Gary Pinkel doesn’t talk about discipline issues.

That’s been the Missouri coach’s mantra forever. Suspensions, departures, disputes – they’re all off limits to the Columbia media and, therefore, the public.

So you’re not going to hear about why Tigers quarterback Maty Mauk, the team’s starter the past two years, is still suspended – at least not from the program. He and offensive lineman Malik Cuellar were suspended on Sept. 29 for “disciplinary reasons,” but Cuellar has since returned to the team’s depth chart. Mauk is out “indefinitely,” which can mean anything from “he’ll return next week” or “he’ll never play for the Tigers again.” That’s a whole lot of gray area.

There have been plenty of rumors about Mauk’s suspension, but they’re really just that. Whether message board posters spot him on campus one day or in Springfield (where his father and brother coach Glendale High School) the next, nothing tying Mauk to illicit activity has been corroborated with publicly available law enforcement records. Say what you want about Mauk favoriting tweets about the offense’s lackluster play, but his slate appears clean. So we have go with Pinkel’s story that Mauk violated team rules, and that we’ll know when he is no longer suspended when he is back on the depth chart.

Now the Tigers are going with true freshman Drew Lock at quarterback, who says he doesn’t know how long Mauk will be suspended and is taking things week-by-week. Other players are saying the same:

Many Tigers fans were overjoyed when Mauk’s suspension was announced, if only because that meant Lock would be starting. The freshman looked terrific in his limited role while Mauk was still playing but hasn’t looked as good full-time. Lock has completed just 41.5 percent of his throws the past two starts, both losses, while throwing 2 interceptions and no touchdowns. That’s about what you’d expect of a freshman quarterback playing quality SEC opponents, but there’s no doubt Lock doesn’t bring the same experience and running ability as Mauk. Those are both needed now for an inexperienced offense that can’t run the ball.

Four years ago, when he was a senior at Kenton (Ohio) High School, Mauk quarterbacked a football team that lost a lot on the offensive side of the ball.

The Wildcats trotted out mostly sophomores and freshmen in their five-wide formation. Mauk was patient with his young players, who were athletic and promising but still at least a year away from being a great team.

Or so it seemed. Call it Maty’s Magic, but Mauk turned his young receiving corps into a powerful force in Ohio. He threw for 5,413 yards, set tons of national records and led the Wildcats to their best finish in state since 2003. Mauk did all of this while also playing as the team’s primary running threat.

While Mauk’s high school team is not a direct comparison to the Tigers, he was able to raise expectations with a young team. Maybe, with more time, he would be able to do that with Missouri’s young playmakers.

Or maybe Missouri has seen the last of Mauk.