UGA AD Damon Evans and his DUI: It’s no laughing matter
Damon Evans' mug shot. (City of Atlanta)
We make jokes, but there’s nothing funny about a DUI. There’s especially nothing funny when the man arrested is, by job definition, a leader of young people, and when some of those young people have had alcohol-related issues of their own.
Damon Evans warrants the same legal protection as everyone else: He’s innocent until proven guilty. But men in positions of leadership are held to a standard above and beyond legality: They’re supposed to be exemplars. Just by putting himself in position to pose for an unflattering mug shot, the Georgia athletics director has thrown his stewardship into question.
Michael Adams doesn’t like a lot of things — the BCS and Vince Dooley, to name two — but mostly the president doesn’t like being embarrassed. That’s why Jim Harrick, whom Adams had both befriended and championed, was pushed out the door within a month of Tony Cole’s appearance on ESPN in 2003.
You disappoint the president at your peril, and the president cannot be pleased today. This president chose Evans to replace Dooley, which means Adams leveraged much of what political capital he had left on the promotion. This president, as we know, has crusaded against underage drinking; he surely expects better of the adults on his staff.
There can be no quibbles about Evans as AD: Even with a difficult act to follow in Dooley, he has done well. He presides over a department that mints money and fields teams of high quality. He made a difficult decision to fire Dennis Felton and found, in Mark Fox, a coach who effected an immediate upgrade. In his public statements about Mark Richt and the football program Evans has sounded the proper notes — supportive but expectant of improvement.
Alas, there are no proper notes when you’ve been hauled to jail. There’s no way to explain the incongruity of a DUI being incurred by the man who made a video — it’s screened on the Sanford Stadium message board before and during games — imploring Georgia fans not to drink and drive.
“If you drink and drive,” Evans says in the video, “you lose.” He’s about to learn how difficult it can be to win back a good reputation. Fair or not, he’s no longer the bright and brassy AD of the state’s flagship school; he’s the guy who’ll spend the next decade trying to live down one unfortunate mug shot.
UPDATE: Georgia has scheduled a news conference for 6 or 6 :30 p.m. Thursday, and esteemed colleague Chip Towers has been told Damon Evans will appear. So that’s where I’m headed.
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1,388 comments Add your comment
da hood
July 1st, 2010
1:02 pm
I’ve been waiting for UGA to fire Damon now I finally get my wish. Lets hope they hire areal professional this time instead of another Adams Do Boy.
Joe
July 1st, 2010
1:02 pm
Wonder if he had been drinking on some of Donald Leebern’s cold beers. The whole damned administration in Athens is a joke. Good riddance to the scoundrel. Oh, and 20th in the Directors’ Cup is unacceptable, so you can leave for doing a crappy job as AD, in addition to being an adulterer and drunk. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out, you sorry P.O.S.
Marzha
July 1st, 2010
1:02 pm
University of Georgia Athletic Director Damon Evans was arrested on a DUI charge after a late Wednesday night traffic stop in Atlanta.
Why should this surprise anyone? If the scholarshipped athletes can booze it up while driving, often when they don’t even have a driver’s license, why shouldn’t Evans be able to?
The whole freaking UGA is a huge joke – one big party school with athletes who can barely read or write, and a football team that’s sunk to irrelevancy outside of the State of Georgia.
Sickening.
Lewis
July 1st, 2010
1:02 pm
This is what you get when Michael “Affirmative Action” Adams lets a kid like Evans run the AD.
Johnny DangerDawg
July 1st, 2010
1:02 pm
Mark Bradley,
Do you know of any other A.D.’s or head coaches or presidents (at a major university) who have received D.U.I.’s? What was their fate?
Gordon
July 1st, 2010
1:03 pm
Fellow Tech fans,
Please keep your mouths shut. This is nothing to joke about. What Evans did is no more a relection of UGA than it would be a reflection of Tech if Radakovich had done it. It’s one man, and it’s not our business.
DIT
July 1st, 2010
1:03 pm
Thanks to you Gator Mike. Classy post!
Cherry Woodburn
July 1st, 2010
1:03 pm
Agree with you except for last line and I don’t think it’s nit-picking – he’s not living down a bad mug shot, he’s living down a choice he made to drink and drive.
