No more excuses — Georgia’s arrests fall on Mark Richt
Mark Richt has been buried in police reports since March.
(UPDATED at 3:30 p.m. with booking and suspension.)
Before you dismiss this as just another trivial arrest in a 24-7, TMZ flip-cam media world, ask yourself this:
What would you be thinking if this was Florida or Alabama or Tennessee? Would your first reaction be, “This is no big deal. Everybody is picking on us”?
What if this was Nick Saban or Urban Meyer or Houston “I’m Just Trying To Save The World One Quarterback At A Time” Nutt? Would you really be absolving the head coach — in this case, Mark Richt — of any responsibility?
Georgia’s football program has hit nine on the arrest chart. That’s nine since March.
Kickoff is Saturday. There’s still time to run out of fingers.
Here’s the latest: Campus police have booked freshman safety Alec Ogletree on misdemeanor charges of theft by taking and he has been suspended for the season opener. Ogletree, a prized member of their 2010 recruiting class, is charged with stealing a $35 scooter helmet from the Rankin Smith Center on June 15 (police discovering only this week that the helmet was in his possession).
Forget that we’re only talking about a $35 helmet. There’s no such thing as a minor incident any more. There’s a cumulative effect.
I realize this is difficult for some people to accept. We live for this time of year, not just because of our obsession with college football but because, as Richt said this week, “It’s good to be undefeated.” What you feel in Athens, they feel even in Starkville.
But when nine players get arrested between spring and opening kickoff, something is wrong.
Please, no more apologies.
I’ve had it with apologists. They live among the fan base (who claim police are just out to get athletes). They live among the coaching fraternity (because to blame another coach sets themselves up for higher standards). They live among the media (some of whom are too afraid of burning bridges with the program and not having the coach smile at them any more).
Bottom line: This falls on Richt. It’s his program. It’s his responsibility. It’s on his watch.
He doesn’t have to be the one drinking-and-driving. Or hitting-and-running. Or drinking-and-groping. Richt recruited these players, signed these players and ultimately determined, “They will represent the University of Georgia well.” Either he is picking too many of the wrong guys, or he’s not saying or doing enough of the right things when they get here. Regardless, don’t deny the problem.
Richt said Friday he was “disappointed” and that Ogletree is “responsible for a poor decision and will serve a minimum one-game suspension.” He was so angry when running back Washaun Ealey was arrested for a hit-and-run — which occurred while he was driving with a suspended license — that he didn’t even want to speak to Ealey. That anger is justified. The question is whether his suspension of Ealey will last beyond the Louisiana-Lafayette game — because that’s a small notch above running steps in Sanford Stadium.
Forcing Ealey to miss the South Carolina game — that would hurt. Of course, that also would hurt Georgia, and the South Carolina game is really important, right?
When asked at his news conference this week if, in so many words, there was a flaw in his discipline structure, Richt responded: “The flaw is if a guy does something that deserves to be disciplined and you don’t discipline him. That’s where the flaw is. The flaw is in us as humans. We’re flawed, we’re human, we make mistakes. When we make a mistake, then we get disciplined for it. As long as we have 18- to 22-year old guys who are human beings, they are going to make mistakes. That’s just all there is to it. If you don’t discipline it, you have a problem. If they don’t learn from it, then they have a problem.”
Actually, it goes beyond that. If players don’t learn from it, Richt has a problem. And he does.
No more excuses. This falls on him.
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1,737 comments Add your comment
UGA Renovations
September 4th, 2010
8:34 am
I heard the new AD McGarity will ask the UGA board for $2.3 million to install a “mini-jail” in the Butts-Mehre building, to save time and money for all the UGA players arrested. The police can bring the perps right to this jail facility. That way, Richt can counsel them with bible verses from his office instead of having to send UGA gofers over to the jail downtown with bail money all the time. The new AD is thinking ahead!
