Douglas, Mackey and Payne Suspended for Meineke Car Care Bowl Game

LAJ's Don Williams confirms through Texas Tech spokesman Blayne Beal and interim head coach Chris Thomsen that CB Cornelius Douglas, DT Leon Mackey and LB Chris Payne have been suspended from the Meineke Car Care Bowl game against the Minnesota Golden Gophers.

Acting head coach Chris Thomsen said two of the players missed practices this month in Lubbock without notifying coaches in advance, and said privacy laws prevented him discussing the other player's suspension.

I am surprised and maybe even a bit disappointed at Douglas' suspension. I don't know why. Douglas missed a large part of the season and returned to play against Baylor. Douglas and Mackey are seniors, while Payne is a sophomore. And just like when Tuberville arrived, there will be players that just are simply no longer on the roster. There will be attrition and players that don't show up for things are giving the new coaches reasons not to renew that scholarship. Maybe that's the intended result by the player.