Michigan will let Toussaint and Clark practice

ANN ARBOR(AP) — Michigan running back Fitzgerald Toussaint has been working out on his own at Schembechler Hall, trying to stay in shape while suspended from the team.

The Wolverines are about to find out if he’s ready.

Michigan coach Brady Hoke said Toussaint along with defensive end Frank Clark will begin practicing Monday — following a week without them on the field — after both had run-ins with the law.

“Believe me, they have paid a heavy price and will continue to pay a price for actions unbecoming of a Michigan football player,” Hoke said Sunday at media day.

Hoke, though, wouldn’t say if part of their discipline would include missing the opener against defending champion Alabama on Sept. 1 at Cowboys Stadium.

“I haven’t made that decision,” he said. “And, I probably won’t make that decision for a while.”

Toussaint ran for 1,000-plus yards and nine touchdowns last year, projecting him the clear-cut starter this season. Clark closed his freshman season with a season-high five interceptions and an interception in the Sugar Bowl win over Virginia Tech, putting him in a position to earn playing time on a depleted defensive line this year.

Hoke suspended Toussaint after he was arrested in July on suspicion of drunken driving. Clark was kept away from the team while facing a charge that he took a laptop from a dorm room.

“They’re part of this football team,” Hoke said. “They’re guys who are 18 to 23 and like some of us have not made great decisions and they’re paying for it. They’re paying the consequences of bad decisions.”

Running backs coach Fred Jackson said he’s talked to and seen Toussaint every day since he was suspended, saying he’s a “hurt kid,” who regrets what he did.