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Florida reportedly suspends star receiver, six others for opener vs. Michigan

Dustin Schutte

By Dustin Schutte

Published:

Seven Florida players will miss the first game of the season against Michigan, according to multiple reports.

On Sunday, multiple sources reported that Florida had suspended seven players its season opener against Michigan at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Antonio Callaway, the Gators’ star receiver and arguably best offensive weapon, was among the seven players that will miss the Week 1 game.

The other six players are James Houston (LB), Kadeem Telfort (OL), Keivonnis Davis (DL), Jordan Smith (DL), Richerd Desir-Jones (DL) and Ventrell Smith.

Jim McElwain released a statement on the suspensions via FloridaGators.com:

We have a small group of players that have made some choices that are extremely disappointing. Action has been taken – they have missed some practice and will miss the Michigan game. We will use this as a learning opportunity and we will have some players step up as we move forward.

The reason for the suspensions was not announced.

Callaway is the most significant loss for the Gators. He caught 54 passes for 721 yards and three touchdowns in 2016. He was the leading receiver for Florida last season and ranked 10th among SEC pass-catchers.

Dustin Schutte

Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB