http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5388648 SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The son of former Notre Dame standout Joe Montana was among 11 Fighting Irish athletes arrested on misdemeanor charges of underage drinking at a party Friday night. A total of 44 people were arrested after city police responded to a call about a fight near a roadway and discovered the party, said St. Joseph County Police assistant chief Bill Redman. Two non-athletes face a misdemeanor charge of providing alcohol to minors. The arrests were handled by state excise police, who didn't immediately return a message seeking comment on Saturday. The most recognizable athletes arrested were Nate Montana, a walk-on who was the backup to starter Dayne Crist coming out of the spring, and Tim Abromaitis, the second leading scorer on the Irish basketball team at 16.1 points a game last season. Montana spent last season as a backup at Pasadena City (Calif.) College. Several incoming freshmen are expected to compete with him for the No. 2 spot when practice begins next month. The other athletes arrested were wide receivers Robbie Toma and Tai-ler Jones, linebacker Steve Filer, kicker Nick Tausch, cornerback Lo Wood, and offensive linemen Chris Watt and Tate Nichols; incoming freshman point guard Eric Atkins; and incoming hockey goalie Steven Summerhays. Most of those arrested had been released on $150 bond, Redman said. They are scheduled to make court appearances July 30. If convicted, each faces a maximum sentence of 30 days in jail. Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said he was aware of the arrests and was gathering information. "If there is any team-related discipline to be issued, it would be handled internally," he said. Bernie Cafarelli, Notre Dame's sports information director, said basketball coach Mike Brey also would handle any punishment internally.
They were underage drinking at a party. Unless they were doing something more severe this really isn't that big of a deal.
I never played college sports, but back in my day in high school we used to drink with alumni and boosters (the drinking age was 18). This is no big deal IMO, unless they were driving somewhere after...
