Huskies officials said Peters, a cornerback, had run-ins with coach Chris Petersen and his staff.
“It’s unfortunate, but we’ve got certain standards and operating procedures,” Petersen said Thursday. “We’re trying to do something special here. Sometimes it just doesn’t work out. Like I said, we wish him the best.”
With Peters gone, Washington will star two true fresham against No. 18 UCLA.
Peters was suspended for Washington’s win over Illinois because of a sideline outburst the previous week. He also did not start against Stanford, but was in on Washington’s second defensive series.
Peters is the eighth player to be suspended or dismissed since Petersen took over the Huskies program last December.
As his Spartans prepare for Ohio State, coach Mark Dantonio can’t hide from his past. He was defensive coordinator when the Buckeyes won the 2002 national title. Now he’s trying to get Michigan State into the first College Football Playoff.
“The way the standings look right now this game is extremely important,” Dantonio said. “You’ll win the tiebreakers as well, whoever wins this game. So that’s what makes it even more important. I think it’s more of a conference thing rather than a personal (question of), can we beat Ohio State?”
The No. 7 Spartans (7-1, 4-0 Big Ten) are eighth in the College Football Playoff rankings. The Buckeyes (7-1, 4-0) are No. 13 in the AP Top 25 and No. 14 in playoff rankings. The loser will be eliminated from national championship contention.
Despite the grand implications, this is a personal game for Dantonio and 27 Spartans players from Ohio.
Dantonio can thank Ohio State for some of his recent success in a roundabout way. Michigan State has aggressively recruited in Ohio under Dantonio, and some of the most important players on this team were overlooked by the Buckeyes coming out of high school. Starting safety Kurtis Drummond said he wasn’t recruited by Ohio State at all during his prep career at Masury Hubbard.
“I’m definitely excited to play this week,” Drummond said. “Growing up you definitely have a lot of people around you who watch the Buckeyes, and when you don’t have a chance to go there it sits with you a little bit. But coming here to coach Dantonio and his staff was the best thing that could have happened to me.”
Michigan State will likely start five players from Ohio on defense Saturday, including standout defensive end Marcus Rush, cornerback Darian Hicks and defensive tackle Joel Heath. Starting quarterback Connor Cook, an Ohio native, earned MVP honors during the Spartans’ 34-24 victory over Ohio State last season in the Big Ten championship game.
QB Blake Sims and prolific receiver Amari Cooper face their biggest test of the season Saturday in the LSU secondary. Ditto for the LSU defensive backs.
The Tigers (7-2, 3-2 Southeastern Conference) have scarcely given up more passing yards than Cooper is producing on average, setting up a major confrontation in a rivalry known more for punishing runners and tenacious defenses.
“Our confidence level is pretty high,” LSU cornerback Jalen Collins said. “We stepped it up the past couple games and kind of shut down the Ole Miss offense, so we’re feeling great.”
So are Sims and Cooper after a record-setting connection against Tennessee in another challenging road environment.
Cooper is the nation’s No. 2 receiver, averaging 141.5 yards with nine touchdown catches. He had a school-record 224 receiving yards in the Tide’s last game against the Volunteers.
“He’s awfully smooth,” LSU coach Les Miles said. “If you look at that receiver that has real speed and ball skills and can run the route, it’s a talented man.”
For LSU defenders, it’s a change-up from recent meetings with Alabama’s offense. First-year offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin has found ways to get the ball in Cooper’s hands early and often.
Southern Cal is off this week, not among teams playing in one of the biggest college football weekend in years. Which is fine with coach Steve Sarkisian.
Sarkisian is giving the Trojans this week off from practice, and they will reconvene Saturday to begin preparations for their Nov. 13 game against California. In the meantime, the focus is on recovering from a taxing season that began with the suspension of team captain Josh Shaw and included a split of four conference games decided on the final possession.
“We need to take a step back mentally, physically, emotionally. To me, it felt like the right thing to do,” Sarkisian said.
The Trojans’ closing stretch includes rivals UCLA and Notre Dame. USC brought 48 recruited scholarship players for its 44-17 win at Washington State before losing linebacker Su’a Cravens to a knee injury.
Tests revealed no structural damage, and Sarkisian was optimistic Cravens would be available against the Golden Bears.
The loss of Cravens exposed the lack of depth resulting from NCAA sanctions handed down in the Reggie Bush case.
While USC will be able to bring in a full recruiting class next year to begin to address areas of weakness on the roster, Sarkisian said getting contributions from everyone that can play is of the utmost importance this season.
As for the status of Shaw, who was suspended after lying about how he sprained both ankles before the season started, Sarkisian said there was no change.
“It’s still in a process,” Sarkisian said. “It hasn’t gotten to a point where I (can) make a decision one way or the other.”
Contributor: The Associated Press
