Suspended Rutgers football players will not play vs. Michigan after paintball gun arrests

Rutgers cornerbacks Chris Long and Max Melton remain suspended and will not play against Michigan after they were arrested by campus police for shooting three students with a paintball gun earlier this week.

Scarlet Knights coach Greg Schiano declined to comment beyond his initial statement on the matter when speaking to reporters Thursday. But he did say Long and Melton will not be available Saturday against the 19th-ranked Wolverines in Ann Arbor (3:30 p.m., ABC).

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Rutgers Police said Long and Melton shot three students with paintballs while driving on Livingston Campus in Piscataway at around 10 p.m. Monday night. The players were then arrested Tuesday morning after an investigation and suspended by Schiano shortly after. “I was informed that Chris Long and Malachi Melton were taken into police custody early this morning as a result of an incident involving a paintball gun,” Schiano said in the statement. “Both players have been suspended immediately.”

There is no timetable for the players’ reinstatement. Long and Melton are not due in court until Nov. 4, and Rutgers has kept players suspended until their legal issues are resolved in the past.

Long and Melton were each charged with three counts of second-degree aggravated assault and one third-degree count of possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose. Second-degree aggravated assault in New Jersey carries a potential 5-10 years in prisons and up to a $150,000 fine.

The three victims suffered minor injuries, according to a police statement, and declined further medical assistance on the scene. Two victims were bleeding after being hit and the third had welts and bruising, according to probable cause affidavits obtained by NJ Advance Media.

Each victim was hit in a different location, according to a RUPD crime log reviewed by NJ Advance Media. The victims were hit by Tillett Hall, Livingston Quad 2 and the Livingston Rec Center, according to the log. Those buildings are within a roughly mile-long stretch of the campus. It is not clear where the first victim was shot; RUPD has not yet responded to a OPRA filing by NJ Advance Media requesting the full incident report.

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James Kratch may be reached at jkratch@njadvancemedia.com.