EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) Michigan State has suspended senior linebacker Max Bullough (BUHL'-uh) for violating team rules, making him ineligible to play in the Rose Bowl.
In a news release sent early Thursday, Spartans coach Mark Dantonio said Bullough had been suspended for the rest of the season. He did not say what rules the two-time team captain violated.
"It is extremely disappointing for all parties involved," Dantonio said.
The No. 4 Spartans will play No. 5 Stanford in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1 in Pasadena, Calif. It is Michigan State's seventh straight bowl game and first appearance in the Rose Bowl in 26 seasons.
Bullough, from Traverse City, had 76 tackles and 9.5 tackles for loss this season, earning him third-team All-America honors and first-team All-Big Ten honors. He has 299 career tackles and made 40 consecutive starts.
Authorities in the Traverse City area had no reports of legal issues involving Bullough, the Traverse City Record-Eagle said. The Associated Press left phone and email messages for police and prosecutors Thursday night.
In 2011, Bullough and then-senior tight end Brian Linthicum were arrested after a disturbance at a bar in Aspen, Colo. Bullough, then 19, was charged with a being a minor in possession of alcohol and got nine months' probation, the Detroit Free Press reported.
Playing for Michigan State has been a family affair. Max Bullough's grandfather, Hank Bullough, played for Michigan State in the early 1950s, and his father Shane followed in the mid-1980s. Two of Max Bullough's uncles were Spartans and his younger brother Riley is a redshirt freshman.
"Max will forever remain a Spartan and valued member in this team's achievements," Dantonio said in the statement.
