LSU dismisses Tyrann Mathieu from team

BATON ROUGE, La., Aug. 10 (UPI) -- Tyrann Mathieu, voted last season's national Defensive Player of the Year, has been dismissed from the Louisiana State football team for team rules violations.

LSU officials didn't give specific reasons why Mathieu, who would be a junior this season, was let go.

"This is a very difficult day for our team," LSU Coach Les Miles said at a news conference. "We lose a quality person, teammate and contributor to the program.

"However, with that being said, we have a standard that our players are held to and when that standard is not met, there are consequences."

Mathieu, a cornerback, was suspended one game last season for allegedly failing a drug test.

In two seasons at LSU, Mathieu, nicknamed "Honey Badger," had 113 tackles, forced a school-record 11 fumbles and had 11 interceptions. He also scored four touchdowns, two on punt returns and two on fumble returns.

He won the Chuck Bednarik Award after last season as the defensive collegiate Player of the Year. He was also considered a finalist for the Heisman Trophy.