Washington Huskies starting quarterback Cyler Miles is taking a leave of absence from the team and will not participate in the Huskies’ spring practices. The leave of absence is said to not be for disciplinary reasons, but Miles is said to have some things he has to get worked out before he can return to the team.
“Cyler is dealing with some things in his life that are more important than football, and he felt it was important to take some time away from the game,” Washington coach Chris Petersen said in a news release. “We are working to support him in any way we can and hope he returns back to the football field soon.”
Miles will remain enrolled at the university, and the news release specified that this absence was not due to any disciplinary issues. A year ago, Miles was suspended for the duration of spring practices and the season opener for a violation of team rules.
The Huskies have three other quarterbacks enrolled for the spring season — Jeff Lindquist, K.J. Carta-Samuels and Jake Browning. Lindquist was the Huskies’ starter during Miles’ season-opening suspension in 2014. He completed 10 of 26 passes for 162 yards and one touchdown in the Huskies’ 17-16 win at Hawaii. Lindquist finished the season 10-of-30 passing.
It will be interesting to see what Miles’ reasons are for having to step away from the team. It is never a good thing when your starting quarterback who has a suspension on his record has to step away from football for an extended period of time for unstated reasons.
Hopefully Miles is able to take care of his business off the field and is able to get back with the team during the summer.