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
DP
September 3rd, 2010
12:39 pm
Take a look at that YouTube clip of Jim Rome linked previously with the clip of his interview with Mark Richt from September 7, 2007. Here are a couple of quotes from Richt 3 YEARS AGO:
“I know there’s not a problem at the University of Georgia.”
“We’ve got no problems at all here when it comes to discipline, I can promise you that.”
8, 9, 10 arrests every offseason for the last what, 5 years in a row? When does Richt figure out that whatever he’s been doing has been working?
Tired of the BullSh@t
September 3rd, 2010
12:39 pm
Hey Noisewater, you are the problem with people today. Making the suspect a victim. What would you do if someone stole from you? Just let him/her return it an be over it? I guess in your mind it’s okay to steal from others. So what if it took 3 months, did you ever think maybe there was an investigation? THE KID STOLE. HE TOOK WHAT WASN’T HIS. PERIOD.
This is what you get when you bring in someone with ties to FSU and Miami. THUG Universities from Florida and now UGA is the THUG University of the State of Georgia. And to think I sent my 14yr old son to Richt’s football camp over the summer.
Damon Evans
September 3rd, 2010
12:39 pm
Miss me yet?
James
September 3rd, 2010
12:40 pm
Isn’t it irrational to go against current Quantum physics, which proves movement of atoms cannot be predicted?
If atoms cannot be predicted, doesn’t that prove that actions are not pre-determiend?
And if actions are not pre-determined, doesn’t that prove free will?
And if players have free will, doesn’t that disprove Jeff’s point?
Before Quantum physics, A FEW still believed in pre-destination, not anymore.
It’s irrational and unscientific to argue for pre-destination vs. free will.
Chick
September 3rd, 2010
12:40 pm
I hate to agree with Jeff and usually make it a point not to agree with him. However, he is right in this case. I was a season ticket holder for 15 years and didn’t renew this year as the program is an embarassment and not for wins and loses. The team is a bunch of undisciplined thugs with no fear of doing wrong. Today in Tuscaloosa they are in game prep and no one would dare pull this stunt on Saban. In Athens it is no big deal.
Bride of Chucky Knapp
September 3rd, 2010
12:40 pm
Don’t neither one make know cents.
Twest
September 3rd, 2010
12:40 pm
Shut up Jeff, you sound like one of my girls. If your Dad robs a bank are you responsible? If your mom slaps the mail man are you responsible? What about if Mark Bradley steals some cookies from AJC are you responsible? Why not? you are just as connected to these as Richt to his players. Jeff calm your monkey butt down!! sheesh!!!
Not a UGA fan
September 3rd, 2010
12:40 pm
Hey masivatack, Yea they kicked him off the team but accepted a committment from another QB that is now not playing football for having sex in the schools bathroom.
Who Cares
September 3rd, 2010
12:40 pm
I am fine with some “PETTY” arrests during the off season; it happens everywhere-to students as well as student athletes. The Mettenberger case was not petty, and it was handled very appropriately. Coach Richt and his staff can not teach a lifetime’s worth of morals and values to these kids in 40 hours a week. One can argue why recruit those “questionable” kids anyway, but we should not fool ourselves into believing college football is not a results driven business. With the most important results being the most recent. Let’s see how many of these arrests we remember when we are playing ‘Bama in the dome come December.
merculf
September 3rd, 2010
12:40 pm
I went through high school and college and didn’t get arrested. Why can’t these guys do the same. I had a lot more free time than they do. If you’re studying and practicing, how do you have so much free time to get yourselves in trouble?
Matthew Cordle
September 3rd, 2010
12:41 pm
If a zero tolerance policy is issued for college football, I want a zero tolerance policy issued for all students that attend college or at least all students who are receiving any form of scholarship.
Alphare
September 3rd, 2010
12:41 pm
UGA fans, why don’t you guys pay off Jeff so that he can retire?
I am sure if Jeff is gone, your players will be all saints thereafter. Actually, if you turn your eyes blind, you can achieve the same thing.
Jeff Schultz
September 3rd, 2010
12:42 pm
Sonny Clusters — Hah! Thanks man. I’m fine but thanks for thinking of me. (OK, maybe 2 scoops on a cake cone).
mike Jay
September 3rd, 2010
12:42 pm
Why could he have just not worn a football helmet? Prolly provides better protection anyhow. I suppose Richt is goign to have to overpunish some folks to make a point. That and stop recruiting players form shadey backgrounds. More David Pollacks and less Quincy Carters. Just gotta earn your paycheck and coach um up!
saban
September 3rd, 2010
12:42 pm
Boys will be Boys.
