ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Michigan punter Will Hagerup, who was suspended from the team on Dec. 16, 2012 for an undisclosed violation of team rules, was reinstated to the team Tuesday.
Hagerup will be able to return to the team for voluntary summer workouts and team events. However, he will sit out the 2013-14 season and return for his final season of eligibility in the 2014-15 season.
“The past five months have been an incredible, humbling time for me," Hagerup said in a Michigan news release. “I understand my actions represent every person that supports me, as well as any man who has worn a Michigan jersey the past 133 years. … In retrospect, I needed to take a big step in the character department, and I’m excited in the progress I’ve made in the last five months.”
This wasn’t Hagerup’s first suspension. The kicker was suspended for the Ohio State game as a freshman in 2010, the first four games of the 2011-12 season and his most recent suspension, which began before the 2013 Outback Bowl. He was one of the top punters in the Big Ten last season, averaging 45.1 yards per kick.
"Getting back around his teammates is an important step in this process,"Michigan coach Brady Hoke said in a news release. "Will and I have had several discussions over the past five months, none of which have been about football. Our primary concern has been for him as a person, and that will not change. … I am pleased with his progress to this point, and he knows that must continue every day moving forward."
