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Ole Miss T Laremy Tunsil held out Saturday because of NCAA 'process'

Ole Miss announced Saturday morning that tackle Laremy Tunsil, one of the best offensive linemen in the country, would be held out of Saturday's game against Tennessee-Martin for "precautionary" reasons because of a "pending process" with the NCAA.

"As a precautionary measure we are withholding Laremy Tunsil from today's game until the pending process can be completed. We are fully cooperating with the NCAA and feel this is the best way to protect Laremy, our football program and the university."

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Tunsil was accused by his stepfather of accepting benefits from agents earlier this summer. The junior was arrested for domestic assault in June against his stepfather after an alleged incident between his stepfather and his mother. His stepfather said the incident was stemmed by a discussion about agents.

His stepfather agreed to drop the charges in July (and Tunsil agreed to drop the charges against him) after the two had filed charges against each other.

Tunsil's stepfather was reportedly interviewed by the NCAA in July because of his statements about the agent in an investigation into "multiple" rules violations at Ole Miss. A player can talk to an agent, however he cannot accept impermissible benefits.

Tunsil is considered a likely first round pick in the 2016 NFL draft if he chooses to leave school following the 2015 season. The school said Saturday that any other players missing the game against UT-Martin would not be related to Tunsil's absence.

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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!