Ferentz suspends Prater after OWI

Freshman cornerback Shaun Prater would've entered spring practice with a legitmate shot at the open job at corner. Now, who knows.

You don't have to be versed in coach-speak to see that Kirk Ferentz is more than PO'd with the sophomore's OWI arrest Saturday morning. This is a sizable setback.

How big? You have to wonder about Prater's future at Iowa after reading this Ferentz statement:

"He will be required to serve numerous internal obligations, set by me."

How did this kid end up driving himself home with an alleged BAC of .134? How did Anthony Tucker end up passed out in an Iowa City alley? I know teammates have each others' backs in competition. They need to be looking out for each other off the field. Could these have been prevented? I don't know. But brother's keeper needs to be stapled into the playbooks. 

Below is Carla Keppler's story on The Gazette's website and then the UI release with Ferentz's statement. 

IOWA CITY - A University of Iowa football player was cited for drunken driving early this morning.

Freshman defensive back Shaun M. Prater, 19, of Omaha, was charged with OWI at 1:22 a.m. Saturday in the 500 block of 1st Ave., Coralville when officers stopped him because his registration information was not visible from the rear.

When officers approached Prater, the defendant had bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and smelled strongly of alcohol, according to official reports. He failed field sobriety tests, including a preliminary breath test that registered at .134. His blood alcohol content was recorded at .127.

Upon arrest, Prater told police that his bartender "must have put alcohol in his Coca-Cola."