Some thoughts on UGA suspensions, funny brownies and connecting the dots
Bacarri Rambo seems to have the worst luck when it comes to snack choices. (Brant Sanderlin / AJC)
Mark Richt’s Bulldogs entered the spring appearing to have many things breaking their way for the coming season, what with a favorable schedule and a bunch of starters returning, especially on defense. And yet some of those veteran players seem determined to take hold of opportunity with both hands … and chuck it out the window.
While Richt declined Thursday to confirm what’s up with Bacarri Rambo and Alec Ogletree, there’ve been widespread reports that the two players will be suspended several games for “violations of team rules,” which is pretty well understood now to be official code for having failed a drug test.
(If there are any other kinds of rules being violated by UGA players, perhaps Richt and company should come up with new terminology since everyone’s going to think “failed drug test” from now on when they hear that phrase.)
Rambo previously was suspended for a game last season for a similar violation, which as a second-timer puts him in line for an extended suspension this time under UGA’s rules, the toughest in the conference. Georgia holds players out for a tenth of a season (at least one game) for one failed drug test and suspends second-time offenders like Rambo for 30 percent of a season (four games). At most SEC schools, a first-time failed drug test draws no suspension at all.
Whether schools should even be testing the use of a substance that isn’t performance-enhancing is a debate for another day; suffice it to say, it’s against the rules and the players know they’re subject to random testing, so it’s difficult to work up much sympathy for them.
Rambo’s high school coach has tried his best to engender some, though, with a sad tale about how the player accidentally got high by unknowingly eating brownies that had been laced with pot while on spring break. Last time, it supposedly was a case of Rambo just being caught with a girl in his car who had a joint in her purse, according to the coach.
OK, maybe Rambo is that unlucky or naive about what sort of folks he chooses to hang out with. Or perhaps the coach and player are being just a bit disingenuous.
I know one thing: That high school coach attempting to shift the blame to UGA for “stupid timing” in testing kids right after they came back from spring break makes me wonder about the mentoring Rambo received before he got to Athens. UGA’s athletes were all gathered together before spring break and warned not to get in trouble; drug tests right after they returned from break shouldn’t have been a surprise to anyone.
Alec Ogletree reportedly is facing multiple game suspensions, too. (Brant Sanderlin / AJC)
Anyway, Rambo’s coach says he’s down to miss four games, though he’s appealing that and if the appeal fails he might consider entering the NFL supplemental draft. And Ogletree reportedly will miss two to four games (we still don’t know for sure). All that on top of two starters in the defensive secondary already being suspended for the first game or two.
Predictably, some folks’ reaction has been to attack Richt for his lack of discipline, which boggles the mind when you consider that, as noted earlier, UGA has the toughest policy on such infractions.
I’m not sure what these folks think the head coach can do to keep his players from knowingly violating rules short of following them around 24 hours a day. Yeah, I know, if only Richt were meaner so the players were scared of him, like Nick Saban, or so the reasoning goes. Of course, Alabama players get suspended for rules violations, too, so the rule of the iron fist appears to have limits in how effective it is.
Then we’ve got the folks who are making lists of all the off-field problems that have cropped up in recent years. I saw one that even included the recent DUI for Orson Charles, who isn’t even in the program any more. Heck, why not throw in UGA alum Hines Ward’s DUI while you’re at it?
Others have gone so far as to count up how many players have left the program for various reasons over the past couple of years, connecting dots that aren’t even on the same page by noting all the Georgia signees who theoretically could have been eligible for the first couple of games this season if they were still at the school.
OK, I’ll concede that, in addition to players missing games because of suspensions, there’ve been several players kicked off the team for various reasons. Some of us consider that a sign that Richt is a good disciplinarian, but I suppose you can argue that one either way.
Still, I fail to see the point of including in the discussion players no longer at UGA because they transferred for lack of playing time or had to take a medical disqualification or failed to qualify academically.
Unless, that is, you’re just looking to pad the numbers so it makes it look worse for Richt.
Then there are the folks who cite the suspensions and departures from the program as an indication Richt just isn’t recruiting the right kind of players to begin with.
Maybe he should forget about all those 5-star and 4-star ratings and sign only Eagle Scouts and winners of DAR good citizen awards. Of course, then fans and sportswriters alike would be howling because he wasn’t drawing top talent to Athens!
