Richt, Georgia have been hurt by too many recruiting risks
Mark Richt has seen several players arrested and suspended this offseason, including former tailback Isaiah Crowell. (AP photo)
HOOVER, Ala. – Mark Richt ignored the red flags and was among the nation’s coaches who lined up around the block for Isaiah Crowell.
He already has seen seven members from his vaunted 2011 recruiting class either kicked out, flunked out or never academically qualified to begin with (“Dream Team”? Anybody?).
Arrests and suspensions likely will lead to four defensive starters missing games next season.
There is a problem again at Georgia — and it matters little that it’s a different one from the past.
Richt, to his credit, no longer responds to players’ criminal or just plain stupid actions by merely making them run stadium steps or suspending their dessert privileges. He has come a long way from enabling Odell Thurman. He suspends players. He kicks them out. He tries to make them understand that getting four or five stars stamped on your forehead by a recruiting site and the ego trip of a signing-day news conference shouldn’t be accompanied by a sense of entitlement (even if it too often does).
The problem now is that too many of the players Georgia is recruiting should be red-lined. The line of risk needs to be pulled back.
Obviously, Richt and his staff are getting a lot right. The Bulldogs are favored to win the SEC East. They’re projected to open the season as a top-10 team.
But imagine if they actually had everybody there.
“We’re not recruiting bad kids,” Richt said in a private media session with local writers Thursday at SEC Media Days. “We’re recruiting a lot of great kids. Other schools are recruiting the same guys.”
Have the negative headlines of this offseason given him reason to pay closer attention to a recruit’s personal blemishes?
“We do find out as much as we possibly can,” he said. “There are rules on how many times we can call a kid and see him in person. We try to maximize those things.”
Sorry. But losing seven of 26 kids from one recruiting class in one year screams that there’s a need for a better filter.
Richt was accurate when he said, “To say that issues aren’t happening around the country isn’t really realistic.”
But losing at least five starters (Crowell plus four on defense suspended) is significant.
Crowell, after multiple suspensions and missteps his freshman season, was bounced following his arrest on felony gun charges. Cornerback Sanders Commings is gone for two games following an arrest for domestic violence. Safety Baccari Rambo (possibly four games), cornerback Branden Smith and linebacker Alec Ogletree all reportedly tested positive for marijuana. Three other freshmen (Nick Marshall, Chris Sanders, Sanford Seay) were kicked out for their reported involvement in a campus theft.
Some of Georgia’s problems can be attributed to having a tougher drug-and-alcohol policy than other schools. But that doesn’t explain everything. The recruiting mistakes will hurt.
The we’ll-be-better-off-without-him rallying cries regarding Crowell makes for a nice locker-room speech. But it’s just not factual. He was Georgia’s best running back — by a long shot — and the Dogs’ potential issues on the offensive line don’t suggest just anybody can be productive.
This will be a team that must rely on its defense and its resolve. The Dogs’ ability to rebound from a 0-2 start with 10 consecutive wins last season said something about the character of the players who aren’t getting arrested (even if that was followed by two more losses to LSU and Michigan State). It’s a team with a solid quarterback (Aaron Murray), strong leadership and several players who bypassed the NFL draft last season to come back for another season. But the suspensions and player losses will hurt.
“There’s been more attrition the last couple of years than there has been since we’ve been at Georgia,” Richt said. “But sometimes that happens. We’ll still have plenty of guys to field a team.”
Then again, if just having enough players was the criteria, there would be celebrations in Toledo and Ole Miss. The question now is whether the Dogs’ chances for a special season have been undone before they’ve even played a game.
By Jeff Schultz
Previous SEC Media Days blogs
• Arkansas living with deserved humiliation after Petrino firing
• Muschamp getting heat but deserves some time at Florida
• Slive: SEC needs to be vigilant to avoid Penn State situation
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779 comments Add your comment
alwaysadawg
July 20th, 2012
8:19 am
I am very sure that Alabama, Auburn, UF, etc,,etc,. would not have signed Crowell because the already knew what a trouble maker he was. Come on Schultz, move into the real world.
REALLY?
July 20th, 2012
8:19 am
He wasnt our best back! He went down easy and was soft as they come.
Hap Hines
July 20th, 2012
8:27 am
Isaiah Crowell? What was Mark Richt thinking? All you need to do is look at him and you’ll know he’s nothing but human trash. He has a life in prison in front of him, not a life in the NFL.
