UGA starting TB Washaun Ealey granted unconditional release by Bulldogs (UPDATED)
Washaun Ealey led the Bulldogs with 811 yards rushing and 11 TDs as a sophomore last season. (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)
Athens – Can a team lose its leading rusher and actually become a better team?
The Georgia Bulldogs are about to find out. They granted Washaun Ealey — their starting tailback and an 800-yard rusher last season — his unconditional release on Monday.
The announcement was made in a vague, three-paragraph news release distributed by the UGA Sports Communication office Monday night. It was characterized as a mutual decision.
“Washaun and I have had several conversations in recent weeks,” head coach Mark Richt said in the release. “We both have come to the conclusion that a transfer to another institution would be in his best interest.”
Georgia officials confirmed that Ealey is academically eligible to play next season. Ealey could not be reached for comment so his next destination is unknown.
Ealey’s mother, Joanne Ealey, said she was unaware of this latest development.
“I don’t know anything about that,” she said. “I need to talk to my son.”
Ms. Ealey said her son had discussed the possibility of transferring to Georgia Southern or some other school in the past. She said she was OK with that, “as long as he’s getting an education.”
By granting Ealey his release, Ealey will be immediately eligible at a lower-division school. However, he would still have to sit out one season if he transfers to another Football Bowl Subdivision institution.
While the Bulldogs will be losing a productive back who showed flashes of brilliance, they will also be losing a disciplinary headache. Ealey was suspended at least twice in the last seven months and Richt was constantly on him to conduct himself “the Georgia Way.”
Richt hinted that relations between Ealey and the team were still strained late last month when he was asked about the him during a meeting of the Augusta Bulldog Club.
“Washaun has a ways to go still to show me that he deserves to start or even play right now,” Richt said. “He has a ways to go in my book. We’ll see.”
Ealey was suspended indefinitely from the team in February for missing an early-morning disciplinary run. He was reinstated in time for spring practice in March but was sidelined with a hamstring injury after only four practices and did not practice again. He was also suspended from last season’s opener because of an arrest for hit-and-run of a parked vehicle and driving with a suspended license. Richt was particularly upset about that incident because Ealey had assured coaches he wouldn’t drive while his license was suspended.
A rising junior from Stillmore, Ealey played in 21 games for the Bulldogs with nine starts, including seven last season. He rushed 1,528 yards and 14 touchdowns in two seasons at Georgia.
Ealey’s status as starting tailback was already in jeopardy. He was benched early last season due to fumbling issues. And the Bulldogs in February signed Isaiah Crowell, the nation’s No. 1-ranked running back prospect. They also return senior Caleb King, junior Carlton Thomas and redshirt freshman Ken “Boo” Malcome at the position.
Milan Turner, Ealey’s high school coach at Emmanuel County Institute, said he had not yet talked to Ealey but planned to sometime later Monday night.
Ealey was one of two players Georgia signed out of ECI in 2009. The other one, linebacker Dexter Moody, had his letter-of-intent revoked shortly after national signing day due to a major disciplinary infraction at the high school.
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483 comments Add your comment
NJ Dawg
May 9th, 2011
7:58 pm
The Dawgs’ problem the last few years wasn’t talent (or lack thereof), it was too many entitled players with character issues. They haven’t had enough high-character guys since Greene, Pollack, and Shockley, and it showed. Murray and Charles can be those guys on the offensive side, and Ray Drew can be that guy on the defensive side of the ball. If these guys are committed to being the best student-athletes they can be and their example rubs off on the rest of the team, the Dawgs can be a powerhouse program again. But it won’t happen with a bunch of bad apples who don’t practice hard enough and can’t manage their personal lives.
So I’m sorry it didn’t work out for Ealey, but as others have noted, he’s got no one to blame but himself. You can only screw up so many times before even the most lenient coach has had enough. I wish him luck and hope he gets his life together.
Top Row Dawg
May 9th, 2011
8:01 pm
Dang we could use some more coastal Georgia Dogs. That’s a real shame. He looked good in flashes. The UK game was brilliant. The fumbles against South Carolina and Mississippi State were brutal. Now he follows the other reject dog from the same High School. If he gets arrested now, does it count against UGA on the Fulmer Cup?
Hope he goes to Georgia Southern, don’t need him coming back to trip us up at an SEC school with less standards.
National Champion
May 9th, 2011
8:01 pm
If he does for us what Cam did, tell him to come on!
JDawg1785
May 9th, 2011
8:02 pm
Sorry to see it end this way, but Georgia’s better off and Washaun might be as well. I wish him luck wherever he ends up. Go Dawgs!
P.S. Lace ‘em up, Isaiah, no pressure…
Dawg1
May 9th, 2011
8:04 pm
Wish the young man well. Sometimes you just need a new start.
These frigin kids
May 9th, 2011
8:06 pm
So many players at the D-1 level think their sh#t don’t stink. They think they are above following the rules, and the subsequent punishment when they don’t. This crap is happening WAY too often.