Wait A Minute
July 1st, 2010
1:03 pm
4 Jacks ,
You idiot . I am neither a TECH or a UGA fan. Again, this is about drunk driving. What does chanpionships have to do with the possibility that some one could have been hurt if he was truly drunk and was not stopped. I dare you to start talking about football to any loved one who has lost some one due to a drunk wreckless driver.
ThomasG
July 1st, 2010
1:03 pm
I agree with Mitch. Evans has to be fired immediately or the entire school loses credibility. Swift action is necessary. I have never seen a worse case of hypocrisy than Evans in my life.
Stuck In Kentucky
July 1st, 2010
1:04 pm
Fire him can make a call to the 502 and hire Tom Jurich from Louisville ASAP!
Dooley
July 1st, 2010
1:04 pm
Damon is a demon
Old Gold Britches
July 1st, 2010
1:04 pm
Shocked……….Unbelievable……….he is in the dawg house…no under the dawg house …probably in the outhouse.
Clmsntgrs
July 1st, 2010
1:04 pm
Wow! I don’t think there is anyway he keeps his job.
Football Bat
July 1st, 2010
1:05 pm
WOOOOO HOOOOOO! All athletes’ conduct scores get graded on a curve!
Joe
July 1st, 2010
1:05 pm
I wonder what Don Leebern thinks of his puppet’s stance on alcohol?
Nancy in Gainsville
July 1st, 2010
1:05 pm
Evans has to be fired soon. There is no excuse for keeping him around. If Adams doesn’t fire him, then Adams should be fired himself as a result.
Dan
July 1st, 2010
1:05 pm
Gordon – It reflects poorly on UGA. Their own alums recognize that it doesn’t mean the University is bad but it is unquestionably a terrible reflection on their school.
And forgive us if we have a little fun with it at their expense.
renegade#1
July 1st, 2010
1:06 pm
Yellow Jackets don’t drink? Have you ever set a beer down ? The little buzztards will nearly tote a beer can off!
Russ the Temporary Mascot
July 1st, 2010
1:06 pm
And they complain that I’m old and sick with a brown butt?
a
July 1st, 2010
1:06 pm
DUI is no laughing matter. Georgia Tech football on the other hand…..hilarious.
Otis
July 1st, 2010
1:06 pm
Sssso, wha’ wha’ WHATZ wrong with a fella takin’ (burp) a litle drinky-poo EVery (hic) now an’ ‘en? (burp).
He loooooks f-f-f-Fine to me! (hic)
TampaGator
July 1st, 2010
1:07 pm
ALEX….let’s just eliminate expecations for everyone….we will be better off for it…right? It is only wrong it you get caught….maybe twice of three time…hey let’s make if four times. One guy this morning even posted that….”DUIs are the new speeding ticket”…..who cares how many people are killed from driving drunk…as long as they learn something from it and are good people and do good things before they drank, drove, and killed someone. GREAT THINKING…my man. I hope the presidents of all SEC schools have higher standards and expectations than you do.
R
July 1st, 2010
1:07 pm
Dog Fan, are you for real? volley ball player??????
MitchFarted
July 1st, 2010
1:07 pm
Mark- Put your ethics hat on and join us in the call for Evans to be fired. I want to hear you say it loud.
Blewitt Must Go
July 1st, 2010
1:07 pm
He decided if you can’t beat them, join them! (with them being all of the UGA football players)
Reality Stinks
July 1st, 2010
1:07 pm
Leave up to our friends from North Ave to get our AD drunk and embarrass our school like this.
Dumbo
July 1st, 2010
1:07 pm
Was he drinking something distributed by Georgia Crown Distributing Co…dang wouldn’t that be something. Leebern and Adams having to come down on someone (he pushed forward (Evans) because he didn’t like Dooley) and Leebernmaking money off it. Could only happen at UGA!!!!
Jacket Backer
July 1st, 2010
1:07 pm
This picture will live forever on North Ave. Man, talk about giving us Tech folks material to work with.
Go Jackets!!!
Obama
July 1st, 2010
1:07 pm
What is he on DRUGS? WASTED.
Jo
July 1st, 2010
1:07 pm
Promise?? Are you kidding. Repating he has always been Adams’s puupet/ This is widely known. Neither Evans or Adams are respected. There is no longer any character in the GA AD Dept.
jdubb
July 1st, 2010
1:08 pm
You dont have to have ‘credibility’ to run a successful, profitable AD. You only have to have credibility if you are going to make taped segments for the public or the athletic teams.