BG
July 20th, 2012
8:30 am
Jeff, The reason for this is that Richt and UGA actually suspend their players for actual games when they get into trouble unlike some SEC teams. Most of the players Richt kicked off would still be on the team at a majority of other SEC teams.
More Freud, less football coach: Schultz on Richt | Get The Picture
July 20th, 2012
8:32 am
[...] inspiration for another Jeff Schultz column in which he appoints himself Mark Richt’s scold, yesterday’s piece took a slightly different tack from where Schultz usually goes when the criminal element rears its [...]
LM
July 20th, 2012
8:33 am
Oh my! The convenient excuses are already falling from the sky!
Just listen to the convenient excuses already falling from the sky!
Thomas Brown
July 20th, 2012
8:34 am
Kolton Houston 4-Star # 6 OG sat out 2011 unspecified NCAA violation
Safety Bacarri Rambo facing a four-game drug Suspension when announce
Cornerback Branden Smith at least one game drug Suspension when announce
Inside linebacker Alec Ogletree least one game drug Suspension when announce
Cornerback Sanders Commings Suspended for two games hit girl
Nick Marshall kicked out / transferred-out reported involvement theft
Chris Sanders kicked out / transferred-out reported involvement theft
Sanford Seay kicked out / transferred-out reported involvement theft
Cootie Quintavious Harrow Soph S flunked-out / transfer Dream Team # 6
Isaiah Crowell # 1 RB nation Soph kicked-out / transfer Dream Team # 7
Montez Robinson SR # 10 DE 4-Star, beat up girl, transfer
John Atkins F # 23 DT nationally, failed to qualify transfer
Leonard Floyd F 4-Star # 18 DE nationally, failed to qualify transfer
Jordan Lawrence Love JR 12/31/90 arrest didn’t know name or birthday transfer
Zach Mettenberger JR # 14 QB 4-star, guilty sexual battery transfer
Mark Richt said 19 July 2012 : “There’s been more attrition the last couple of years than there has been since we’ve been at Georgia.” Is that supposed to make us feel better about it, while as a direct result we’ve lost 9 games and counting in a row to every single top team we’re playing, and now this 2012 season face only 1 team who made any top 25 poll with 11 opponents averaging 4.8 wins ? Who we going to beat 2012 ? A 4-win Alabama team ? An Alabama team who lost the same year to Louisiana Lafayette ? An Alabama team that didn’t even make the Coaches’ Poll Top 25 ? This is what we brag about; oh, and getting to The SEC Championship Game to have our Hats handed to us 10-42. We settle for mediocrity, and brag about it.
__________________________________
When are we going to bea the top teams ?
__________________________________
and
______________________________
Who is next kicked-off / transfer-out ?
______________________________
T
July 20th, 2012
8:38 am
Schultzy, I love you and all, but you are being pretty hypocritical on this one. I have read and heard you say many times that this players are players Richt HAS to get, so now since some have gone wrong, you turn away from that? Don’t be like Bookman and be a hypocrite just to gain readers. Stick to your guns like always, that is what makes you great and entertaining.
Thomas Brown
July 20th, 2012
8:39 am
“misses out on the Championship game, it won’t be because of the suspensions, it will be because of their quarterback’s play”
________________________________________________________________________
You got something there, Jimmy.
SouthGADawg
July 20th, 2012
8:40 am
If you want to do a good article the write all SEC schools down and list their drug testing and punishment policies and then list everyone from each school that has been arrested or kicked out and compare UGA to the other schools. This article is just negative comment toward UGA. Every college has its share of thugs and CMR is doing a good job of either making them into DGD or getting their A-s out of the program. He is tough but not stupid and has a big heart and would like to see all of the players make it to the NFL.
Let us be crystal clear
July 20th, 2012
8:41 am
UGA has become over the last 20 years a school more similar to U of NC than Alabama. The UGA adm is totally behind the school’s elevated academic standards. Yes, we ahve taken the IC’s of the world but we are getting away from that. Schools like SC and UT and LSU and Clemson and AU and Alabama can come in to uGA and get kids that frankly, CANNOT do the academics that are rwequired by UGA.
GT fans will giggle but this statement about UGA is true. This fact is the core reason that UGA will usually NOT compete for much post season excitement, beyond a Cap One Bowl or Outback Bowl, or a Chic Fil A Bowl, or much less.
UGA is considered as having a great seaso, if we defeat UT and AU and SC and Florida and then play in a nice mid level bowl game. Last year gave us that and we still had 4 freaking losses …………… folks, that is it for us.
