UM's Toussaint gets suspension

Running back charged with OVI

Fitzgerald Toussaint, a redshirt junior from Youngstown, ran for 1,041 yards and nine touchdowns and caught six passes and a touchdown during 12 games in 2011.

Fitzgerald Toussaint, a redshirt junior from Youngstown, ran for 1,041 yards and nine touchdowns and caught six passes and a touchdown during 12 games in 2011.

ANN ARBOR -- Michigan football coach Brady Hoke announced Monday that junior running back Fitzgerald Toussaint has been suspended indefinitely, after his arrest Saturday in Ann Arbor on a charge of operating a vehicle while impaired.

"There are expectations that come with being a football student-athlete at the University of Michigan and those responsibilities were not met in this instance," Hoke said in a statement. "We will use this as an opportunity to educate Fitz and make sure he understands the high standards that we have established within our program."

Toussaint's status for the start of fall practices and Michigan's season opener Sept. 1 against Alabama at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, is unknown as a result of the suspension.

Fitzgerald Toussaint, a redshirt junior from Youngstown, ran for 1,041 yards and nine touchdowns and caught six passes and a touchdown during 12 games in 2011.

The Saline Police Department stated in a release that Toussaint, who was driving a white Ford F-150 pickup, drove through a red traffic light at the intersection of South Forest Avenue and Washtenaw Avenue in Ann Arbor.

Saline officers, working with the Ann Arbor Police Department in a cooperative effort between several Ann Arbor-area law enforcement organizations that targets drunken driving, stopped Toussaint for a traffic violation and smelled alcohol on him. Toussaint, 22, was transported to the Saline Police Department for processing, and Saline police chief Larry R. Hrinik said a Breathlyzer test, administered at the Saline Police Department showed Toussaint had a blood-alcohol content of 0.12, above the Michigan legal limit of 0.08. Toussaint was released Sunday morning on a personal recognizance bond.

A Saline Police Department representative said Monday that a hearing date has not been set for Toussaint, and that the case will be forwarded to the Washtenaw County prosecutor's office.

Toussaint, a redshirt junior from Youngstown, ran for 1,041 yards and nine touchdowns and caught six passes for 28 yards and a touchdown in 12 games in 2011. During spring football practices in April, Michigan offensive coordinator Al Borges declared Toussaint as the Wolverines' No. 1 tailback and last week, he was named to two football award watch lists: the Doak Walker Award, given annually to college football's top running back, and the Maxwell Award, given annually to college football's top player.

Toussaint is the fourth Michigan player arrested since February.

Frank Clark, a sophomore defensive end, also has been suspended indefinitely, as he faces home-invasion charges stemming from a June theft and is scheduled for an Aug. 2 preliminary hearing in Washtenaw County 14th District Court.

Josh Furman, a sophomore safety, was reinstated to the Wolverines in April after pleading not guilty on three misdemeanor counts related to an off-campus incident.

Will Campbell, a senior defensive tackle, was arrested in April in Ann Arbor after he was intoxicated and attempted to slide across the hood of a car at 2 a.m., a week prior to Michigan's spring game. Campbell has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of malicious destruction and a civil infraction of blocking a sidewalk, both related to the April arrest.

In April, the Washtenaw County 15th District Court lifted a bench warrant for the arrest of Jerald Robinson, a sophomore wide receiver, after Robinson missed an arraignment hearing for a misdemeanor charge. Robinson has delayed his pretrial hearing.

In January, Michigan released Darryl Stonum after his second arrest following a 2011 drunk-driving incident. Stonum will join the Baylor football program this fall.

Contact Rachel Lenzi at: rlenzi@theblade.com, 419-724-6510, or on Twitter @RLenziBlade.