The AD steals red panties, the players steal helmets, whatever they can.
Rich dives off the board.
We win national championships with men not boys.
Ted M
September 3rd, 2010
12:42 pm
“It’s really pretty simple: Either bring in different kids or say/act differently when they get here, in terms of discipline.”
I vote for the latter and I think the latter is the problem.
If Olgetree were kicked off the team and I were coaching another I would immediately pick up Ogletree thinking I can keep this kid out of trouble…I’m not a wimp like CMR.
I don’t think CMR should be fired, I think he needs to admit he has no backbone.
Accountability
September 3rd, 2010
12:42 pm
For all of you defending Richt and how “he can’t watch everybody all of the time” just remember that when he sat in that living room recruiting those kids, he promised their Moms and Dads that he and the staff would watch over their babies as they are now part of the “family”. So, yeah, he IS responsible.
Dawg Man 87
September 3rd, 2010
12:42 pm
When Dooley was the HC, he did a much better job of covering up the criminal behavior of his players…especially the 1980 team.
notaugafan
September 3rd, 2010
12:43 pm
Not a UGA fan but I do like CMR and think he is a great person.The problem is these kids feel like they can run all over him and get away with it.I think if you feared your Coach some of this would stop & stop quick!
Police Blotter
September 3rd, 2010
12:43 pm
heck it they did ride alongs with the APD, they could see first hand arrest of the guy across the huddle…
better yet let Jeff ride along with APD and he could twitter the news as fast as these arrest are coming in….
Jeff Schultz
September 3rd, 2010
12:43 pm
Fo Fi Free — For the last time: Change . . . your . . . name.
Destin Dawg
September 3rd, 2010
12:43 pm
$35 helmet sitting 6 hours… then arrested 3 mos…. later 1 day before season.. this stinks and so does Shultz !!!!
Red Panties
September 3rd, 2010
12:43 pm
This isn’t a matter of comparing Georgia to other teams, the point of the matter, does
UGA allow it’s players to steal. If true, he is a thief and you folks are just haggling over the
amount. That is totally classless.
Police Blotter
September 3rd, 2010
12:43 pm
should have said : heck if they…
Cuz
September 3rd, 2010
12:43 pm
Since we have already won the Fulmer Cup for this year, does this arrest go towards next years Cup race?
CBB1
September 3rd, 2010
12:44 pm
Hey Hog smell good,
You are an idiot for bashing another school. You guys ran off the best coach you had and went and got a turncoat like Petrino. As soon as a better school than R Kansas comes calling, and trust me, there are lots better schools than yours, Petrino will bolt. Our D sucked last year and we still beat you down on your home turf while crybaby Ryan sulked with Bobby on the sidelines. You better hope there aren’t any Falcons players at the game with R Kansas, moron Petrino won’t make it out alive. By the way, when is the last time R Kansas beat UGA or won an SEC title?
Taken into Perspective
September 3rd, 2010
12:44 pm
@ Saban
Which is why your team won the Fulmer cup the year before…
phillip
September 3rd, 2010
12:44 pm
No matter how trivial something like this sounds, it is getting to the point where Richt is going to have to immediately kick people off the team for transgressions. No waiting. No nothing. Just boot their asses out.
juvenal
September 3rd, 2010
12:44 pm
if the fans don’t care, is it surprising there so many of these incidents?
Jeff Schultz
September 3rd, 2010
12:45 pm
Uncle Rico — When problems occur at other schools, I criticize them. Therefore, if these players had been arrested at Florida, Alabama or elsewhere, I would be criticizing them, the program, the coach, and I trust so would many of the people commenting on this blog.
Billy T.
September 3rd, 2010
12:45 pm
Sound like a set-up to me…
I bet someone from Tech is behind this entire incident. Come on… a $35 helmet? Sound like a set-up to me.
Ted M
September 3rd, 2010
12:45 pm
Jeff – Did you have something good planned for your day off?
We are tied 2 and 0. You’re going down dude. Kansas State is our difference maker.
Flyin' Dawg
September 3rd, 2010
12:46 pm
Jeff- My main point is that the UGA Police have “Cracked down” since the Party Scool rankings came out completely at the direction of Michael Adams. Now taking that into account, as a police dept., how do you show the public and the student body that you are cracking down on petty and alcohol related activity? You bust the highest profile individuals that you can and get it plastered all over the paper. Guess how it appears now to outsiders looking in? Well, the party school ranking is certainly not for the lack of fine police work by the campus police, now is it?
