updated 5:09 p.m. ET May 26, 2006

LOS ANGELES - Chicago Bears cornerback Ricky Manning Jr. pleaded not guilty Friday to an assault charge stemming from an alleged attack on a man in a restaurant last month.

The 25-year-old Manning appeared in court but entered the plea through his attorney. He remains free on $30,000 bail.

He waived his right to be in court June 16, when a date is to be set for a hearing to determine if there is enough evidence to require the former UCLA player to stand trial on a charge of assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury.

Two other former UCLA football players, Maurice Drew and Tyler Ebell, are scheduled to appear on the same charge, also on June 16.

All three are accused of attacking a man at a Denny’s restaurant early on the morning of April 23, according to prosecutors. They were arrested soon after in Manning’s car.

The three had allegedly been harassing a man working on a laptop computer at the restaurant. He complained to a manager, and was then kicked and punched in the face by several attackers until he lost consciousness, according to the LAPD.

The victim identified Manning as one of his alleged attackers, police said.

A day after his arrest, Manning signed a five-year, $21 million offer sheet with the Bears.

The Carolina Panthers, his former team, did not match the deal, but a team official said the decision was not related to the arrest.

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In a conference call the week after the Panthers declined to match the offer, Manning said he could not comment on the case but would be happy to do so “when things are sorted out.”

Manning is on probation for a similar offense in 2002 near the UCLA campus, the district attorney’s office said. If convicted in the latest case, he would face up to four years in state prison.

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