QB suspended indefinitely

Lane Kiffin says transfer Chris Robison violated team rules

BOCA RATON Florida Atlantic quarterback Chris Robison already finds himself trailing in the competition for the starting spot.

On Tuesday, Owls coach Lane Kiffin announced Robison is suspended indefinitely for violating team rules. No details were provided. An Oklahoma transfer, Robison is battling with De’Andre Johnson for the starting position.

“Chris has been suspended from all football activities for not doing things right off the field,” Kiffin said after the Owls’ first spring practice. “Obviously he hurt himself, but he hurt his team. We tried to run basically two practices on two fields with only three quarterbacks.”

A sophomore, Robison is no stranger to off-the-field issues. He was arrested and charged with public intoxication his first season with Oklahoma. After violating team rules, he was dismissed last August. In high school. Robison was a four-star recruit from Mesquite, Texas, and rated the No. 4 pro-style quarterback by Rivals.com. He also was ranked the No. 7 player at his position by Scout.com.

The Owls do not have a quarterback on the roster who has started a college game. Last year’s starter, Jason Driskel, who led FAU to an 11-3 record and a victory against Akron in the Boca Raton Bowl, decided to quit football after the season.

Backup Daniel Parr, who started the first three games, transferred to Duquesne. Johnson missed all but two games last season because of blood clots.

The lack of depth made the Robison situation even more disappointing for Kiffin.

“Very disappointing,” Kiffin said. “Like I just told our players, ‘You’ve got choices. We can’t make the choices for you.’ If you don’t make right choices, there’s punishment for you. I think our punishment is more severe than most. We want to teach our guys to do everything right.”

Wright ailing

Sophomore receiver Willie Wright did not practice because of an undisclosed injury. Kiffin said Wright could return as early as Thursday.

Last year Wright led the Owls with 56 catches for 657 yards and six touchdowns. The good news is tight end Harrison Bryant is back at practice after missing the last four games because of a high ankle sprain. Bryant was the team’s second-leading receiver with 32 catches for 408 yards.

Weis Jr. gaining comfort

Kiffin said he will use the spring to get a feel for how he plans to handle the play-calling under firstyear offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. At 24, Weis is the youngest coordinator at the NCAA Division I level.

As of now, Kiffin said he expects to split the calls until Weis is fully comfortable.

McGriff on the move

Receiver D’Anfernee McGriff could potentially switch positions before the spring ends. On Tuesday, he received reps at running back.

The 6-foot-1, 215-pound junior caught eight passes for 66 yards last season.

“He’s got good ball skills, good vision,” Kiffin said. “He’s got kind of a [former NFL running back] LenDale White style body. We’ll put some pads on and see how he plays.”

Cameron makes impression

Defensive lineman Charles Cameron is one of the few new faces to impress Kiffin.

Cameron, who played last year at Copiah-Lincoln (Miss.) Community College, is projected to have an immediate impact.

“He made a lot of plays out there,” Kiffin said. “There’s no pads but he was in the backfield a lot.”