BoWeevil
September 4th, 2010
8:36 am
tim
I am responsible and ACCOUNTABLE for what my 18 year old kid does
That is EXACTLY why I DISCIPLINE him
I don’t want to be known as the father who cannot control his kids
Z. Itchy
September 4th, 2010
8:38 am
Jeff, all I hear is a little pit yorkie yapping every time something doesn’t go the Dawg’s way. I’m very surprised you haven’t taken former President Bush to task for his share of the blame like so many who decided not to take the intellectual way out.
Robert
September 4th, 2010
8:41 am
What more can Coach Richt do? He has suspended players, made them do extra running, kicked them off the team, etc. I’m sure he is tired of all the nonsense too but he can’t watch these guys 24 hours a day.
Compare what Fl and Tenn did recently. Fl had 2 players arrested for under-age drinking this summer. They are not suspended. Spikes poked Ealey in the eyes in the middle of a came. He was suspended 2 quarters. Tenn had multiple guys beat a police officer. Only 1 was kicked off the team due to prior incidents. A certain freshman wasn’t suspended. I know these aren’t 9 arrests like UGA and don’t know how many these schools or others have had. These kids have to accountable. I doubt anyone will disagree with that. Coach Richt has held them accountable more than others and continues to do so. To call these kids thugs, come from bad families, etc. is just wrong.
For everyone, including you Jeff, who says Coach Richt is responsible, what more would you suggest he do for these arrests? Please not the “he has to do a better job recruiting the right kind of player” nonsense. Ogletree is not a bad kid from a bad family. He just did something stupid and is being punished for it. Probably recovering from that 5:30 am run this morning with Ealey. Seriously though, real suggestions on what more can be done.
Smokey
September 4th, 2010
8:41 am
CMR is caught between a rock and a hard place. Fans and especially alumni want it all. We want upstanding citizens and outstanding athletes who can win a mythological championship (no playoff system). Veer too much to either extreme and CMR is probably out of a job. The choice seems to be emulate Vanderbilt or emulate Oklahoma of old. When recruiting do we now need to run background checks, fingerprints, DNA, durg tests, and use mentors and chaperones? Maybe they do, I don’t know and I am not sure of the answer to solving this either.
BoWeevil
September 4th, 2010
8:42 am
Let’s see Coach Richt gets CREDIT for # 7 Recruiting Class every year
But, he is somehow NOT ACCOUNTABLE for what they do ?
BobbyDawg
September 4th, 2010
8:44 am
Coach Richt is just that. A football coach. For you to even think that he is a babysitter is totally wrong. If these arrests fall on anyone it is the parents of these young men.
BoWeevil
September 4th, 2010
8:48 am
Robert
I will give
REAL SUGGESTIONS
Suspend Branden Smith 2 games for using ID to buy alcohol for kids
Suspend Vance Cuff 3 games for giving his ID to Branden Smith
Throw Montez Robinson off team 1st time he beat up girl not 3rd
Don’t bring in Christian LeMay for sex with 14 yr old girl in classroom in front of the Principal
Suspend Tavarres King for 6 games 1 for each person he put in his 5-ton truck to drive around Athens in get drunk in it.
Hale Almand
September 4th, 2010
8:48 am
“We may not make a university student out of him, but if we can teach him to read and write, maybe he can work at the post office rather than as a garbage man when he gets through with his athletic career.” AJC FILE………….it’s the way we do things at UGA.
johnny reb
September 4th, 2010
8:49 am
Huge recruiting base and poor results = bye bye.
Smokey
September 4th, 2010
8:51 am
I read a lot of these posts saying the discipline and game suspensions are way too lax but if they cracked down and gave harsher longer suspensions and UGA only won 3 games this season because of it, all the die hards would be howling for CMRs job. Just sayin’. Personally, at this point, I say crack down on them. No athlete is so important and special to get away with it. Just like with injuries, when one goes down there is always another hungry athlete willing to step up. Who knows, they might be better than that highly touted knucklehead who was suspended for the season.
GaTruth
September 4th, 2010
8:54 am
DAMMIT RICHT – ORDER THE CODE RED!!! If the players feared reprisal from inside the team they would shape up. At this point, they clearly don’t care, or worse yet, feel their bad behavior is garnering status and approval.
chokeyokie
September 4th, 2010
8:59 am
This is the results of recruiting “in the ‘hood”. Plain and simple cut and dried.
