Iowa State football player Damien Groce was arrested Tuesday night for serious assault.

Loras Jaeger, director of Iowa State’s Department of Public Safety, said DPS officers responded to a call from Friley Hall at 9:37 p.m. concerning a possible assault on a resident.

Upon initial investigation, officers arrested Groce for assaulting Gordon Thunder, a freshman in computer engineering who lived one floor above Groce in Friley.

If convicted of serious assault, an aggravated misdemeanor, Groce would face up to two years in prison and up to a $5,000 fine.

Jaeger was not sure about whether charges would stick, however, and said his department is looking back over the incident carefully.

“We may want to reconsider the case,” he said. “We’re getting differing reports from different people.”

Jaeger said the witnesses to the incident will be re-interviewed in an attempt to sort out exactly what happened between Groce and Thunder.

Until then, Groce has been released.

“He’s out and about right now,” Jaeger said.

To decide exactly how to further develop the case, Jaeger said his department will meet with Story County Attorney Stephen Holmes.

“We’re going to sit down with the county attorney and look at this,” he said.

Jaeger said the case could be sorted out as soon as today.

Groce, a senior wide receiver for the Cyclones, was suspended from the football team after the Athletic Department learned of the arrest.

Tom Kroeschell, assistant athletic director for media relations, said the suspension is in line with the student-athlete conduct code, which stipulates that a student-athlete must be suspended from participation if arrested or issued a citation for a violent criminal offense.

The suspension will be served until the charges are resolved, Kroeschell said.

If the charges are dropped or if Groce is found not guilty, the suspension will be lifted.

“The Athletic Department is not pre-judging anyone by doing this,” he said.

“The rule is in place in order to protect the student-athlete and inter-collegiate athletics,” Kroeschell said.

Kroeschell said the policy of the Athletic Department is to take a hands-off approach when athletes are charged of criminal offenses.

“I think we should let this play itself out in the legal system,” he said.

However, if Groce is found guilty, it would not necessarily mean he would be removed from the football team, Kroeschell said.

Although this is the second arrest of an ISU athlete in the past three weeks, Kroeschell had no comment as to how this most recent incident would affect the Athletic Department.

Neither Thunder nor Groce was available for comment as of press time.