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South Carolina will be without its star edge rusher Dylan Stewart for at least one game.
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The SEC announced Monday evening that the league, along with USC, had jointly suspended Stewart for one game after his actions in the Alabama game — specifically for punching an opposing player.
The punishment, per an SEC news release, is separate from the indefinite suspension of Stewart that South Carolina coach Shane Beamer announced Sunday night.
Beamer had already announced Stewart would not play in this Saturday’s game against Kentucky. It wasn’t immediately known how the SEC’s decision plays into Stewart’s availability for other upcoming games.
“Dylan Stewart’s egregious contact reflects behavior that is unacceptable and not aligned with the standards of the Southeastern Conference,” SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said in the release. “Such action against an opponent carries a serious risk of injury and has no place in our conference competition. This suspension is appropriate, and any future misconduct by Dylan Stewart will result in more severe disciplinary action.”
The suspension comes after Stewart punched an Alabama player during South Carolina’s loss to the Crimson Tide on Saturday. Stewart was flagged for two penalties in the game, including the punch (but was not ejected). In a release, the SEC cited NCAA Football Playing Rule 9-6-2, which allows it to retroactively dole out punishment for any flagrant fouls, which often carry ejections and next-game suspensions.
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“With 7:40 remaining in the fourth quarter of the game, Stewart was involved in an altercation with an opposing player in which he committed egregious contact with an opponent as determined by video review by the Conference office and South Carolina,” the SEC said in a release.
USC athletic director Jeremiah Donati said in the release he supported Beamer and the SEC’s disciplinary decisions.
“Our expectation at South Carolina, is that our student-athletes conduct themselves with the highest level of integrity at all times,” Donati said. “Keeping one’s composure, even in the most competitive environments, is our standard. That standard was not met in this instance and we support the league’s decision along with our head coach’s decision regarding the current disciplinary measures enacted in this case.”
Beamer’s punishment announced Sunday also stemmed from frustration with how Stewart behaved in his interactions with coaches and teammates at various points in the game. That included a heated exchange between Stewart and Beamer, and another exchange with position coach Deion Barnes — both of which were caught on camera.
“I’ll make the decision of what his future looks like beyond this week here in the next day or so,” Beamer told reporters Sunday.
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