Western Athletic Conference Commissioner Karl Benson suspended Louisiana Tech freshman safety Chad Boyd for the first half of the upcoming Fresno State-LaTech game as a result of a flagrant foul he committed against an LSU receiver in last weekend's 24-16 Tech loss.

On the play, which occurred close to the 13-minute mark of the third quarter with the Bulldogs leading 13-10, Boyd leapt into LSU receiver Terrance Toliver and appeared to lead with his helmet.

The play made YouTube, but went undetected by the game officials.

"A flagrant personal foul should have been called by the game officials, and Boyd should have been ejected from the game at that time," said Benson.

"By NCAA rules, I am required to review these types of situations and it was determined that the player clearly committed a flagrant foul, and thus will be suspended. Protecting a defenseless player from a hit to the head has been a point of emphasis for two years and cannot be tolerated even if it goes undetected by the game officials."

The suspension should hurt Tech, who is already suffering from a number of injuries, including the loss of senior All-WAC safety Antonio Baker for the season.