USC's Garcia suspended from team activities
Five days after Stephen Garcia's arrest in Five Points, USC coach Steve Spurrier suspended the Gamecocks freshman quarterback from participating in team activities.
The suspension will prevent Stephen Garcia from participating in team weightlifting and running sessions and will last until further notice, athletics spokesman Steve Fink said Wednesday.
Stephen Garcia, who enrolled at USC in January after graduating early from Jefferson (Fla.) High, was arrested early Saturday morning outside the Knock Knock Club at 624 Harden St. Stephen Garcia, who had attended a private party thrown by former USC soccer player Ayo Akinsete, was charged with drunkenness and failure to stop on police command.
He was scheduled to appear at Columbia Municipal Court on Wednesday, but his attorney, Neal Lourie, requested and received a continuance Tuesday afternoon. Stephen Garcia's appearance at municipal court was rescheduled for March 7 at 8 a.m.
A city court clerk told The State on Tuesday that the continuance was granted because Lourie was not in town.
Reached on his cell phone, Lourie said he would not comment publicly on the case.
Lourie also represented Gamecocks quarterback Blake Mitchell when Mitchell was arrested in September for allegedly punching a nightclub bouncer in Five Points. Assault charges against Mitchell were dropped.
Stephen Garcia, a native of Lutz, Fla., was considered one of the top prospects in USC's highly regarded recruiting class. The 6-foot-2-inch, 202-pounder was ranked the nation's No. 4 dual-threat quarterback by recruiting Web site Rivals.com.
After completing his high-school graduation requirements in December, he enrolled at USC on Jan. 14.
See more at www.mywire.com
