West Virginia suspends 11 for opener; bans not tied to virus

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — West Virginia suspended 11 players for its season opener Saturday for an undisclosed violation of team rules.

Coach Neal Brown announced the suspensions Saturday before the Mountaineers played at home against Eastern Kentucky.

The school would not specify what the players did, except to say this is not related to the coronavirus.

Among them were slot wide receivers T.J. Simmons and Isaiah Esdale, tight ends T.J. Banks and Mike O'Laughlin, and two starting offensive linemen, center Chase Behrndt and left tackle Junior Uzebu.

Also suspended were backup offensive linemen Zach Davis and Tairiq Stewart, backup wide receiver Zack Dobson and long snapper JP Hadley.

Freshman cornerback Vincent Okloli was the lone suspended player on defense.

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