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College football notebook

By Times wires and staff reports
© St. Petersburg Times
published August 1, 2002

Florida State freshmen get started on workouts

TALLAHASSEE -- Florida State coach Bobby Bowden said he was pleased with the first day of practice for FSU's freshman class.

"I thought we looked pretty good today," Bowden said. "We're just trying to teach them, to get them to learn what to do, so when the varsity guys get here they can meld right in with them."

The morning practice session was devoted to time trials and leaping tests.

Running back Leon Washington led with a time of 4.69 seconds in the 40-yard dash, running on a wet field. Darrell Burston, a 6-foot-2, 221-pound defensive end, recorded a 37-inch vertical jump for the best mark in that category and Tallahassee native Pat Watkins set the bar at 10 feet, 4 inches in the broad jump.

"This is a very talented group," strength and conditioning coach Jon Jost said. "They tested pretty well, especially for being on a wet field."

The field dried by the evening practice as the players worked in position-specific drills. Quarterback Wyatt Sexton, son of FSU assistant coach Billy Sexton, went 12-for-20 throwing to running backs and wide receivers. Lorne Sam, the younger brother of wide receiver P.K. Sam, also impressed with leaping catches.

"It's been everything that I've expected and I just want to start playing," Chamberlain alum Broderick Bunkley said.

-- JASON SCHNEIDER

Around the nation

ARIZONA: Police in Scottsdale, Ariz., have issued an arrest warrant for senior wide receiver Bobby Wade, after he failed to appear for a court date.

Wade, 21, was arrested and charged with misdemeanor assault and disorderly conduct after an early-morning fight on June 23 in the parking lot of a Scottsdale nightclub, according to police.

He did not show up for a court appearance July 5, and an arrest warrant was issued last week.

"This is the first I've heard of this and I expect that we'll be talking with Bobby very soon to find out exactly what happened," coach John Mackovic said.

ARIZONA STATE: Senior defensive tackle Danny Masaniai was suspended for the first two games of the season.

The suspension comes after his guilty plea Monday to a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct with a weapon.

Masaniai was accused of firing shots into the air after a May 10 incident at a bar in Tempe.

OHIO STATE: Fullback Branden Joe pleaded innocent to a drunken driving charge.

Joe, a 20-year-old sophomore, did not attend the hearing in Franklin County (Ohio) Municipal Court. His lawyer, Joe Scott, entered the plea on his behalf.

Joe was arrested Friday after police found him asleep in a car about 3:45 a.m. on a highway ramp near campus. Police said he refused to take a breathalyzer test.

Ohio State upperclassmen report for summer practice today.

"Branden, of course, will be with us when we report, and there will be consequences," coach Jim Tressel said. "I don't think I will talk publicly about the consequences before I talk about them to the team."

-- Information from Times wires was used in this report.

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