Hale Almand
September 4th, 2010
8:59 am
We use to do what we wanted with these dumb a$$ kids and no one was the wiser, We loaded them on the short bus and wheeled them in and won the National Championship. Then that meddling Jan screwed it all up for our great University. We are slowly getting back to where we were. Just leave us alone . Mind your own business, we aren’t killing nobody,and none of them are worse off after we are through with them.(they spoke slow like that when we found them).
BozinGa.
September 4th, 2010
9:04 am
Hey Jeff,
How about this falls on society? How about this falls on his parents? Who had these kids for eighteen years before Mark Richt got them?
BoWeevil
September 4th, 2010
9:09 am
Suspend Branden Smith 2 games for using another’s ID to buy alcohol
Suspend Vance Cuff 3 games for giving his ID to Branden Smith
Kick Montez Robinson off team 1st time he beat up girl not 3rd
Don’t bring in Christian LeMay for having sex with 14 yr old girl in classroom in front of the Principal
Suspend Tavarres King for 6 games 1 for each person he put in his 5-ton truck to drive around Athens for the sole purpose to get drunk in it.
Suspend thief Alec Ogletree a 2ND GAME SUSPENSION for running IMMEDIATELY upon his SUSPENSION to the Internet to say yes he is Guilty.
Suspend Coach Richt for a game the next time he makes EXCUSES for HIS recruits as Ambassadors of my alma mater, not his.
When they ACT LIKE THUGS on NATIONAL TV, suspend their POSITION COACH for the NEXT GAME.
They recruited them here, they must be ACCOUNTABLE for them while they are here.
Have the AD write into Coach Richt’s contract that for the $25 million dollars paid to him that he is ACCOUNTABLE for the RECRUITS he brings in here. And, that when he is the # 1 National Champions of the Fulmer Cup, and makes public statements of EXCUSES FORGIVING them, and TRYING TO WALK-AWAY from his RESPONSIBILITIES saying he will ONLY SUSPEND a player a game and then ONLY WHEN THEY ARRESTED, that he is not going to be paid one penny that entire month.
Coach Richt, what he is doing, is NOT WORKING.
How is it that EVERYONE on this blog knew long before Coach Richt ACTED STUPID like oh my God Zach Mettenberger LIED TO CMR, that he had repeatedly sexually battered a poor little college student coed he never met. Don’t give me this Coach Richt did not know B.S. We told him. HERE. For over 100 days we told him here, then he acts like he had NO IDEA when he does his plea bargain of 2 counts of sexual battery.
Coach Richt RECRUITS players that Admissions at UGA DENIES, Coach Richt is docked one month’s salary EVERY TIME.
Coach Richt complains to the papers about Michael Grant not being allowed into UGA AFTER Admissions ALREADY TOLD HIM NO WAY, that he is FINED $250,000.
Coach Richt ALLOWS a SUSPENDED player to go to SOCIAL MEDIA to plead his own case. Each occurrence is a $100,000 Coach Richt FINE.
dt4c
September 4th, 2010
9:12 am
Well, let’s just ask this. Where was the call out of Dooley? Beat up a cop and no suspensions except the obvious one? You obviously just have it out for Richt. Fair and balanced…you should try it sometimes. I guess it is always the parents fault when a kid screws up right. Idiot.
BoWeevil
September 4th, 2010
9:13 am
Coach Richt is ACCOUNTABLE
When you make Coach Richt ACCOUNTABLE, then it will STOP
Because FINALLY COACH RICHT will DISCIPLINE them.
They are NOT DISCIPLINED now not on the field or off
Rod Tidwell
September 4th, 2010
9:14 am
Hey, Richt can always resort to the Donnan philosophy of having two sets of rules….one for his favorites and one for his “I can’t remember your name” players.
Munson's Toupee
September 4th, 2010
9:16 am
WWDD…What Would Damon Do?
