Football: Star running back Venric Mark suspended two games

Alex Putterman, Sports Editor

Northwestern star running back Venric Mark has been suspended for the first two games of the 2014 season, the athletic department announced Friday.

“I made a mistake and am prepared to deal with the consequences of that,” Mark, a senior, said in a statement. “There’s no one that holds me to a higher standard than the one I hold myself to, so nobody is more disappointed than I am. First and foremost, I feel like I let my teammates down, and that feels the worst.”

The athletic department statement said only that Mark committed a “violation of team policy.”

Mark missed most of 2013 with ankle injuries after a stellar 2012 season, in which he rushed for a team-best 1,366 yards and 12 touchdowns.

He will miss NU’s Aug. 30 season-opener against California and the team’s Sept. 6 game against Northern Illinois.

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