according to teammates and coaches, as a role model and said henceforth the team always would come first.
LSU did not reveal Perrilloux's proffered excuse for missing meetings, classes and workouts. His biological father passed away earlier this month, but sources said the relationship between those two had been rocky for years, and some of the transgressions allegedly occurred before the death.
Perrilloux did not return a phone message left at his Baton Rouge residence. His mother did not return messages, either.
Now, Miles must decide if a third-strike rule is in effect and perhaps kick Perrilloux off the team or if the incidents, taken individually, do not warrant such discipline.
Miles dismissed three players from the team last year after they were involved in publicized scraps.
If Perrilloux were dismissed, the defending national champion would begin its season with either a transfer from Harvard, Andrew Hatch, who played sparingly last year, or redshirt freshman Jared Lee, who has never taken a snap in college.
That is a decidedly thin lineup for a team that must face Florida and Auburn on the road and host Georgia. On the other hand, LSU begins the season with three home games against non-conference opponents Appalachian State, Troy and North Texas, which could provide a cushion for a novice quarterback.