BoWeevil
September 4th, 2010
9:19 am
dt4c
Parents ARE held ACCOUNTABLE for their kid in COURTS OF LAW
Coach Richt WILL BE held ACCOUNTABLE for HIS RECRUITS HERE
yomama
September 4th, 2010
9:21 am
You want to stop the problem: zero tolerance. Send a message: you get arrested, you get suspended. You get convicted of the crime, you get kicked off the team. Period. Don’t like it? Don’t get arrested.
BoWeevil
September 4th, 2010
9:21 am
REAL SUGGESTIONS :
Suspend Branden Smith 2 games for using another’s ID to buy alcohol
Suspend Vance Cuff 3 games for giving his ID to Branden Smith
Kick Montez Robinson off team 1st time he beat up girl not 3rd
Don’t bring in Christian LeMay for having sex with 14 yr old girl in classroom in front of the Principal
Suspend Tavarres King for 6 games 1 for each person he put in his 5-ton truck to drive around Athens for the sole purpose to get drunk in it.
Suspend thief Alec Ogletree a 2ND GAME SUSPENSION for running IMMEDIATELY upon his SUSPENSION to the Internet to say yes he is Guilty.
Suspend Coach Richt for a game the next time he makes EXCUSES for HIS recruits as Ambassadors of my alma mater, not his.
When they ACT LIKE THUGS on NATIONAL TV, suspend their POSITION COACH for the NEXT GAME.
They recruited them here, they must be ACCOUNTABLE for them while they are here.
Have the AD write into Coach Richt’s contract that for the $25 million dollars paid to him that he is ACCOUNTABLE for the RECRUITS he brings in here. And, that when he is the # 1 National Champions of the Fulmer Cup, and makes public statements of EXCUSES FORGIVING them, and TRYING TO WALK-AWAY from his RESPONSIBILITIES saying he will ONLY SUSPEND a player a game and then ONLY WHEN THEY ARRESTED, that he is not going to be paid one penny that entire month.
Coach Richt, what he is doing, is NOT WORKING.
How is it that EVERYONE on this blog knew long before Coach Richt ACTED STUPID like oh my God Zach Mettenberger LIED TO CMR, that he had repeatedly sexually battered a poor little college student coed he never met. Don’t give me this Coach Richt did not know B.S. We told him. HERE. For over 100 days we told him here, then he acts like he had NO IDEA when he does his plea bargain of 2 counts of sexual battery.
Coach Richt RECRUITS players that Admissions at UGA DENIES, Coach Richt is docked one month’s salary EVERY TIME.
Coach Richt complains to the papers about Michael Grant not being allowed into UGA AFTER Admissions ALREADY TOLD HIM NO WAY, that he is FINED $250,000.
Coach Richt ALLOWS a SUSPENDED player to go to SOCIAL MEDIA to plead his own case. Each occurrence is a $100,000 Coach Richt FINE.
Dawg Whisperer
September 4th, 2010
9:22 am
I haven’t bothered to read any of the 1500+ messages preceding mine so I’m probably repeating what many have said before me. I don’t feel that I’m an apolgist for Mark Richt when I say that I don’t hold him responsible for the actions of these players. Yes, they should be punished and they are. I’m sure coach Richt will take whatever action he deems appropriate on a case by case basis. He has already expelled a couple of players from the team. What more do you want?
I think what’s going on here is the herd mentality. Once the stampede starts, more cows join in whether it make sense or not. Jeff, your comment about colleagues turning a blind eye does indeed sound like a fraternity that blackballed you. Can you make that allegation and know for certain you are right? It’s better to be right than to castigate others based on your theory. Could it be they actually believe that coach Richt has actually handled this appropriately?
A Dog Fan
September 4th, 2010
9:25 am
The decline of the AJC newspaper falls 100% on Jeff Schultz for articles like this one.
Jeremy
September 4th, 2010
9:27 am
All this, over a $35 scooter helmet. 1 game suspension. Somebody at the AJC might have over-reacted, just a wee bit, for the 1000th time.
Dawg Lover
September 4th, 2010
9:28 am
Jeff, Really take any 85-100 kids from most major university and you’ll find this. Ah Notre Dame seems to me had its problems. What about North Carolina?