Its all about the millions in surplus that he can continue to stockpile for UGA.
Jo
July 1st, 2010
1:08 pm
sorry -repeating
Money Talks
July 1st, 2010
1:08 pm
If they fire Evans, he’ll play the race card and get a few million more in “severance.”
Gatorzone
July 1st, 2010
1:08 pm
Happens EVERYWHERE, and many of you need to come off of your high horse! I would bet 50% of the people on this blog has driven after a few beers.
R
July 1st, 2010
1:08 pm
That’s a good one Joe, and soooooo true.
David C
July 1st, 2010
1:09 pm
Those of you, especially Avatar, who think his refusal to take the breath test will make it hard to convict, must have forgotten every cop car has video that tapes his every move. Nice try though.
Blackberry Cobbler
July 1st, 2010
1:09 pm
A sad day for UGA.
It was certainly a laspe in judgement for Evans.
Even if he hadn’t been caught, he’s clearly wasted and posed a threat to everyone else on the road.
After having student athletes arrested and punished for the same or worse charges, I think Adams really has no choice.
As much good as Evans has done and though I’m sure it’s a regrettable laspe in judgement on his part, I don’t see anything else that can be done except set an example and fire him.
Dawgie Bowser
July 1st, 2010
1:10 pm
Shamon on Damon. He has not made a statement yet but will soon after consulting with Charles Bannister for advice.
James
July 1st, 2010
1:10 pm
This should call attention to the ridiculous charge of “LESS SAFE” DUI. What utter BS. If you are above the legal limit then you should be charged with DUI. We’ve got these overzealous state troopers running around and charging everyone with this BS charge. I had never heard of this until a friend of mine received this charge from a trooper. He passed the field sobriety test and the breathalyzer. The trooper said that he smelled alcohol ( my friend had been drinking the night before – 8 hours prior – and hadn’t showered or brushed his teeth yet).
THIS NEEDS TO BE STOPPED.
TampaGator
July 1st, 2010
1:10 pm
And, yes, I lost a very, very dear friend to one of those “new speeding ticket” DUIs….she was only 23 at the time….and a beautiful human being and completely full of life…before an idiot like Evans took that away from her. Now, I’ve got to get back to work.
G8R GRAD
July 1st, 2010
1:10 pm
Bad day to be a Dawg.
This guy should go.
What a phenominally ill-conceived screw-up.
That picture will be on every Tech fan’s office wall all season.
Joe
July 1st, 2010
1:10 pm
One good thing to come out of this for Damon-now that he has gotten the requisite arrest under him, he will be a perfect candidate for Congress!
indentured servant
July 1st, 2010
1:10 pm
What is wrong with this blog?
MitchFarted
July 1st, 2010
1:11 pm
The fact that he refused to take a breath test is even more of a testament to his lack of character. He was already thinking of ways to escape punishment, rather than honing up to what he did. I am a lifelong UGA fan and an alum, but Evans has to go. I will not send 1 more penny to that school until he is gone.
Dumbo
July 1st, 2010
1:11 pm
Jacket Backer…no matter what, Tech and Houston take the cake along with about 40 kilos of weed!
HugoStiglitz
July 1st, 2010
1:11 pm
This is unfortunate. Even as a Tech fan, you have to feel a little disgusted by his behavior. There are alot of people who looked up to this guy for leadership and he pretty much ruined it. Its fun to rag UGA fans when young students get in trouble. They are young and still maturing. This guy should know better and he put an unnecessary black mark on the UGA athletics program and his own career. UGA should get rid of him and hire someone new who will take his job and his leadership role a little more serious.
da hood
July 1st, 2010
1:11 pm
Leiws your man Dooley personally hired Damon and groomed him to take over the job one day. Unfortunately for liver spotted face Dolley the one day was a lot sooner than he thought.
Bubba Gump
July 1st, 2010
1:11 pm
It’s funny that he comes on screen before games and asks the fans not to drink and drive.
ATL_AU_ALUM
July 1st, 2010
1:11 pm
@DIT – You’re welcome. I don’t mind sparring back and forth over the actual teams and sports involved but this isn’t something that, in my opinion, deserves bashing. Hope everything works out the best for the fans and the University.