As for the practical considerations of the latest development, at linebacker Todd Grantham no doubt will rely on the same players who filled in last year when Ogletree missed half the season with an injured foot, with Christian Robinson and Amarlo Herrera both having plenty of game experience. At free safety, next in line after Rambo is Corey Moore, who saw limited playing time last year as a freshman.
All are adequate replacements, though they’re certainly not the sort of impact players Ogletree and Rambo have been in the past and were expected to be again.
More than that, though, what’s disturbing about this trend is what it says about the UGA players’ dedication to their teammates. Blaming the coaches is bunk; it’s the players who are letting down the side. Sure, they’re just college kids, but they’re also scholarship athletes at a marquee program and they willingly signed up for this time in the spotlight. They all know what the rules are. They also know what’s within their grasp this season if they perform up to expectations.
And yet they’re acting as if championships can be won while still playing the fool. Rarely is that the case.
When he was preparing to return from his one-game suspension last year, Rambo declared, “I’m going to do whatever it takes to help my team win, and I know I’ve got it in me.”
It hasn’t quite turned out that way.
Got something on your mind concerning UGA athletics or a question for the Junkyard Blawg? Send it to junkyardblawg@gmail.com.
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— Bill King, Junkyard Blawg
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230 comments Add your comment
Still@theKool-aidBAR
March 30th, 2012
11:16 am
You want the Truth?
You can’t handle the truth.
Damn Right I Ordered the CODE RED.
Seems there needs to be some Team Hazing and Team Self Discipline. If the other Players gave Blanket Parties to players breaking the rules then maybe some of this would stop.
reebok
March 30th, 2012
11:17 am
This Georgia Tech fan still thinks UGA has enough depth and enough of a favorable schedule to get back to the SEC Championship Game. Maybe my Jackets should try to move the Georgia game to early in the year, so we could catch you with a bunch of players serving one or 2-game suspensions, instead of at Thanksgiving, when your team is putting it all together.
I am sorry to see these young men potentially damage their careers through misconduct, whatever school they attend. But the brownies thing cracks me up. “It wasn’t me, Coach! It was Duncan Hines!”
no dog
March 30th, 2012
11:20 am
I vote for the suspensions to be late in the season…LOL!
richmondDawg
March 30th, 2012
11:20 am
Right on, Bill, well said! Frankly, I don’t even bother to comment on the other guys on the AJC Bulldog beat anymore….Not worth the time or aggravation….
SSIgator
March 30th, 2012
11:22 am
“They also know what’s within their grasp this season”
They sure do. They didn’t come to Doobie Brothers University for any other reason. They just better hope that Trayvon wasn’t one of the mules. He won’t be on the string any more.
Red Clay Hound
March 30th, 2012
11:22 am
Good column Bill. You are spot on!!
Still@theKool-aidBAR
March 30th, 2012
11:22 am
reebok…I can promise you 1 time there will NEVER be a Drug test and that is the Friday after Thanksgiving. The kids were at home and maybe did some bad things. The OFFICIAL test results would not be back before the Tech game but the pee stick failed test results would be known and that would make player have to miss The SEC CG or Bowl game and that ain’t EVER going to happen.
weed whacker
March 30th, 2012
11:24 am
I am trying to imagine being the suspended players and actually going into the locker room where Herschel, Woerner, Tarditz, Stanfill and others played and have no guilt or remorse. These guys probably do not have a conscience. It is obvious they do not respect the other 100 guys wearing the red and black. Making it worse is the lame lie of the brownies. CMR should think hard on encouraging him to go pro and move on. And, the pros wont’ put up with his crap. They knock him so hard he will NEED pot to get rid of the pain. Send him to the Saints.
DawginLex
March 30th, 2012
11:25 am
Bill
You are exactly right about one thing:
The list of 31 players who have left is a list made to bash Richt
I understand that he recruited them all but to blame him for a kid who flunks out or gets injured is ridiculous.
corkylovesbeer
March 30th, 2012
11:25 am
rangerdawg,
trent richardson was a five star recruit…
LCDawg
March 30th, 2012
11:26 am
First let me say I think it’s 100% Unconstitutional and illegal to conduct drug tests on a student/player. Performance enhancing drugs–yes. Having said that I think these clowns are selfish a holes. If I was their teammate I would kick their a**. Richt should have them each run the gauntlet through the middle of the entire team without pads and let everyone take their best shot. Problem solved.
