Maybe Mark Richt needs to add a driver’s ed teacher to his staff
Another Bulldog traffic arrest.
Well, we’re making progress. Of sorts.
At least Washaun Ealey, arrested early today on misdemeanor charges of driving with a suspended license and leaving the scene after hitting a parked truck in a campus deck, had a real license, albeit suspended. He wasn’t driving on a learner’s permit like some of his arrested teammates. And he wasn’t riding a scooter out of an alley.
Sorry, I know I should take any arrest by a UGA football player more seriously. But, really, the continuing ridiculous saga of the Bulldogs’ traffic court problems has become something of a joke. A not very funny joke.
The stupidest thing Ealey did was leave the scene after parking service attendants confronted him about the collision and told him to wait for police to arrive. It’s hard to figure how he thought he’d skate on that. Had he not noticed that UGA football players are not immune to arrest?
No alchohol was involved, thank goodness, so I’m not sure whether a couple of traffic misdemeanors rises to the level of missing any playing time or not in Mark Richt’s rule book. In this case, though, it probably ought to. Caleb King already was likely to be the starter in the opening game, so perhaps Ealey spending at least a half on the bench — or maybe the whole game — might help him to understand that as a Georgia Bulldog he’s in the spotlight. And he needs to act accordingly.
SIDELINING LORAN
Loran Smith deserves to be part of the broadcast. (Georgiadogs.com)
The news that Bulldogs radio network fixture Loran Smith is being replaced by Chuck Dowdle as sideline reporter during the football broadcasts shouldn’t really have surprised anyone. When the broadcast team was revamped last year in the wake of Larry Munson’s retirement a lot of folks thought ISP might take the opportunity to shift Loran out of the role in which he’d become more of a punch line than an asset and limit him to the pregame show. A year later, they’ve finally done that.
Make no mistake, Loran deserves to be part of the broadcast. As I wrote last year, no one questions that he is probably the most loyal citizen of the Bulldog Nation. He seems to know just about everyone and is topped probably only by the legendary Dan Magill in his knowledge of UGA athletics history. And his Bulldog bona fides are stellar. I mean, a couple of the Uga mascots have even been named after him!
But when Munson would throw it down to Smith with a “Whaddyagot, Loran?” you never knew what to expect except that only occasionally would it have any relevance to what was happening on the field. One of the most beloved stories among Georgia fans concerns the mid-game sideline report from Smith that then-Georgia defensive end Charles Grant likes boiled peanuts — a revelation that was met with silence from Munson, followed by, “Third and six.”
Bit by bit, Dowdle, now retired as WSB sports director, has been assuming Loran’s former jobs … first co-hosting the weekly coach’s TV show and then last year doing the postgame locker room interviews. Now the sideline reporting.
But with four hours of pregame show to fill before the kickoff, there still should be plenty of time for Loran’s rambling interviews with past players and sports celebs and his reminiscences about his many years of involvement with UGA. Listening to Loran is an integral part of tailgating in Athens. And most Dogs fans wouldn’t want it any other way.
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338 comments Add your comment
tired of this crap
August 27th, 2010
3:26 pm
If the DMV computers say the license is suspended, then it’s suspended. If notice has not been given to and received by Ealey, then the license can not be entered into the DMV system as “suspended”. Get it yet? Probably not…..
Blackberry Cobbler
August 27th, 2010
3:28 pm
how2fish– you are correct. But if you’re a football player and the team is hounded with these issues and CMR supposedly has drilled this into the guys………… you gotta be a pretty dumb@$$ to still be out a 3am. Not to mention that fact he already had a no-show court date against him.
patrick
August 27th, 2010
3:30 pm
tired of this crap
August 27th, 2010
3:22 pm
For goodness sakes….The ARRESTING OFFICER checked the DMV records and “determined that Ealey’s license was suspended, leading to a second charge”…..Get it yet? Probably not……
============================
and that means his licence was suspended…the lawful recourse at that time was to give him NOTIFICATION that they were suspended per Ga law. He could only be arrested if there was ( PRIOR to that officer calling in) notification. Then the aresting officer would have to note on the ticket the date of the PRIOR notification. Are you really this dense?
.
here I will help you.
1. His DL gets suspended.
.
2 an officer stops him and finds out his DL is no good
.
3. the officer asks if the person has been ntified previously
.
4. if not the officer CANT arrest him but MUST notify him that he can no longer drive.
.
5. If the officer is told he WAS notified PREVIOUSLY then the officer HAS to put the date of the previous NOTIFICATION ON THE TICKET AND ARREST THE DRIVER.
.
This aint rocket science dimwit
hunker down
August 27th, 2010
3:31 pm
Most likely he was attempting to brush up on his pass blocking technique.