My Wife is a police officer here in metro Atlanta, and while she said she would have taken it seriously that a helmet was taken, she would have done nothing more than call the person and ask that it be returned. She said her Supervisor would have disciplined her for asking for a warrant over $35. Translation, you are wasting $1K plus of the taxpayers money to address a $35 petty crime, that could have been a simple mis-understanding.
Police Blotter
September 3rd, 2010
12:46 pm
Who Cares. I am thanking god now that you do not live in my neighborhood if you are “okay with some PETTY arrest”..I bet your neighbors would like to know you will turn the cheek if you are stolen from…
bamadawg
September 3rd, 2010
12:47 pm
I love UGA football, but i love UGA more, enough is enough, Ealey was told not to drive, he did, kick him off the team, Ogletree is a thief, kick him off the team, ect, playing for UGA is a privilege and if they dont understand it, get the players that will make us proud!!!
That Guy!
September 3rd, 2010
12:47 pm
Jeff,
“Uncle Rico — When problems occur at other schools, I criticize them. Therefore, if these players had been arrested at Florida, Alabama or elsewhere, I would be criticizing them, the program, the coach, and I trust so would many of the people commenting on this blog.”
No comment from you on the UF kids that were arrested.
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gator_clause/2010/08/gators-freshmen-matt-elam-and-solomon-patton-arrested-for-possession-of-alcohol.html
doggyboy
September 3rd, 2010
12:47 pm
It appears that what I suspected is pretty much true. 90% or more of Georgia so-called “fans” are nothing but sidewalk alum who’s only interest in the university is the betting line. They couldn’t find Athens on a map! It’s the alumni like myself who are absolutely horrified by the steady downturn in our program under Mark Richt. Sidewalk alum never think that anything is “bad enough” to warrant severe repercussions.
MuttH8er
September 3rd, 2010
12:47 pm
It all kind of makes sense when you observe the obscene/crude level of behavior to which mutt fans have descended. Where are the UGA fans and players with which we use to compete?
Kirby Smart
September 3rd, 2010
12:47 pm
Bring me back to UGA and I will clean up this mess.
Red Panties
September 3rd, 2010
12:47 pm
This will set the all time record for posts on any subject.
Bailey
September 3rd, 2010
12:48 pm
Who has had a worse effect on society?
Howard Stern, sensationalist journalist.
Alec Ogletree, alleged thief of $35 object.
Tree Ugar
September 3rd, 2010
12:48 pm
This makes me sick.
doug dawg
September 3rd, 2010
12:49 pm
THIS IS IT. i’ve become so tired of tuning in every day only to hear more disgusting news. i’ve been an alumnus and diehard fan for over four decades; i was born in athens, and raised in sanford stadium. but I HAVE HAD ENOUGH. i am ashamed of richt, who i once so admired, and the thugs on this team — yes, they are thugs. i used to try to make excuses, but no more. the situation is out of control, really out of control. the only solution is to clean house from top to bottom, and that includes mr. richt. i once loved him for what he stood for; now i see what he really stands for. enough, and sad, sad, sad.
Just Wondering
September 3rd, 2010
12:49 pm
I had my car broken into and someone stole my golf clubs wortha at least $500 and $100 cash. The only thing I could get the police to do was fill out a police report for the indurance company. How is it the Athens police are able to conduct a 2 and half month investigation into a stolen $35 helmet? Coul it be they are more interested in creating Headlines?
Accountability
September 3rd, 2010
12:49 pm
Kirby Smart – yes you would…UGA fans won’t admit it but they need you at the helm NOW.
Jon Carter
September 3rd, 2010
12:49 pm
CMR will get this situation corrected in short order. It is time to rally around the DAWGS!
dawgdawgdawg
September 3rd, 2010
12:49 pm
athlete or not, ANY college-aged student should know not to take something that doesn’t belong to them…it’s common sense. i’m pretty sure they start teaching that in pre-school. so disappointed with Ogletree and Ealey
Taken into Perspective
September 3rd, 2010
12:49 pm
@ Jeff
I think the problem with the whole situation is that the players are criticized at all. I don’t really care what school the players are from it’s a double standard.
Now if every news source had daily headlines such as “UGA student steals trays from cafeteria issued arrest warrant” or something like “University of Florida Gym user prosecuted for taking gym towel” then I would be okay with this.
Police Blotter
September 3rd, 2010
12:49 pm
THat Guy..you are getting old posting and posting the same link, put down the BONG!
Flyin' Dawg
September 3rd, 2010
12:49 pm
Doggyboy- I am an alum as well and I disagree with you. In fact, I would say the majority of the guys that were there with me would disagree with you. You obviously never coached or played any sports that involved teenagers.