Big Crimson 75
March 30th, 2012
11:27 am
As a minimum suspension, 10 percent of the season is rounded down to one game, though it’s at the coach’s discretion to round it up to two games. Either way, it’s more than anyone else is doing …
——————————————————————————————————————————————-
Mr. King — Are you implying UGA is the only Program that suspends Players for conduct detrimental to the Team?? It sure as hell sounds like it!! Keep dreaming…….
Jacket99
March 30th, 2012
11:27 am
Then there are the folks who cite the suspensions and departures from the program as an indication Richt just isn’t recruiting the right kind of players to begin with.
Maybe he should forget about all those 5-star and 4-star ratings and sign only Eagle Scouts and winners of DAR good citizen awards. Of course, then fans and sportswriters alike would be howling because he wasn’t drawing top talent to Athens!
—————————————————————-
Are 4 and 5 star players always going to be rule violators? Could a 5-star player also be a good citizen? Keith Marshall was a 4-star recruit and Ray Drew was a 5-star recruit. They both seem like good citizens to me.
DawginLex
March 30th, 2012
11:28 am
bill your filters suck
Promethius
March 30th, 2012
11:29 am
Official dawg breakfast – coke and brownies
DawginLex
March 30th, 2012
11:29 am
dead right about the list being a Richt bashing tool
Including kids that flunk out and get injured and blaming Richt is a method of trolls and tools
SSIGator you can STFU too. Tell me your beloved gators do nothing wrong?
douchebag
DawginLex
March 30th, 2012
11:30 am
SSI go drown yourself
Still@theKool-aidBAR
March 30th, 2012
11:31 am
I all started to go down hill when Uga VII died after the Kentucky Loss.
This is a funny Twist on the WEED EATER BOWL.
Jim
March 30th, 2012
11:32 am
Lane Kiffin is getting his boys prescriptions for Medical Maryjowana to ease their pain after the game.
Wet Willie...keep on smiling
March 30th, 2012
11:32 am
Trent Richardson was a 5* sport then and now. There isn’t one UGA fan on this site that after watching Rambo for 3 years believe he is a high character guy! Not one of you will make that statement. You’ve accepted his thug ways for three years and will for 4! Bama has a panel made of players that is a big part of the discipline of players but Nick is the head of that committee and he doesn’t want to spend time with players that create clutter. Football is a business at Bama and the recruits and their parents understand that from their 1st visit and meeting with Nick Saban. You can’t weed all the bad apples but you save yourself much time and effort if you understand early in the recruiting process what the parents are all about as well as the player!!!!! Talent is big and you will not win big with average folks but no character people take up too much of the teams time and coaches time trying to keep them on track. As the old Delco commercial said “You can pay me now or you can pay me later”…
Team Leaders
March 30th, 2012
11:33 am
What I would like to see are some team leaders coming forward (Jarvis Jones, Murray, anyone?) and saying that they are sick of the selfish behavior of some of their teammates. Obviously, the coaches don’t seem to be getting through – maybe if their teammates started holding them accountable, we’d get some traction…
reebok
March 30th, 2012
11:33 am
don’t let the trolls get under your skin, Lex. it only encourages.
GTBob
March 30th, 2012
11:34 am
Are 4 and 5 star players always going to be rule violators? Could a 5-star player also be a good citizen?
That is a good point. I’m pretty sure Andrew Luck and Marcus Lattimore haven’t been getting into trouble. There is a way to recruit quality 4 and 5 star guys, but I don’t think UGA has done that so far overall. They let far too many bad eggs in.
Grantham's the Man
March 30th, 2012
11:34 am
Let’s take a look at how Saban would have handled the latest incidents at Ga.
Brandon Smith, Saban would have called a press conference ASAP( the next morning) and declared Smith as the ”finest example of what we look for from our players” and said that he will not be suspended. This is the best way to make a story go away. See the Upshaw Domestic Violance case.
Sanders Commings, again call a news conference and repeat what he said when Courtney Upshaw was arrested for the same thing. Again, no suspension.
Ogletree and Rambo. After they failed the schools drug test Saban would have had a GA simply throw away the samples because that’s how it’s done at Alabama. It never happened.
Who really believes Alabama players never smoke or drink? If you do then here’s your sign!
NC Dawg
March 30th, 2012
11:35 am
legalize reefer!
