Price Suspends Four Cougars After Frat Brawl Backup Tight End Knuff Cited For Assault; Three Starters Also Off Team Indefinitely

With the start of spring practice nine days away, four members of Washington State’s football team were suspended indefinitely Wednesday as a result of their involvement last weekend in a brawl outside a fraternity house.

Cougars athletic director Rick Dickson announced the suspensions of interior offensive linemen Scott Sanderson, Ryan McShane and Marc McCloskey and tight end David Knuff, noting that none of the four will be allowed to participate in team activities unless they are reinstated.

McCloskey is a junior, Sanderson and Knuff are sophomores and McShane a redshirt freshman. All four lettered last fall on the Cougars’ 8-4 Alamo Bowl championship team that finished 21st in the Associated Press’ final Top 25 rankings. McCloskey, Sanderson and McShane were starters.

Cougars coach Mike Price said the status of the four players would be evaluated later this spring. He said there is a chance all four could be reinstated, but emphasized that would happen “only when I feel like their behavior is appropriate and they have earned the privilege of playing football at Washington State again.”

WSU is scheduled to start spring drills April 9.

“And this certainly isn’t helping the Cougars get better for next fall,” Price added.

Knuff, from Huntington Beach, Calif., was cited by Pullman police for fourth-degree assault, rioting, disorderly conduct and obstructing an officer in connection with the brawl that broke out early Sunday morning.

Police were called to disperse a crowd of about 100 that had gathered outside the fraternity house. Several fights were in progress when police arrived, and one officer was treated for minor injuries at Pullman Memorial Hospital following the incident.

Sanderson, from Concord, Calif.; McCloskey, from Bend, Ore.; and McShane, from Lafayette, Calif., were not cited by police at the time of the incident but were suspended after athletic department officials learned of their roles in the brawl.

Price would not go into detail about his players’ involvement, but said the situation was serious.

“Hopefully, this will get the message across,” he said. “It’s being dealt with swiftly and severely. We’re sending a message to everyone that we are not going to tolerate this kind of behavior.”

According to Price, McShane was hit over the head with a beer bottle during the brawl.