Fresno State football: Wideout Da’Mari Scott rejoins team for rest of season

Fresno State had welcomed wideout Da’Mari Scott back into its program this summer with a few conditions: that he would take a redshirt this season and work on the scout team. But that redshirt came off on Monday, which was part need and part Scott, who has handled everything and himself well since rejoining the Bulldogs after seeking a transfer following the 2014 season.

The junior will compete for playing time in practice this week with the outside receivers, a group that was further depleted when Darrell Fuery came out of the opening victory over Abilene Christian with a shoulder injury, as well as on special teams as a punt and kickoff return man. He is expected to play on Saturday at Ole Miss.

“We talked about this being a possibility back when we decided to redshirt him,” coach Tim DeRuyter said. “He had missed some time and we thought this would be a good year for him to develop, but Aaron Peck went down (foot), we lost (Delvon Hardaway) in the spring and now it looks like Darrell Fuery might not be able to go, so we decided to make the call.

“We’re going to go ahead and get him involved. He has done a great job knowing that he was going to redshirt. He gave our defense a great look. He had a great camp. He has competed extremely well and he has earned this opportunity.”

DeRuyter said he ran the potential of bringing Scott back by the Bulldogs’ six-man leadership committee. There were no objections.

“The thing that you’re always concerned about with personnel decisions is how it is going to affect the mojo of the team,” he said.

“They were concerned about him coming back (this summer), but when I told them that he was willing to redshirt they were all surprised and said, ‘Well, if he’s willing to do that we’ll take him back,’ and they saw that even though he was redshirting all summer long he was leading runs, he was working as hard as anybody. I think they all realized he has learned by going through this experience and were ready to welcome him back as a full-fledged member of the team.”

Scott was unavailable – he has not been allowed to hold media interviews since his return. But he steps in with the outside receivers this week as the most experienced player in the group with all of 10 career receptions in 24 games.

Hardaway is expected back toward the end of the month, working his way back from knee surgery.

For the opener against Abilene Christian, the Bulldogs did not have a player in the two-deep at the ‘X’ and ‘Z’ receiver positions with a career reception. Junior college transfer Josiah Blandin had four for 71 yards and one touchdown and redshirt freshman KeeSean Johnson had four for 30 yards in the victory.

Scott in his first two seasons also returned kickoffs for the Bulldogs. He averaged 20.6 yards on 16 plays last season, leading the team in number of returns and average. In 2013, he averaged 19.6 yards on 20 returns.

Garrison to miss first half Saturday

Running back Dustin Garrison, who was called for a personal foul and ejected for throwing a punch after a play in the victory over Abilene Christian, will by NCAA rule be suspended for the first half at Ole Miss.

Garrison was locked up with defensive end Rishaad Wimbley after carrying out a fake on a zone read on a third-and-2 play in the fourth quarter, and some pushing and shoving after the play escalated. Garrison and Abilene Christian nose guard LaMarcus Allen were hit with personal fouls, but only the Bulldogs’ back was ejected.

DeRuyter said Garrison will play in the second half, behind starter Marteze Waller, who is tied for seventh in the nation with 154 rushing yards.

“We addressed it on Friday after the game,” DeRuyter said. “It’s unacceptable what he did. He apologized to the team and to the coaches. I really like Dustin. He made a terrible decision. He’s paying the price and then we’re going to move on from there and he will play in the second half.”

Senior running back Malique Micenheimer, who did not play against Abilene Christian due to some bumps and bruises that caught up to him late in the week, is expected to play at Ole Miss.

This story was originally published September 7, 2015 at 5:22 PM with the headline "Fresno State football: Wideout Da’Mari Scott rejoins team for rest of season."