COLUMBIA — MU’s football woes worsened over the weekend when another player was arrested.
Austin A. Wuebbels, a redshirt freshman from Troy, Ill., was arrested Sunday morning when Columbia police officers found marijuana and drug paraphernalia in his car during a traffic stop, according to a police department incident report.
Wuebbels, 19, was arrested on suspicion of minor in possession, possession of 35 grams or less of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.
When asked whether Wuebbels might be suspended or dismissed from the team, MU football spokesman Chad Moller said, “No, not for misdemeanors.” Wuebbels was at the team’s Tuesday afternoon practice, Moller said.
Wuebbels’ arrest follows the legal problems of two other teammates — sophomore reserve linebacker Marquis Booker and redshirt freshman defensive lineman John Stull.
Booker was dismissed from the team in March following a March 16 arrest on suspicion of unlawful use of a weapon. Stull was arrested in January on suspicion of drug and assault charges. He was dismissed from the team.
Moller said the recent string of arrests have troubled the program, but there is no standard punishment in place to deal with players who have been arrested.
“(The team) handles all that stuff internally,” Moller said. “There is no blanket. A felony charge you’re automatically suspended, and you go through a process and let the legal process play out and then you can be allowed back on the team if the charges have lessened. Even if they are ... it’s all dependent on the particular situation.”