By Nathan Hutchinson
Register Sports Editor
RICHMOND —
Justin Bell is back at Eastern Kentucky University, but its still unclear whether or not he will play football at the school this season.
Bell, a sophomore defensive back, went through spring practice with the Colonels, then transferred to Southern Miss.
After a short stay in Hattiesburg, Miss., Bell returned to EKU, where he is currently enrolled in classes.
“He was a part of our football team and decided to leave,” EKU coach Dean Hood said. “After he left, he decided that wasn’t such a good idea. He missed his family in Winchester and in Lexington and his football family. He got a little taste of perspective on things and he wanted to come back.”
However, Bell has not been able to rejoin the football team.
The EKU coaching staff is seeking a waiver from the NCAA to allow the sophomore to play this season.
NCAA rules allow a player to retain his eligibility if he returns to the school he transferred from within 14 days.
“There’s still some discrepancy if he was beyond that,” Hood said. “So, we are trying to work out all those issues.”
Bell made a tremendous impact last season as a redshirt freshman. The Tampa, Fla., native saw action in 10 games, with two starts, and had 33 tackles. He also had 3.5 tackles for loss, three pass break-ups, one quarterback hurry and one forced fumble.
Bell had two interceptions in the Colonels’ win at Murray State and blocked kicks in three different games (Tennessee State, Tennessee Tech and Kentucky).
He also saw action on special teams and returned one punt.
Bell, who is the cousin of former Colonel and current Miami Dolphin Yeremiah Bell, met with his teammates on Monday and expressed his interest in rejoining the team.
“He’ll start at the bottom of the depth chart and have to work his way back up,” Hood said of Bell’s possible return.
Without Bell and with standout junior defensive back Jeremy Caldwell still sidelined, senior Jaren Gooden and senior Marcus Williams started at corner for the Colonels last week in the season opener against Missouri State.
Caldwell did see some action late in the game, but was limited because he was still recovering from sports hernia surgery.
The junior will be in the starting lineup this Saturday when the Colonels take on Louisville.
“He’s ready to go,” Hood said of Caldwell. “The (reason) we didn’t put him in Friday is because he didn’t practice. He was cleared, but he hadn’t even practiced and we didn’t want him to go from hitting softballs that were pitched underhand to hitting 90 mile per hour fastballs. He’s going to get in a full week of practice, so, he’ll be good to go.”
