Two days after his suspension from the Penn State football team, tight end Andrew Quarless was arraigned on two counts of driving under the influence of alcohol and related violations.
Quarless, 19, was cited for two counts of DUI, a traffic violation and underage drinking for an incident that occurred at 3 a.m. Sunday, according to court documents.
Police said Quarless was driving in his white BMW sedan when he failed to stop at a red light at the intersection of East College Avenue and South Pugh Street. He was pulled over by a State College police officer on College Avenue, just east of the intersection with Allen Street.
"Did I go through the red light?" Quarless asked police at the time, according to court documents.
The officer noticed an odor of alcohol on Quarless' breath, and Quarless admitted to drinking one beer more than two hours before driving, court documents indicate.
Police administered a field sobriety test and a blood-alcohol test -- both of which confirmed he was "incapable of safe driving," according to court documents.
Quarless, a sophomore, registered a blood-alcohol content of .084, four times the legal limit for a driver under 21.
Quarless was also cited for underage drinking on Aug. 17, two weeks before the 2007 football season began. Coaches benched him for the team's first two games.
Jeff Nelson, a team spokesman, said Quarless' recent suspension was for "a violation of team rules" and offered no further comment.
Centre County District Attorney Michael Madeira said because this is his second underage drinking offense, he could face one-year drivers' license suspension.
For driving under the influence with a blood alcohol level of .084, Madeira said Quarless could additionally face six months probation and an additional 48 hours to six months in jail.
Quarless could not be reached for comment by press time yesterday.
With his suspension, Quarless is the seventh player to be indefinitely suspended or "excused" from the team since August. Running back Austin Scott, defensive lineman Phil Taylor, wideout Chris Bell, defensive lineman Chris Baker, linebacker Navorro Bowman and cornerback Knowledge Timmons are all currently suspended or "excused" from the team.
All but Bell are facing criminal charges; however, Bell has been mentioned in court documents as having a part in an on-campus fight in October at the HUB-Robeson Center that police say involved several football players.
