Dylan Stewart Suspended: SEC Hands One-Game Ban, Beamer's Indefinite Suspension Looms Larger Over a Top-5 Pick
South Carolina's star junior edge rusher Dylan Stewart — a projected first-round pick — punched Alabama tight end Josh Ford's helmet after a fourth-quarter Crimson Tide touchdown in Saturday's 49-18 South Carolina loss (Sept. 26), and the fallout is now a two-track suspension. The SEC and the university jointly announced a one-game suspension Monday (Sept. 28) for "egregious contact," on top of the indefinite suspension head coach Shane Beamer imposed Sunday.
From the SEC's official release: "Dylan Stewart's egregious contact reflects behavior that is unacceptable and not aligned with the standards of the Southeastern Conference... This suspension is appropriate, and any future misconduct by Dylan Stewart will result in more severe disciplinary action" (Commissioner Greg Sankey). The SEC noted the one-game ban is "separate and apart from a previously announced indefinite suspension by head coach Shane Beamer" — and Beamer made clear the team's issue goes further: "I'll make the decision on what his future looks like... There's a standard of how we do things in our program. It's beyond the punch" (CBS Sports). Ford told reporters Stewart punched him three times during the game (al.com).
The stakes compound: Stewart (22.5 TFL and 11 sacks his first two seasons, held without a sack this year while returning from injury) now misses at least Saturday's home game against No. 24 Kentucky, and the 2-2 (0-2 SEC) Gamecocks — who also have Beamer shouting at Stewart on the sideline earlier in the Alabama game for loafing — face three straight ranked opponents with Beamer's job security "dipp[ing] quickly" (CBS Sports). Heisman winner Robert Griffin III warned the suspension saga could send a top-five talent to going "undrafted" (Pro Football Network), while draft scouts tell The State his first-round status is intact but the tape of the incidents will follow him.