Problem is you have only 20 hours(NCAA) of contact with these kids a week……..
Professors have more contact hours than coaches do…Lets start checking to see which professors have students with more arrests.
Even in recruiting you have limited access to home and family and school teachers,counselors and administration so you may not know the true character of a student athlete. This is a NCAA rule as Jeff you should know.
Its sad that the media is so hungery to make these searches and deem programs and Universities to headlines like these. Sometimes I feel in the get your scoop first era of news and sports we forget the human factor. Wonders if we had a police blog of people working for the AJC thatthere might be a few blimishes on your past….. GO DAWGS
jerry
September 4th, 2010
9:28 am
The recruiting pool is what it is. It used to be what it isn’t. Deal with it.
Steele
September 4th, 2010
9:31 am
I still don’t understand Jeff’s point.
Just ask yourself:
1- If a child cheats on a test, would you blame the teacher?
2- If a player cheats on his spouse, would you blame his parents?
3- If a player steals something, would you blame the coach?
I don’t think any rational person would blame Richt when a player steals something. That’s absurd.
Go Valdosta
September 4th, 2010
9:33 am
Students in Atlanta are doing worse on test scores. And it falls on Jeff Schultz, who dumbs down complex issues and disregards critical thinking and sublety on issues.
Beast from the East
September 4th, 2010
9:35 am
1,577 comments. Can you get to 2,000??
Red Panties Rick
September 4th, 2010
9:37 am
I think this whole thing is just overreaction on the part of the Athens Police! They’re targeting these players just because they’re going to all end up rich while the cop has to work two jobs just to pay for enough bologna and mayo to keep surviving. It makes me all so angry that y’all will have to pardon me, I need to go get a pair of red panties and daub off my eyes….
St. Richt
September 4th, 2010
9:37 am
Some things go together- baseball and apple pie, salt and pepper, Batman and Robin, and Georgia Football and the Athens Clarke County Jail. Nice, Georgia fans, you must be so proud.
St. Richt
September 4th, 2010
9:39 am
I’m sure all the players will learn a lesson watching these poor players sit out against Louisiana Lafayette. Your coach is the biggest wuss in college sports, hands down. Players may respect him, but they sure as heck don’t fear him.
St. Richt
September 4th, 2010
9:40 am
Georgia = the new Criminoles.
Jesus had a Judas
September 4th, 2010
9:41 am
I submit to you, even Jesus had a thief in his midst. From the core 12, no less. This doesn’t disqualify Jesus’ leadership or character, or reflect on Jesus in a negative light.
1 out of 12 people are bad apples, even when Jesus is leading and in charge of a group. To not get that, is to not understand human nature, and sin, and reality, and evil in the world. People can choose to do right, or evil.
As much as some try, you can’t blame God for Hitler. You just can’t. Hitler chose to do evil. But it wasn’t God’s desire for Hitler.
Hitler took his freedom, and chose evil. That’s the gamble a loving God takes on human beings. God’s not going to force anybody to do good.
Coach
September 4th, 2010
9:44 am
It’s the old FSU model; recruit anyone who can play, and we’ll worry about the fallout later. It’s all about character, or the lack thereof, and not whether a thug is disciplined.
ET
September 4th, 2010
9:45 am
OMG! 9 players arrested in 6 months and many fans have their heads in the sand (or somewhere alot darker). If S. Carolina had this many arrests in that time frame the UGA faithful would be screaming that the evil genius had lost control. Get real, UGA has a big problem. 9 arrests is 9 too many. On top of that only giving out 1 game suspensions is a joke. It’s OUT OF CONTROL.
James
September 4th, 2010
9:45 am
people like Jeff have a hard time reconciling their position with science. Science says the future is uncertain, it’s not pre-determined. Take the path of atoms at the Quantum level. No one has been able to predict movement there. Scientifically speaking, the future is uncertain. Which proves free will reins over fatalism or pre-determinism. It’s the player’s responsilbity to not steal, exercising his free will. It has absolutely nothing to do with the coach. To argue that the blame is on Richt, is to go against science and rational thinking.
dawgfan
September 4th, 2010
9:47 am
“They live among the media (some of whom are too afraid of burning bridges with the program and not having the coach smile at them any more).”