W.E. is an idiot! An idiot b/c he has NO CLUE what he just p*ssed away.
Kid was playing big time D-1 football, getting a quality education, being treated/provided with a college experience a typical undergrad would kill for, and this was all…. FREE!
WOW!!!
Geaux Tigers!!
May 9th, 2011
8:06 pm
Yes, UGA is a better team without Ealey. He was not committed to being his best and giving his all for the Dogs so it is time to move on. This is a guy who couldn’t even show up for a punishment session with the coach. This is a great move by Richt and I applaude him for it. This move could be compared to Les Miles booting Ryan Perrilloux but the loss of Ealey wont set the Dogs back as much as the loss of Perrilloux did LSU. In the end, UGA will be a better team and will not miss Ealey a bit.
BigDawg
May 9th, 2011
8:07 pm
Flying Tigers, you are pathetic. You signed the most extraordinary case of a quarterback seeking pay with Scam Newton who refuses to take a lie detector test for $1M, I would in any situation. You had the biggest cheap foul artist in Nick Unfairly. Did you see the hits on Aaron Murray and Dick Unfairly twisting the facemask of a player already down in the bowl game?? And Gene Shizack pumping his players to hit UGA unfairly when the game was not in doubt???? Yes, Aubarn is a great town with a wonderful cultural center, NOT!!!!! You only have enough students there due to the fact they cannot get into UGA who has much higher standards! And WTF is your mascot?? War Eagle, Tiger, or Barney???????????
Milledgeville Dawg
May 9th, 2011
8:11 pm
I bet he lands in Statesboro.
Educator
May 9th, 2011
8:13 pm
I hope the young man is able to learn from this setback and succeed academically. Football is temporary and a degree is forever.
Cohutta Dawgman
May 9th, 2011
8:13 pm
I hope he can get his act together. Wasted talent.
Notso Fast
May 9th, 2011
8:14 pm
Coach R is showing signs of changing. Good for him.
Gator Guy
May 9th, 2011
8:16 pm
hahahahahahahahaha—–doesn’t matter. You can’t beat Florida with him, you can’t beat us without him! hahahahahahahahaha
badada
May 9th, 2011
8:17 pm
I’ll bet he goes to another school and wins the heisman…
Haters Gonna Hate
May 9th, 2011
8:17 pm
The only team that was proven violating rules last year was UGA on Ebay. Nick Fairley did not play dirty until the chopblocks.
One of the best perks of ANOTHER ubdefeated season and a National is UGA fans toiling in jealousy.
UGA questioning Auburns integrity is laughable. Auburns past 10 years team criminal record is nothing to UGAs. We also graduate more players but hey….whatever gets UGA through the night.
Maybe you guys can taste undefeated excellence one day. 1980 is a long time ago. BTW – did UGA play anyone decent that year? That schedule was ajoke.
Tom
May 9th, 2011
8:18 pm
Can’t believe it took this long. Oh, well. No more having to pretend he’s “academically eligible”.
chiefdawg
May 9th, 2011
8:19 pm
Bad move. Mark Richt is to blame for this. He recruited Ealey. He also recruited C.King who has turned out to be a bust. With that in mind what makes you think Crowell will be any good.
bobby
May 9th, 2011
8:20 pm
Can’t understand normal thinking AND love catfish? We’re starting a fine program for momma’s boys down in Tallahassee.
complacency
May 9th, 2011
8:20 pm
Wasted Talent is Mark Richt’s middle name.
Halfass coach.
Richt's Butt Cut
May 9th, 2011
8:21 pm
LOL.. Here we go. Yup its May, sounds about right, Leading rusher transferring.. Par for the course.
dmr
May 9th, 2011
8:21 pm
Take the move on its face without having a crystal ball and knowing whether or not any running back on the squad or incoming back actually will be better than Ealey and guess what; the Bulldogs are better off. You have to have 85 kids committed to a common goal and committed to each other. Ealey has proven by his actions that he is a “ME” person.
The Georgia Way….BIG “TEAM” little “me”. Wishing Ealey well, but this kind of move puts the players on notice that Mark Richt is back in charge and no one player is bigger than the Program.
Ak21
May 9th, 2011
8:21 pm
Washaun – autocorrected changed to Washout… Fitting huh? #notworthytobeadawg
UGA UBA Hypocrite
May 9th, 2011
8:22 pm
Ealey’s mother, Joanne Ealey, said she was unaware of this latest development.
“I don’t know anything about that,” she said. “I need to talk to my son.”
Ms. Ealey said she her son had discussed the possibility of transferring to Georgia Southern or some other school in the past. She said she was OK with that, “as long as he’s getting an education.”
