"Cowbell assault" brings guilty plea from Miss. State football fan

(CBS/AP) STARKVILLE, Miss. - A fan accused of assaulting another man with a cowbell has pleaded guilty in the 2009 incident during a big-time Mississippi college football rivalry. However, a civil lawsuit remains, and the defendants include the Southeastern Conference.

On Monday, Brent Vowell pleaded guilty to misdemeanor simple assault during the Mississippi State-Ole Miss. game.  Vowell received a 45-day sentence to be served on weekends, according to The Clarion-Ledger.

The victim of the cowbell assault, William Brasher, says in his civil suit that he suffered a 4-inch laceration in the altercation. His suit seeks unspecified damages from the SEC and others.

It claims the league knowingly refused to enforce its own rule against "artificial noisemakers," including the cowbells long favored by Mississippi State fans.