Oh this is rich. You mean like all you AJC clowns have been sucking up to Manboobs over on the Flats for the past two years? You and Bradley want to have his baby. It must cause Roberson extreme physical pain to say anything remotely negative about Georgia Tech football because he NEVER does it. His entire job is to blow smoke directly up the Techies’ azz. I find the above quote extremely amusing Schultz. You clowns don’t have the courage to confront Manboobs on anything. Why can’t he win a bowl game? Why does his offense sputter against elite defenses? When will he ever do anything outside of the ACC? Why is he such a smack talking sore loser classless punk? Will the AJC ever ask any of these questions? Of course not. Everything he does is wonderful.
The arrests are embarassing but your columns are even more embarassing. You don’t even pretend to be objective anymore. Your agenda is as clear as glass.
MAMADAWG
September 4th, 2010
9:49 am
Let he who is without sin cast the first stone. I agree that something is fishy when this “theft” wasn’t reported for almost 3 months but reported the week of GAME DAY. HOWEVER, CMR can’t undo what has been done or not done in these kids’ homes for the last 18 years. If you want to blame someone, how about the homefront and the people who make these kids feel invinceable before they ever see the Arch.
Gatorman
September 4th, 2010
9:52 am
I love it, make a provocative comment about UGA and half the state post. We’ll see you in the Gator Bowl chumps, and you can lick your privates and slobber all over for having one of the ugliest, and stupidest mascots in the world.
dawgfan
September 4th, 2010
9:52 am
Oh, and I forgot one. Why would the great and wonderful Manboobs only suspend a player for ONE GAME for beating up a girl? Where was the AJC column on that? It would have been front page news if Richt had done it.
Freddie
September 4th, 2010
9:54 am
Big Richt fan. This article just made me more convinced what a great coach is. Thanks Jeff!
Phi Beta
September 4th, 2010
10:02 am
Jeff:
You can’t have it both way.
Either Richt gets the blame for all bad things players do.
Or Richt gets the credit for all good things players do.
By looking at the ratio of your positive articles aboput Richt, to negative articles about Richt, pretty obvious you’re not giving Richt credit for all the good things players do, therefor, you can’t blame Richt for all the bad things players do.
If you start writing 20 positive articles, for every 1 negative article about Richt, you’ll be more in alignment with reality. Until that changes, no one will take articles like this seriously.
Keep in mind, 200 out of 207 players havn’t done anything really bad. And you choose to not report on that.
Carolyn Wilder
September 4th, 2010
10:02 am
you are an idiot…Blaming CMR for what the players do off the field is like Obama blaming Bush for all his mistakes
St. Richt
September 4th, 2010
10:04 am
Yes, somethings fishy all right. And its more like the godly-one CMR and staff were trying to sweep this incident under the rug for the last 3 months. And then realized they couldn’t do it on the eve of opening day. The only thing that is fishy is your program.
St. Richt
September 4th, 2010
10:05 am
Schultz is right and any of your morons that can’t admit it are just plain stupid. None of his players fear him. That is a problem.
The Job Problem
September 4th, 2010
10:06 am
Sometimes, evil happens, and it’s no one’s fault. Look at Job in the Bible. What did Job do to deserve all that calamity? Was Job to blame for the evil that happened around him? No.
Just because evil occurs arounds someone, it doesn’t mean that person is to blame. Evil is a complex concept, it’s not as simple as Jeff tries to assert.
surrealist
September 4th, 2010
10:07 am
The issue for Richt is not that he is responsible for the inexcusable behavior of his recruits. However, he IS responsible for his response. That is something over which he has 100% control. There is a difference between 18 yr olds acting like 18 year olds (caught with fake IDs, drinking) and major character issues (sexual assault and thievery). I did a lot things in college over which I cringe when I think about them, but I never sexually assaulted a female and never stole someone else’s possessions. Neither did/do the overwhelming majority of college students engage in such major criminal behavior. Yes, stealing is MAJOR criminal behavior.