After a spirited two finger salute to the Michigan Stadium crowd last weekend in Ann Arbor after being ejected, Ohio State senior guard Marcus Hall will not start against Michigan State in Saturday night's 2013 Big Ten Championship Game in Indianapolis, Indiana. Though it's possible he might yet not play, Urban Meyer was his trademark self in being non-committal on how long this form of in-house punishment will last.
Last weekend, after being involved in a melee keyed off by teammate freshman KR/ATH Dontre Wilson having his helmet yanked by an opposing player on the kick coverage team, Hall was one of three players ejected along with Wilson and Michigan's Royce Jenkins-Stone. The Big Ten league offices announced on Monday that neither Wilson nor Hall would face any additional punishment beyond their ejection from last weekend's contest, but they did publicly recommend Hall as well as the Buckeyes coaching staff for failing to act sooner in getting Hall out of the stadium.
Hall's act that led to this punishment, while potentially offensive, is as follows:
A few weekends back, fellow senior Carlos Hyde was left out of the starting line up against Illinois for academic related issues. The Buckeyes' tailback sat but one play before returning to action. It's possible Hall's punishment will be similar, but Meyer's lack of clarity could give him the freedom to sit Hall even longer. Redshirt freshman Pat Elflein will start in Hall's place.