UGA class of 71 & 73
AltamahaDawg
July 20th, 2012
8:44 am
So, Georgia is not going to be better off without Crowell, but would have been better off, without Crowell. If only there was a way to have him running the football for UGA without actually being a member of the team. Is that what I am reading.
Went pretty light on the original content in this one, my friend.
Lakedawg
July 20th, 2012
8:46 am
Not sure what Schultzie is saying with this column? Georgia’s policy’s are too strict? Richt intentially recruits bad kids? Other schools do not recruit these same players?
This column will get a big response?
Thomas Brown
July 20th, 2012
8:46 am
“With Coach Mark Richt, I feel like he’s more lenient.” Drake one of eight (8) 4-Star or better recruits in the state of Georgia who signed this 2012 season with Alabama, all 8 of whom Mark Richt offered.
jerry
You’re right of course. RB Drake is too.
“With Coach Mark Richt, I feel like he’s more lenient.”
__________________________________________
No Discipline on or off the field, which is why we can’t beat the top teams.
bitter troll
July 20th, 2012
8:48 am
@Thomas/clown—-Why not spend some of your time and investigate bamma
or take a drive down to the “barn” and conduct a interview in “BARS” with allburn gain-sttas
thugg players, and get the real story on all the crimes that get covered up in allburn
All schools recruit from same thugg —HOODS–and all know the –RISK–when recruit GREG REID
types———–SABAN was real excited about the chance of landing CROWBABY
and futhermore if I were a gambling man, Its 100% that next year he will be in AT THE —BARN—
BUT THOMAS THE CLOWN LOVES TO ACT AS IF COACH RICHT IS THE ONLY COACH WITH
——————————TROUBLED KIDS—————-PLEASE
PerryDawg
July 20th, 2012
8:52 am
Schultz – You’re great at pointing out problems; then running and hiding. Where’s your solution?
Where’s your research showing how School X does it right?
Where’s your evaluation form showing the ideal and acceptable recruit?
Not being an apologist for UGA, but, frankly, I don’t think there is a solution that meets your high demands AND makes you competitive in the SEC.
The PennState situation shows where uber infatuation with college football can take an institution functionally and ethically. Until the English professors make more than the football coach – and until ALL football coaches are judged on something other than W-L records – you won’t find a solution.
bitter troll
July 20th, 2012
8:52 am
tHOMASthe CLOWN is mad because UGA has a tough DRUG policy
probly because your 400 pounds of chewed bubble gum and you sit around SMOKE-IN –DOPE–
EATING HOTDOGS AND DRIKING 4 LITERS OF COKE each day.
The –NEW WORLD ORDER AT UGA———–NO MORE THUGGS
JustMe
July 20th, 2012
8:53 am
Secondly, I kind of think that this kind of story is lazy journalism. I have to wonder how much research Mr. Schultz did about arrests and suspensions at other schools before producing this story. I don’t recall the AJC spending much time this year talking about the GATech player arrested a couple of months ago. I also don’t recall them talking much about the OSU player arrested last month.
According to lostletterman.com, seven different SEC schools have had at least two players arrested in 2012, with Arkansas leading the way with five arrests. Has Schultz spent much time discussing that in comparison with UGA? During the Urban Meyer years at Florida, the UF arrest record was as bad or worse than at UGA; UF had 31 arrests of 25 players in a five year period. In the last month, players at Tennessee, Florida and Texas A&M have been arrested. Have we forgotten the pair of high-profile players from LSU arrested at the start of last year’s season? Why does Spurrier get a nod and a chuckle for his treatment of Garcia’s multiple arrests?
Let’s do some comparison. According to ArrestNation.com, UGA has had eight football players arrested in the last three years.
Oklahoma State University has had four football players arrested already this year and has six players who have been arrested in the last three. Marshall University has had 12 arrests in the last three years, one player twice. Arkansas has had 10 football players arrested in the last three years. South Carolina has had six players arrested since 2010. Washington State has had 11 players arrested, one player twice. Florida State has had nine different arrests, with three different players each arrested twice. Iowa State has had 11 arrests, one player arrested twice. Florida has had 11 arrests, two players arrested twice. West Virginia has had six arrests. Colorado State has had seven arrests. Auburn has had seven arrests since 2010.
I discovered all the above information in about 15 minutes of research on Google, and anybody reading this story could have found out the same information if they, also, hadn’t been lazy. The arrest record at UGA is not particularly out of line with the arrest record of players at other, large university football programs.
Bulldog59
July 20th, 2012
8:54 am
Article is tough but fair……
As CMR said, (1) Other schools are recruiting the same guys.”, and (2) “To say that issues aren’t happening around the country isn’t really realistic.”
