A Georgia Southern University football player bit a police officer during a drug bust Tuesday and was subdued by a Taser, according to the Bulloch County Sheriff's Office.Two others, both former GSU football players, were arrested as well, with officers seizing a pound of marijuana, the sheriff's office said.Georgia Southern sophomore defensive end Deonte Dempsey has been suspended indefinitely for a violation of team rules and GSU's athletic department policy, said Barrett Gilham, the director of Georgia Southern Athletics Media Relations.Statesboro-Bulloch Crime Suppression Team investigators executed a search warrant Tuesday at a Lanier Drive apartment and found Dempsey, 22, and Joshua Rowe, 23, who both live there, inside. Rowe is a former Eagle football player.The Crime Suppression Team is a partnership between the sheriff's office and Statesboro Police Department.Investigators were forced to use a Taser to subdue Dempsey, who refused "... verbal orders to lie down on the ground," Bulloch County Sheriff Lynn Anderson said in a news release issued Wednesday.

While Rowe complied, Dempsey "attempted to shut his bedroom door to avoid investigators, at which point a struggle ensued," Anderson said. "During the struggle, Dempsey physically resisted officers and at one point bit one of the investigators."After Dempsey was subdued with a Taser and placed in handcuffs, a handgun was found on the bed, Anderson said. Also, while searching the apartment, officers found approximately 1 pound of "high grade" marijuana, the release says."High-grade or hydroponic marijuana has a higher T.H.C. (tetrahydrocannabinol) level and is usually grown indoors," the sheriff said.Both Dempsey and Rowe were taken to the Bulloch County Jail for processing. A third tenant of the apartment, former GSU football player Javon Mention, 23, met investigators at the jail and was arrested as well, Anderson said.

Dempsey was charged with felony obstruction of an officer, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, and possession of marijuana with intent to distribute.Mention was charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of a drug-related object. Rowe was charged with possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute.All three were taken to the Bulloch County Jail, where they await further court hearings, according to jail records.

"Dempsey will remain suspended from the team until the legal process is finished," Gilham said. "At that point, Athletic Director Tom Kleinlein and head coach Willie Fritz will decide if he will remain on the team.

"Herald Sports Editor Matt Yogus contributed to this report.Holli Deal Bragg may be reached at (912) 489-9414.