The Nittany Lions' 2011-2012 basketball season is barely practices old, but the team's roster is already seeing some considerable shuffling in the early going.
Penn State sports information director Brian Siegrist issued the following statement on Wednesday concerning the statuses of senior guard Cammeron Woodyard and sophomore guard Jermaine Marshall.
"Coach Chambers has indefinitely suspended Jermaine Marshall from the Nittany Lion basketball team for a violation of team rules. Marshall has not participated in team practices since they officially began on Oct. 14 and is not currently with the team. There is no specific timetable set for Marshall’s return to the team. Coach Chambers continues to review Marshall’s standing with the team. Penn State and Coach Chambers will have no further comment on Marshall until his standing with the team has been resolved.
"Senior Cammeron Woodyard underwent arthroscopic surgery to clean up some material in his left knee earlier this month and is expected to miss another 2-3 weeks. He has not participated in practice since the surgery, but is currently walking and rehabilitating the knee."
Woodyard, the team's lone senior, was named one of the team's three captains on Tuesday along with juniors Billy Oliver and Tim Frazier. He averaged 2.3 points and 1.4 rebounds for the Lions in limited action last season.
Marshall averaged 2.5 points in bench duty last season. He scored a career-high 18 points in Penn State's loss to Purdue at the Bryce Jordan Center on Jan. 5 and followed that up with eight points in the team's upset win against then-No. 19 Michigan State on Jan. 8.
This news should give the team's 10 freshmen and sophomores (excluding Marshall) a chance to make an impression on Chambers before the team's exhibition against Slippery Rock on Nov. 5 at the Bryce Jordan Center. Look for guards Trey Lewis and Matt Glover as well as forward Ross Travis especially to try an make a push for a starting job if either Marshall or Woodyard miss time once the regular season begins.