Oklahoma State football: Charge against defensive tackle Christian Littlehead dropped

As first reported by the Tulsa World, Littlehead was accused of punching a woman in the face at a party in March in Cherokee County. A warrant was issued for his arrest last Wednesday but was recalled two days later. Littlehead was scheduled to appear in court on Sept. 24 before the case was dismissed.

Littlehead missed practice Friday but returned to the Cowboys for Saturday's scrimmage. OSU coach Mike Gundy said that night he would wait until more information came out about the situation before making a decision on Littlehead's status with the program.

The charge was Littlehead's third run-in with the law in the past eight months.

He was charged in December with one count of misdemeanor drug paraphernalia possession after OSU police found two homemade smoking devices with residue at his on-campus residence. He pleaded guilty in February, and his final sentence was deferred until Aug. 27. He was also suspended for the Fiesta Bowl by Gundy.

In May, Littlehead was arrested in Tahlequah on a complaint of public intoxication.

Littlehead, a sophomore, started four games for the Cowboys last season, recording 16 tackles and a sack. He is listed as a backup on OSU's preseason depth chart.

LINEBACKER DEPTH SHOWING IN PRACTICE

The Cowboys return all three starting linebackers, with productive veterans manning each spot.

Still, competition rages, both among for backup spots and by prospective backups bidding to earn a significant share of the playing time. Linebacker might be the team's deepest and most talented position.

Linebackers coach Glenn Spencer encourages the competition, regularly rotating players in with the No. 1 defense.

“There are a lot of 2s who are getting reps with the 1s now,” Spencer said in a post-practice report released by OSU. “I'm trying to mix and match to make sure that I'm seeing everybody against the best competition that they can go against, so I can get a better evaluation of who's getting better and who's playing better against better competition.”