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Florida has become an early-season success story in the SEC East, putting together a 6-0 record to vault to the top of the division and front-runner status. If the Gators could just avoid any bad breaks, they would likely be able to hold on and get to Atlanta for the first time since 2009. Then Monday arrived.
Florida will announce this afternoon that QB Will Grier has been suspended for the rest of the season for a violation of NCAA rules.
— Mike Huguenin (@MikeHuguenin) October 12, 2015
That was bad enough news for Florida fans, and confusing enough news for an SEC East race already reeling from Nick Chubb's season-ending injury. But then things seemed to get even worse as time progressed.
Source confirms to @FoxSports #UF QB Will Grier sidelined for AT LEAST the rest of the year for NCAA rule violation. 1st report Mike Hugenin
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) October 12, 2015
Florida QB Will Grier suspended for season for testing positive for performance enhancing drugs, source told @ESPN
— Brett McMurphy (@McMurphyESPN) October 12, 2015
That's quite a lot to unpack, and it's going to take at least awhile to figure out exactly what it means. If this was an NCAA drug test -- and if you read between the lines of "NCAA violation," that's at least a possibility here -- Grier could be out until halfway through next season, depending on how you interpret the NCAA rule. If it's under Florida's drug testing program, it could be different.
The performance-enhancing drug in question is reportedly -- and I cannot stress reportedly enough on this entire post -- Ligandrol, if that means anything to you. According to a Google search, it will get you huge and perhaps cut. It might also have gotten Will Grier cut out of the Florida depth chart for at least the rest of 2015.
As for the division fallout: This injects a little bit more mystery into an SEC East race that looked like it was Florida's to lose. The division is still Florida and everybody else, but everybody else's chances just got a bit better.
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