OldFan
August 27th, 2010
3:32 pm
CMR’s contract should stipulate a salary penalty for each time a player is arrested and the amount should go up on each occasion. If he’s going to sign players to athletic scholarships, then he must be accountable for their behavior if they’re too immature to do it themselves. Either that or he should limit his recruiting to the Georgia Penal System and just get this out of the way right up front. And yeah, I’m a UGA grad who did stupid things as a student. But I was also on scholarship and knew there was a line I couldn’t afford to cross. CMR’s not doing his job.
SOUTH GA DAWG
August 27th, 2010
3:32 pm
Your dealing with 18-22 yr olds. I bet we all did stupid stuff at that age too. Except for the fact most of us did not play major college football.
tbone
August 27th, 2010
3:33 pm
Enter your comments here
patrick
August 27th, 2010
3:33 pm
tired of this crap
August 27th, 2010
3:26 pm
If the DMV computers say the license is suspended, then it’s suspended. If notice has not been given to and received by Ealey, then the license can not be entered into the DMV system as “suspended”. Get it yet? Probably not…..
=========================
no moron.
.
the computer will tell the officer it is suspended and the driver has not been notified (they are still suspended) the officer then impounds the car and lets the driver go with notice.
.
They were still suspended, he just could not be arrested
patrick
August 27th, 2010
3:36 pm
the suspension starts as soon as the court sends the notice of failure to appear to the DMV dimwit. The ability to arrest someone starts after that person is notified by an officer or cert mail and he signed for it. Apples and oranges dummy
how2fish
August 27th, 2010
3:38 pm
Blackberry Cobbler agree he showed NO smarts at anytime during this entire deal.
patrick
August 27th, 2010
3:38 pm
so if ealey was arrested without notice then those charges will be dismissed.
tired of this crap
August 27th, 2010
3:38 pm
patrick: You say, “He could only be arrested if there was ( PRIOR to that officer calling in) notification.”
The AJC says, “University of Georgia tailback Washaun Ealey was arrested early today for hit-and-run of a parked vehicle and driving with a suspended license…” That’s what we call “If B can only happen if A happens first and then B happens…..It means A did indeed happen first.” Get it yet? Probably not….
Which part of ARRESTED do you not understand? Why do you continue to argue that he “can’t be arrested” when HE WAS ARRESTED? Did you eat paint chips or play under the power lines as a child?
King Gator
August 27th, 2010
3:40 pm
Safe to say he won’t be getting that job as a valet next summer.
LOL- “We hit-and-run this state”!! Go Gators!
tbone
August 27th, 2010
3:40 pm
Everyone has & is entitled to their opinion. The only one that is important CMR. Mine is a 1 game suspension & a lot of before dawn running should enable Ealey to concentrate on the error of his ways & become a better team player. I know that he would like to run against ULL. Maybe this will be the wake up call he needed.
Donnie Darko
August 27th, 2010
3:41 pm
Wow, when will uga hit bottom?
King Gator
August 27th, 2010
3:42 pm
.. but coach I was working on my “hitting” and “running”
hunker down
August 27th, 2010
3:44 pm
A game suspension is warranted I feel
chDawg
August 27th, 2010
3:48 pm
From experience, I was arrested without being notified and the judge dismissed the charges.
Again got ticked, missed court date, not notified of suspension, arrested, charges dismissed by judge.
tired of this crap… What part of that do you not understand?
tired of this crap
August 27th, 2010
3:50 pm
chDawg: I understand you get arrested quite a bit. Did you play football at UGA?
how2fish
August 27th, 2010
3:50 pm
Donnie Darko I think we hit bottom when we start carrying AK-47’s and dead girls credit cards..just to put it in perspective.I hope the dumb stops here but make no mistake just look around the country it can get worse. Right King Gator?
chDawg
August 27th, 2010
3:50 pm
Sorry typo.
From experience, I was arrested without being notified and the judge dismissed the charges.
Again got ticket, missed court date, not notified of suspension, arrested, charges dismissed by judge.
tired of this crap… What part of that do you not understand?
King Gator
August 27th, 2010
3:51 pm
If this happened to a Gator he’d get a half game suspension for the Miami game (Miami of OH) and we’d still complain about it. Of course the Georgia boards would be calling for his and Urb’s head, but that’s just SEC football. 9/4 – real football.. who’s ready? who’s free on bond? Go Gators!
mark
August 27th, 2010
3:51 pm
Here we go again with some really dim bulbs in the UGA nation excusing this fool for his criminal behavior. Ealey’s transgressions are serious especially if it was your truck that was hit. I just had about $2000 of damage done on my car by a similar “hit and run” jerk. That crime was tantamount to picking my pocket for $2000 and I didn’t like it. Ealey doesn’t need a death sentence, but at the same time his behavior was very wrong and he needs to work on some character issues.
chDawg
August 27th, 2010
3:55 pm
Actually,
I’ve never been arrested again, well respected in community and church, work for the government, try to help others the best I can, and I am very good with math.
