Dukes TE Kloosterman, Five Other Players Suspended
HARRISONBURG - James Madison's football roster took an early season hit with the announcement of six players getting suspended for a "violation of team rules."
James Madison football coach Mike Houston announced a two-game suspension for senior tight end Jonathan Kloosterman on Thursday and five other players have also been suspended to start the season.
Houston did not elaborate on what team rules the players violated.
Following JMU's practice Thursday morning, Houston said senior wide receiver Terrence Alls, senior cornerback Justin Bethea, senior linebacker Brandon Hereford and senior offensive lineman Nick Edwards have been suspended for the first four games of the season. Freshman defensive lineman Marcus Hawkins is suspended for the season opener.
Kloosterman will miss both the contest at East Carolina and the team's first home game against East Tennessee State.
"I think the world of Kloo, but he made a mistake," Houston said. "And around here, we hold each other accountable.
"I look forward to him working through this very positively."
A preseason All-American choice by STATS FCS, Kloosterman hauled in a team best seven touchdowns in 2016.
Alls and Hereford were two of seven players suspended for the 2016 national semifinal game at North Dakota State and the national championship game against Youngstown State. JMU never identified the other five.
Alls was a third-team All-Colonial Athletic Association selection as a junior last season when he made 39 catches for 575 yards and five touchdowns. Hereford played in 13 games in 2016, recording 96 total tackles.
In Kloosterman's place, JMU will likely turn to sophomore Nick Carlton as he's taken the majority of first-team reps at tight end during the team's August training camp. True freshman Clayton Cheatham has also worked at the position.
"We've challenged [Carlton]," Houston said. "I think he's got all the potential in the world and hopefully will be up to the task. I'm extremely excited about Clayton Cheatham as well, and I wouldn't say we've named a starter yet."
Houston said he expects his team to the fill the void of the six total suspended players without an issue.
"We all got to understand that nobody out here is not expendable," Houston said. "You look at it last year when guys were suspended late in the playoffs, we had some others step up whether it was John Miller or Ishmael Hyman, and Dimitri Holloway probably had the best game of his career stepping in for Hereford last year."