SSIgator
March 30th, 2012
11:40 am
Well, at least this opens up another possible explanation as to why UGA fans think it is spelled DWAGS.
schmeckdawg
March 30th, 2012
11:43 am
murfdawg
March 30th, 2012
10:31 am
I quit!!
I have had season tix since 1973 and this is the last season I will buy them. I am sick and tired of these selfish little babies. Good luck Bulldog nation, I’ll be at the beach.
********************************************************************************************************
murfdawg no while I haven’t had my tickets nearly as long as you, I am in the same boat. I am sick of these no count prima donnas.
schmeckdawg
March 30th, 2012
11:45 am
SSIgator
March 30th, 2012
11:40 am
Well, at least this opens up another possible explanation as to why UGA fans think it is spelled DWAGS.
*********************************************************************************************************
Now that’s pretty good! As much as I hate to admit it, pretty clever on your behalf!
solution
March 30th, 2012
11:47 am
The NCAA as governing body should put in place a consistant punishment system for illegal drug use. Simple solution is maditory quarterly drug testing for scholarship athletes. First failure – 5 game suspension. Monthly drug testing after 1st failure… 2nd failure loss of scholarship and 1 year suspension…. NCAA policy for all. Pretty simple.
Newnandawg
March 30th, 2012
11:48 am
UGA football players smoke no more or less weed than those in any other SEC program. We just test more.
When, and if, Mark Richt ever wins a meaningful game again we’ll forget all about this.
Dawg Tired
March 30th, 2012
11:48 am
Bill – Some people just don’t understand what it means to be a responsile citizen and team mate. All this relects poorly on their maturity and indicates extreme self-centeredness. As you point out, we have the most severe policy in the conference on these kinds of transgressions. It seems irrelevant to these young men. I think the ultimate result of our stern policy is that some recruits will simply decide to go where they can “do the weed” and know they will not be suspended. Our tough policy seems to only hurt the team in that we no doubt miss some recruits and we have numerous players ineligble at the start of every season.
It is naive to think that more of our players are eating mj brownies during spring break than those on other teams. It’s just that ours are the only ones being suspended. Bottom line: our tough policy makes no sense from a football point of view. On the other hand, what is a coach supposed to do? Turn the other way like other coaches do? I suggest that the life lessons hopefully will make these young men better citizens in the future. If that turns out to be the case for just a few, then it is worth the hit in wins and losses.
Tweedle Dee
March 30th, 2012
11:49 am
Uncharacteristicly good article from the AJC. Unfortunately, like the current polarized political landscape, there are those who have no common sense on both sides and they reveal themselves on this blog. I suppose that will never cease.
solution
March 30th, 2012
11:49 am
* consistent typo
folsomprison
March 30th, 2012
11:49 am
The biggest thing that Richt and Co. should be concerned with is that this is just the end March. The rest of those guys have four months to get into trouble. How many more players will be suspended by the first game? Also, it is crazy to compare what other schools do or do not do with discipline. The policy is the policy and the kids know it going in. If they cannot live by the rules, they can go somewhere else or not play. It is pretty simple. If I get arrested I doubt I can go before an American Court and tell them that it is not fair because that is not the law in Mexico!
M-E-R-C-E-R DAWG
March 30th, 2012
11:50 am
Yassir errifat!
10-2. With a crap bowl.
Big Crimson 75
March 30th, 2012
11:52 am
I know Rambo was recruited before last yrs class — but you never attach a name to a recruiting class & expect a bunch of model citizens.
Calling last yrs class the “dream team” was a mistake! It sets the wrong tone.
Did Saban attach a gimmick name to his first true recruiting class @ Bama in 2008? I think not. Now that class was a “DREAM” class!!
Dawg Daze
March 30th, 2012
11:55 am
Glad to see someone write something that makes sense. Great article, I agree on all points! Mark Richt can’t be a “helicopter” coach and follow over a 100 guys around on Spring Break or any other time…although that could make an interesting moive. “Richt Almighty.”
Terds-lov-ich
March 30th, 2012
11:58 am
Ok Bill, you’re the coach (assume) at UGA and every week one of your players in the off season gets a DUI,tests positive for MJ,domestic abuse,etc. And these type of crimes happen for 3 straight years. Who do we blame ?
A)The players ? Ok. each person is responsible for their actions,true. But you wanna call Richt strict yet he allows the same players to commit the same repeat offenses. Kick them off the team.
