North Carolina Player Suspended

North Carolina reserve defensive tackle Ricco McCain was indefinitely suspended by school officials in the aftermath of a brawl in which another student suffered a broken cheekbone.

Six other football players charged with misdemeanor assault in the Dec. 5 incident will not face sanctions, said Athletic Director Dick Baddour. These include three defensive starters--Kivuusama Mays, Greg Williams and Robert Williams.

“Those six players adamantly deny assaulting the student,” Baddour said. “We have looked into the matter . . . and can find no evidence to suggest otherwise.”

McCain, a red-shirt sophomore, will not travel with the team to the Gator Bowl, where North Carolina will play Virginia Tech on Jan. 1.

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Baddour said Carl Torbush, North Carolina’s new football coach, was given a five-year contract. Torbush, the Tar Heels’ defensive coordinator who was hired Dec. 8 after Mack Brown resigned to become coach at Texas, will have an annual salary of $135,000. Brown’s base salary was about $170,000.

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Iowa may be stuck with about $150,000 in unused tickets for the Sun Bowl game, said Pam Finke, the school’s ticket manager. The Hawkeyes are responsible for 8,000 tickets for the Dec. 31 game against No. 16 Arizona State in El Paso, Texas. Finke said about 2,000 have been sold.

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Oregon (6-5), which gave up an average of 30.6 points per game, will try to contain Air Force (10-2) and its triple-option offense in today’s Las Vegas Bowl. The Ducks allowed 440 yards per game, including 189 on the ground. The Falcons rushed for an average of 233 yards per game.

“We haven’t been performing that well in the defensive department,” Oregon safety Jaiya Figueras said. “Air Force does what we don’t do well--defend the run. It’s going to be a challenge.”

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Brandon Drum, 21, a reserve Nebraska defensive tackle, was ticketed for third-degree misdemeanor assault cited after an alleged verbal and physical exchange at a bar in Lincoln, Neb., Coach Tom Osborne confirmed. According to police, Drum, 21, is accused of head-butting another man, who suffered minor injuries.

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Youngstown State (12-2) faces McNeese State (13-1) today in the Division I-AA championship game at Chattanooga, Tenn. A sellout of more than 20,000 is expected at Max Finley Stadium.