There is probably some validity to the argument that some other schools operate under “old school” unwritten policies where athletes are protected, transgressions are overlooked or even worse, covered up. One glaring example is the night club incident at UT during Da’Rick Roger’s freshman year. 7-8 players involved in a bar room brawl where a police officer was left unconscious in the street. Da’Rick himself pushed a police officer. No charges were filed against any players? Not one player was tested for consumption of alcohol, etc., yet all were under the age of 21.
To JS’s point in the blog above, we can’t worry about what other schools are doing (or not doing) we have to keep our own house in order………
bitter troll
July 20th, 2012
8:57 am
BELIVE ME———-PENN ST is not by themselfs when it comes to —COVER-UP
——————-The media just like the AJC, just report what there told to report
—————————brain dead —–The SCAM NEWTON AFFAIR—PROVED THAT
Not one AJC reporter looked deep into finding the facts that were a few miles from the ATL
ihatebulldogfans becausetheyarestupid
July 20th, 2012
8:58 am
it doesn’t matter what other schools do or don’t do…either change your rules to match the others, or, shut the he11 up.
Wilson Pickett
July 20th, 2012
8:59 am
never under estimate the auburn mafia….
Bulldog59
July 20th, 2012
9:00 am
Side note: It is also disheartening to see players, the latest being Mettenberger, being dismissed from one SEC school, and then signing with another. Would it be unrealistic for the SEC to have a policy (with specific guidelines) where, any player that signs with an SEC school after being previously dismissed from another SEC school, must forfeit (sit) one year of eligibility? This would be in addition to the redshirt/JC/FCS year.
iabsolutelylovetacos
July 20th, 2012
9:00 am
preseason top 10?……….it always amazes me how this team is always over rated. no wonder all the doggie fans live in la-la land. hahahahahahaha!!!!!! thug U!! lol.
bitter troll
July 20th, 2012
9:02 am
@JUST ME—————–START A NEWS PAPER—-MORE FACTS IN YOU SCRIBE THAN
THE AJC HAS PRODUCED IN 10 YEARS———THANKS
Mr. Pappagiorgio
July 20th, 2012
9:02 am
Schultz, You’re an idiot. I can’t believe they pay you to write this crap. Get a clue and write something with substance.
Allow Me to Say This On Recruiting « The Grit Tree
July 20th, 2012
9:07 am
[...] Schultz does it again. This little gem from his most recent column is just [...]
oldtimer
July 20th, 2012
9:08 am
Seems like if Richt/Georgia just covered everything up like other schools do and kept it private that the media would be happy. We are no different than other schools. Probably in the median. We just have the largest newspaper in the South overseeing and trying to make news at our expense.. This same article could have been written about almost any school. Yes even Ga Tech. (see Corey Alford, Tyler Kidney, Daniel Drummond,etc)
BMOC
July 20th, 2012
9:12 am
Schultz, Classic ‘Insert phrases here to fit my agenda’ journalism.
You talk like the ‘other’ 19 guys aren’t really football players at all. Typical media BS. Thing is, you’re worse at your job then UGA’s football program. Say, has Jeff Schultz ever been ranked in the top 10 in journalism? Go ahead.. Enlighten me.
Dawg On A Leash
July 20th, 2012
9:14 am
Crowell had a B-line to the NFL with UGA. He threw it away to ride around and smoke blunts with homeys. He should be in Alabama State PRISON.
Rodster
July 20th, 2012
9:16 am
Well said Jeff.
Dawg On A Leash
July 20th, 2012
9:16 am
Jeff, why wasn’t Crowell,Rambo,etc. charged by Athens police with using illegal drugs once they tested positive for marijuana ? Its still a felony whether it happens on the street or on a college campus!
The Flats Are where its At
July 20th, 2012
9:17 am
UGA has no more thug kids than Auburn or LSU. They have kids getting in trouble all the time too. Athens(aka Cowtown)is closer to home so we see it more. When u recruit these type kids, which u have to to win big games, u have to take the good with the bad. Good article Jeff. this same article could apply to those other two schools recently, but jeff writes for the AJC. And the AJC covers UGAG…..
Jack Dennis TN
July 20th, 2012
9:17 am
We need to re-name the Fulmer Cup.