I am no longer that young and stupid though and I tend to handle things better after I have been through them as I expect Ealey will. Get off your freaking high horse.
chDawg
August 27th, 2010
3:59 pm
If traffic violations are the worst thing that’s going on then I would be proud to have my son play for the University of Georgia.
tired of this crap
August 27th, 2010
4:03 pm
chDawg: The problem is traffic violations are NOT the worst thing that’s going on at UGA:
Ealey is the eighth UGA football player to be arrested this year. Add to that an Athletics Director driving around with some strange in the car and red panties in his hand and well…..If you still don’t think there are problems that need to be resolved, then you ARE part of the problem. Get it yet? Probably not…..
chDawg
August 27th, 2010
4:04 pm
I’m not excusing what he did, but the judge will determine his punishment and that should be the end of it.
patrick
August 27th, 2010
4:05 pm
tired of this crap
August 27th, 2010
3:38 pm
patrick: You say, “He could only be arrested if there was ( PRIOR to that officer calling in) notification.”
The AJC says, “University of Georgia tailback Washaun Ealey was arrested early today for hit-and-run of a parked vehicle and driving with a suspended license…” That’s what we call “If B can only happen if A happens first and then B happens…..It means A did indeed happen first.” Get it yet? Probably not….
Which part of ARRESTED do you not understand? Why do you continue to argue that he “can’t be arrested” when HE WAS ARRESTED? Did you eat paint chips or play under the power lines as a child?
==============================
an officer has a gun….he can “arrest” you for looking at him the wrong way. If you refuse to comply you could get shot. Simply being arrested is not a conviction moron. Also, people get arrested illegally by cops all the time. Maybe a simpleton like you needed further explanation…………HE WAS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE ARRESTED
patrick
August 27th, 2010
4:09 pm
1. failure to appear
.
2. cop can pull you over an arrested you even without notice, what are you going to do have a shoot out over whether his arrest was legal? No. You go with him and the Judge (as he did with me and with chdawg) dismisses his false arrest
chDawg
August 27th, 2010
4:12 pm
The Athletic Director was fired from a $450,000 a year job for that also. Plus whatever legal penalties he faces. What else do you want to do to him?
Georgia’s issues seem to be mostly traffic issues this year while other unnamed school are not dismissing players for more serious violations. It looks to me like Richt is handling this the proper way with punishments appropriate to transgressions. D. Jackson was booted from the team for a real hit and run involving alcholol.
All I am saying is that this particular offense does not warrent any more punishment that what the judge will dish out.
King Gator
August 27th, 2010
4:15 pm
Penalty = No Red Panties for W.E. for September
Big Bob
August 27th, 2010
4:24 pm
I think Coach Richt should suspend Washaun for the first week of spring practice. That is what Spurrier would do.
wpww dawg
August 27th, 2010
4:29 pm
send him home!!! i dont care what our football record would be, if he is that STUPID, he dont belong at UGA! this, not our record will be the downfall of CMR!
Dawg Tell
August 27th, 2010
4:29 pm
Ealey is a thug and has a thug attitude since he has been at UGA.Everyone close to the program knows this and knew sooner or later this was going to happen in some illegal incident.Mettenburg had a smart mouth and all the coaches had trouble with him over the past year before the Valdosta crap.A few high alumni who contribute to the athletic fund, are looking at the overall program.Believe me,it does not matter about the won/loss record.CMR better get control over his program because s#it is about to hit the fan and a lot of staff are going to have it sprayed on them.
Big Bob
August 27th, 2010
4:30 pm
You can tell all the Tech and Gator fans don’t have any web-sites to go to of their own. They spend all their time on the UGA blogs. This just tells us that you are really closet DAWGS. You are truly DAWG fans at heart, but are afraid to admit it because your nerdy and mullet friends might say something to you.
Damon Evans
August 27th, 2010
4:38 pm
Does anyone know if the arresting officer found a pair of red panties? The last time I saw
them they were in my lap!
CHDawg
August 27th, 2010
4:41 pm
Man, coaches have been yelling at Ealey all month to hit and run…now all we have to do is get him to only do it between the whistles on the field and all will be OK. Dawg Tell, go read the Orlando Sentinel and comment on your Gators there; we don’t buy your line. On a serious note, Richt is doing fine; he can’t raise some of these kids in one year. He graduates a lot of great kids who are much better men than when they showed up in Athens.
CHDawg
August 27th, 2010
4:47 pm
BTW, CHDawg is a different person than chdawg–just to avoid confusion in replies.
