Montel Harris dismissed from team

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Boston College running back Montel Harris has been dismissed from the team, coach Frank Spaziani announced Tuesday.

"Montel Harris has been permanently dismissed from our football team due to a repeated violation of team rules," Spaziani said in a prepared statement. "We are grateful for his contributions the past four seasons and will support him in completing his degree requirements and in his future pursuits."

Reached by phone Tuesday, Spaziani wouldn't comment further on the violations that led to Harris' dismissal.

"There's a lot of aspects to it that are disappointing," he said. Then he paused before repeating, "It's disappointing."

The ACC's leading rusher in 2010 and its preseason player of the year last season, Harris became the Eagles' all-time rushing leader with 3,735 career yards in his second game of the season against Wake Forest. He had missed the first three games of the 2011 campaign after arthroscopic knee surgery in August and ended up playing in only two games due to issues with the knee.

The Jacksonville, Fla., native was granted a medical hardship waiver for this upcoming season. He returned for spring practice in February before complaining of soreness after the first day, forcing the team to shut him down for the rest of spring.

Spaziani and the Eagles already had already been preparing for life without Harris.

"We're disappointed but we went through the whole spring [without him]," the coach said. "He hasn't been out there for a while now."

Asked about the team's reaction to Harris' dismissal, he said: "The team hasn't been out there, so I'm not sure what their reactions are. ... Their reactions are they move on.

"Ever since he was first injured he's been in and out. So I don't have any doubt that they will [move on]," Spaziani added. "They don't have a choice. He only played two games last year, right?"

Harris is the school's all-time leader in carries with 786, and 100-yard games with 22. He's third all-time in touchdowns with 27. He was the ACC's active leader in rushing yards and carries.

Harris holds the ACC record for most rushing yards through his junior season. He would have entered 2012 within striking distance of the 34-year-old conference record for career rushing yards held by North Carolina State's Ted Brown, who ran for 4,602 yards from 1975-78.

ESPNBoston.com contributor Jack McCluskey contributed to this report.

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Matt Fortuna | email

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