Dawg On A Leash
July 20th, 2012
9:22 am
You are wrong. When did LSU,Auburn,Fla.,or Bama lose their best running back and 4 defensive starters ? Nothing shows up when I Google it. Only UGA.
stoptheinsanity
July 20th, 2012
9:22 am
Dawgs go 8-4 this year. Losses to Tennessee, South Carolina, Florida, and Abuurn. They win the Music City Bowl against Virginia. 9-4. We all say 2013 will be THE year!
Big Crimson 75
July 20th, 2012
9:33 am
Don’t worry pup fans, your accent out of mediocrity is bound to happen sometime.
Excuses U.
If you boys could hit, tackle, run, pass, block & coach as good as you break laws, cheat, pay players, recruit punks(when you recruit) then you’d have something to be proud of.
Character builds Championships.
Hard Work build Championships.
Discipline builds championships.
Team Work builds Championships.
……..maybe one day, pups!!!!
Bama Fan #2
July 20th, 2012
9:36 am
How many times do we here about Georgia problems with
football players being in trouble with the law or failing
drug tests!! The players have NO FEAR of Richt and it
shows up in the head lines every week in the AJC.
Georgia may one day win a NC if they get a coach who
will stop the BS and make the players act like other
students!! RTR
Wilson Pickett
July 20th, 2012
9:44 am
You are what you are and UGA football shows just that. Spin it as you can/will but you have problems within the football program. There is no doubt the players on the UGA football team DON’T Fear Mark Richt at all. At some point the folks in the AD complex will do what the must but not until they must. I see 9-3 this year for folks aren’t giving Florida,UT,MIzzou,and USCe the credit they deserve. UGA will be a good football team as well but the other East teams are coming back and much faster than many understand.
kingdaddy
July 20th, 2012
9:49 am
Players have no fear of Richt….
Stupidest commet of the morning. Tell that to all the players that are now off the team.
Jeff, are you really proud if your article???
TallaDawg
July 20th, 2012
9:50 am
Yes, Coach Richt, you often are recruiting bad kids.
Sharkman
July 20th, 2012
9:51 am
Schultz,
They actually pay you to write this boring recitation that any 10 old fan already knows if he’s paying attention? Are y’all hiring? I want a job like that. Seriously, the fact is either we sign those idiots like Crowell, or somebody else will. It’s that simple. Why they pay you good money to write a whole article about this topic befuddles the heck out of me.
kingdaddy
July 20th, 2012
9:51 am
Wilson
9-3 sounds about right……….for bama…
alpha male
July 20th, 2012
9:54 am
good post Wilson…UT and Florida are going to be alot better than the dummydawg fanbase realizes…the “we win when everyone else is down” window is closed…have a good time in Memphis dawg fans…and try to win a dang bowl game…
Alabama is just better
July 20th, 2012
9:56 am
Ya’ll keep risking and we will keep winning Trophy’s.
alpha male
July 20th, 2012
9:57 am
sometimes the water from the truth well is bitter…ain’t it queendaddy
kingdaddy
July 20th, 2012
9:59 am
You should know…
kingdaddy
July 20th, 2012
10:01 am
Alphee,
that bitter water didn’t stop us last year, and neither do your team, lol…
DawgFaithful
July 20th, 2012
10:04 am
I read this crap yesterday. Schultz is an F—-ing moron. We’re recruiting the same kids that everyone else in the country is. Crowell was the #1 RB in America and was from GA. If he would have gone to Alabama and won the Heisman, Shultz would have written an article bashing Richt for letting the top players in the state get away. Furthermore he takes a shot at the “dream Team” for losing 7 of its members to attrition. I think the Dream Team has worked out pretty well: Corey Moore, Malcolm Mitchell, John Jenkins, Ray Drew, Chris Conley(Fla. Game), Jay Rome, Amarlo Herrera, Ramik Wilson etc. All contributors and current/future starters. I’d say that was a pretty good haul. 1 of the kids that was dismissed for theft was Nick Marshall. He broke every QB record in GA his senior year. Were we not supposed to go after an athlete like that? What red flags was Richt supposed to see there? We recruited him as a DB but it was well known that Paul Johnson was recruiting him hard at QB. Nick Marshall said that Johnson told him if he came to Tech he would make him a Heisman winning QB. If he’d gone to Tech and gotten himself kicked off their team, do you think Shultz would have written a few paragraphs of swill condemning Johnson for his recruiting methods? I think not. Just look at this guy’s picture in the paper. He looks like the biggest Dbag on earth. Probably got his ass kicked regularly growing up. What else could have turned this moron into the Swill Merchant that he is today.
5150 UOAD
July 20th, 2012
10:10 am
I see it is just like yesterday…..there are some MAD people.