Dawg Tell
August 27th, 2010
4:55 pm
@ChDawg— Your so wrong!! Uga Alumni 1973.Two children graduated form UGA and one currently attends. Maybe I just wine and dine with some people who are IN the Know!! Please look at the overall program-outside the box. We have some serious trouble in Athens town.I will tell you this that the new AD was told to clean up the crap.They are damn tired of making the news.Sorry if you do not trust this info,but find someone really close to the program and you will hear the same story!!
GT Man
August 27th, 2010
5:08 pm
It’s the Jailgeorgiadawgs! Get a life. Did he have nasty red panties between his legs too. What a joke of a school, program and players. THWG! kepp up the great work and im sure all the redneck kids in Athens are looking up to the fine players you are producing.
GT Man
August 27th, 2010
5:11 pm
Big Bob
Who would want to follow a program as sorry as UGA’s anyway? If I were an UGA fan, which I am not and never will be, I would be ashamed of such of a joke of a program. If I were you, I would go in a closet and hide. I am sure the sttiff penalty for Washaun will be the usual 1 game suspension against your opener (The almighty Louisiana Whomever). Go and hide, I would if I were a MUTT fan. Hey, at least your preseason number 1 in arrest with 8. Congratulations for a sorry program.
Mobile Dawg
August 27th, 2010
5:12 pm
No suspension warranted IMO, just make him run steps until he pukes. One day for every violation. That probably takes care of the punishment.
Ealey
August 27th, 2010
5:13 pm
Cut me some slack, I was just trying to get home.
Forestdawg
August 27th, 2010
5:14 pm
As a long time supporter of UGA and Georgia athletics, I am REALLY TIRED of all the foolishness from some of our athletes. Where are the leaders of this football team? Why tolerate teammates that don’t care enough about their fellow teammates or coaches to follow through with their responsibilities? Man up… enough is enough!!!
Einsteindawg
August 27th, 2010
5:15 pm
Bill, maybe CMR needs to suspend their scholarship for a year. At $38,000 to $40,000 per year, a football scholarship at UGA is a priviledge not a birthright. As a 42 year season ticket holder and GEEF/Hartman contributor (helping to pay for these), I want to win games, but I also want so see all these arrests stop. Like most all of you, I’m proud of my school and hate to see us making headlines in this manner.
CHDawg
August 27th, 2010
5:17 pm
Dawg Tell,
Sorry, you sounded like a plant from your post. Now, if you really were in Athens in the early ’70’s, then you know this kind of stuff goes on constantly among the 18-22 yr. old crowd there…along with bounced checks, underage drinking, and you know the rest. It is perfectly normal behavior. Richt does a great job of molding the kid’s character. Developing integrity is a very tough job, and I think the kids are worse now than in the ’70s. Some show up at school without much upbringing, and they have a lot of learning to do. Also, if you really know what is going on inside the program you know the staff has been admonishing the young men for quite some time now. They have to stay the course, obviously, but this is an integrity issue for Washaun and needs to be corrected. The rest of it doesn’t appear to be that bad from what I have read. I suspect we won’t see him on the field till SC.
tbone
August 27th, 2010
5:17 pm
My grandson was charged with DUI & underage drinking. Should I kick him under the bus or try to help him? Ealey’s charges are not nearly as troublesome.
I am confident that CMR will do what is best for the Team & for Ealey. That means rhe punishment will fit the crime. My take is a 1 game suspension & a lot of before dawn running of the stadium steps will be more than sufficient to show Ealey the error of his ways.
EMBARRASSED!
August 27th, 2010
5:18 pm
He should be kicked off the team immediately! He was charged with speeding and tag/registration violations back on May 30th. At that time, CMR had to sit down with him and say, “That’s your mulligan, kid. Don’t screw up again.” So on July 12th he failed to show up at his court date, which triggered a suspension of his license. At that time, CMR had to sit down with him and say, “What are you doing Washaun? You’re seriously in danger of losing your spot on the team. No more of this stuff! You’re now on double secret probation.” So last night he gets arrested “for hit and run of a parked vehicle and driving with a suspended license.”
That’s FIVE LEGAL VIOLATIONS since May 30th! Maybe you want individuals like that playing Georgia Football, but I don’t! Even if he was the Governor’s son, he should immediately be dismissed from the team. No further explanation needed. Some get one or two passes. A few get 3 passes. NOBODY gets 5 passes. Send him home now CMR!!!!
My View
August 27th, 2010
5:19 pm
Some of you bloggers need help. Sure Ealey mad a silly choice that he is forced to pay for, but for some of you to get on here and call him names like “moron” and “thug” says a whole lot more about you, than it does about him. Do you same people refer to those in your family as morons and thugs when they commit offences that are similar or worse?
SKB
August 27th, 2010
5:21 pm
I think it all comes down to the environment these kids were raised in. The only sort of meaning to their life is football, they are not disciplined, they are only at UGA b/c of their talent. I think CMR should kick him off the team for good. We will go with a 6-6 season, but its better to have actual students than thugs.