B)Society ? Ok. True that USA’s morals are rock-bottom. But Aaron Murray or Blair Walsh didn’t commit any offenses. So don’t blame society until EVERY player is indicted.
C)The coach ? Ok. He cannot babysit them in the off-season,true. But if your players continue to disregard the laws and put a black eye on the university then why not get a coach that might get thru to the players ? This isn’t happening at Kentucky,Florida,Vandy,Tenn,Auburn,Arky,etc. Its only happening at UGA to this extent.
Savannah Dawg
March 30th, 2012
11:59 am
I am a very frustrated fan. I am tired of being embarrassed by these fools. The rules may be tougher than other places but they are common knowledge. Prehaps these guys are just too stupid to represent this great university. If you just have to use marijuana or associate with people that do then simply don’t come to UGA.
On a lighter side, I’ve heard that Cheech and Chong will be honarary Captains and that the Redcoat Band will do a tribute to Bob Marley.
evil empire
March 30th, 2012
12:00 pm
meanwhile, back at the ranch…
according to sources at the NYKAE (new york koolade exchange), spot prices on kool-ade futures are extremely volatile…” the rumors of georgia football suspensions have this market in a tizzy…will it cause more consumption by the ‘we’ll be alright crowd” or less consumption by the “sky is falling” crowd…said company president K.A. Mann, “the georgia fanbase is a large part of our business, but not all of our business. don’t forget the notre dame dreamers and the ohio staters. the market will settle down once the ajc enablers down there handle the masses with more national championship talk. we’ll be fine for the time being…our biggest kool-ade sales are in the month before kick-off. georgians have never abandoned kool-ade, and we don’t expect the recent events down there to change that. georgia loves them some kool-ade”
Duncan Hines Ward
March 30th, 2012
12:03 pm
I heard the band’s going to do a tribute to The Buckinghams with “Kind of a Dwag”
SSIgator
March 30th, 2012
12:04 pm
evil empire -
Have they not finished the pipeline from the plant in Dalton to Athens yet? Lord, they have been working on it for almost a year now.
UGA fan
March 30th, 2012
12:05 pm
You, along with others, are reporting that Bacarri was suspended for one game for failing a drug test last season. The FACT is that he told Coach Ritch about the “speeding ticket” and the joint being found on the girl who was riding with him. Since when does anyone get suspended for speeding. That was the charge. At NO time was Bacarri tested and found to have drugs in his system. The suspension for last season was not enforced because of a failed drug test. Coach Ritch issued the suspension independently by his own admission.
God Bless his high school coach for trying to defend him and mentoring the kid. It may be the only mentoring he has ever had. For you to pass judgement on the coach and indicate that he was a poor influence on his life before he went to UGA is reducilous and insulting. That coach may be the only reason the kid is in college in the first place. I’m sure you have influenced 100’s of “kids” in your life while writing articles that slam coaches for being fathers to these boys.
Terds-lov-ich
March 30th, 2012
12:05 pm
Richt fresh off a new 5 year extension loses 2 more players to drug use. Incredible.
Hmmmm
March 30th, 2012
12:07 pm
Why cant theae guys with all their NFL potential just go on a mission trip like Tebow did in college instead of placing themselves in harms way! Idiots!
Bill King
March 30th, 2012
12:07 pm
UGA fan: I did not say Rambo failed a drug test last year. I said he was suspended for a similar violation.
DawginLex
March 30th, 2012
12:07 pm
evil empire
Care to comment??
“34% of the inmate population at Louisiana’s Correctional Facilities are former LSU athletes.”
Dirty Dawg
March 30th, 2012
12:09 pm
Sounds to me that young Mr Rambo’s high school coach has been, and continues to be, an enabler that only encourages the kids bad behavior…an excuse for everything and blame everybody else for for my failures. I truly hope that kid doesn’t think that the threat of declaring for the supplemental draft will do anything but sour fan support and label him as a malcontent. Then again if he’s incapable of behaving himself, maybe he should just move-the-hell on.
PrimeTime
March 30th, 2012
12:09 pm
Bill is absolutely right. And H. Talker is a complete idiot. Let’s FIRE HT!!!
evil empire
March 30th, 2012
12:09 pm
still moving forward…funding got tough while the negotiations for new contracts for coaching staff were being stretched out, but, project is back on track with completion scheduled for the early august pre-season national championship run…