Real classy gesture by Good Ole Saint Richt letting his mother find out through the media. He’s a real standup guy….
supsalemgr
May 9th, 2011
8:22 pm
catlady is absolutely correct. I lived in MS during the Jackie Sherrill fiasco at MSU. My firends there said look at all the guys he is getting from ATL. My response was nobody else in the SEC would take them. He recruited “characters” instead of “character” and it caught up with him. If CMR is to get it back on track he needs to cleanse the roster of those types.
Richt's Butt Cut
May 9th, 2011
8:23 pm
from Field Goal U too…. Wasted Talent U.
PTC DAWG
May 9th, 2011
8:24 pm
Best of luck to W E.
doggoneit
May 9th, 2011
8:25 pm
WOW! Georgia gives him a scholarship worth about 150,000. He is on center stage in front of 80,000 plus every week and then he walks away from that.. WHAT AN IDIOT!
When he gets to be forty he will sit back and say to himself ‘Man, I’m an Idiot”
Dr. Phil
May 9th, 2011
8:25 pm
Ealey was definitely a problem child, but I wonder how many other players are disgruntled by Richt’s pandering to Crowell. We will just have to see if Crowell turns out to be another Ealey. Richt has bet a lot on Crowell, who is a coin toss at best.
Dr. Kenneth Noisewater
May 9th, 2011
8:26 pm
UGA will be better off in the long run although it certainly causes depth issues at RB this year.
Baron of Brumby
May 9th, 2011
8:28 pm
I know this sounds like the middle aged alum that I am but…. I really wish we could find
some talented running backs that have a passion for playing for the University of Georgia and
all that it represents… Its a shame that so many of the kids don’t realize the opportunity of a lifetime.. Not just from a football perspective but also getting a top notched education since most will not make it to the NFL…. GO DAWGS!!!!
PTC DAWG
May 9th, 2011
8:28 pm
WE not calling his Mother is certainly not CMR’s fault.
Auburn...the whooping is coming this year in Athens!
May 9th, 2011
8:28 pm
AU fans get ready! You’re gonna get your you know what handed to you this year in the Classic City. John Jenkins and Kwame Geathers are gonna do the Bammer stomp on your quarterbacks head. And, we’ll play soldier boy to remind you that after we win that will be 5 wins in the last 6 games against you homer billies.
BornADawg
May 9th, 2011
8:28 pm
Me thinks, IMHO, that AD McGarity is behind the scenes pulling the strings and letting CMR take the credit for changes being made. And, that is fine. I think that shows good leadership on AD McGarity’s part. The main thing is, changes that should have been implemented a couple of years ago are taking place now. Hopefully, no more feelings of entitlement on the part of some of these athletes. If you want to play for Georgia, you have to work hard and do the right thing or hit the road.
I do believe this program is headed in a new and better direction under McGarity and the whole athletic program is going to be better for it…Go DAWGS!
12 CRIMINAL CHARGES 7-er-6 wins 6-no-7 LOSSES
May 9th, 2011
8:29 pm
“… Ealey was suspended several times during his two years in Athens and Richt was constantly on him to conduct himself “the Georgia Way.”
Isn’t getting arrested THE “Georgia Way”? LOL!!!
Georgia Sports Report
May 9th, 2011
8:29 pm
Why is he wondering where to transfer to to play football? At this point, get some sort of degree at get a job. What good does it do him to play football anymore? This isn’t going to end well.
dawggone
May 9th, 2011
8:30 pm
If UGA DOESN’T HAVE A BOATLOAD OF RUNNING BACKS THEIR BEGGING THIS GUY TO STAY.
Contractor
May 9th, 2011
8:31 pm
Thank goodness. I would never root for a guy to fail, but this guy just had no clue how to be a team player or an upstanding citizen. Give him the world on a silver platter, and he fumbled it, no pun intended. Best of luck elsewhere, but hopefully his character changes for the better and he can stay out of the back of a cop car. Now, just have to get rid of King, and I think we will be in a better situation at tailback with Malcolm, Thomas, and Mr. Crowell coming in.
McDawg
May 9th, 2011
8:33 pm
very tragic–but what can you do-he had a chance to be All_SEC an NFL career maybe he and Dexter can lead Ga Southern to a division II title
lets go BOOOOO
cmac22
May 9th, 2011
8:36 pm
Bin laden dead & Ealey gone!!!! A great week to be a DAWG!!!!
rocketfuel
May 9th, 2011
8:37 pm
Patrick Romano War Eagle or whatever you call yourself.I think the best part of you ran down the crack of your mama’s ass.You guys will always be known as The East Alabama School of Animal Husbandry.Have a good season asswipe.
THIRTY FOUR POINTS to you thirty one points
May 9th, 2011
8:37 pm
aaaaawwww…..
(((((((((((((((((((((((((34-31))))))))))))))))
17 of 20
8 of 10
McDawg
May 9th, 2011
8:38 pm
these weirdo auburn fans need to shut up and lawyer up
Paul N Destin
May 9th, 2011
8:38 pm
No way the Saint would clear numbers for other players…I mean the not Mark ….Yes that mean ole Nick Saban would cut folks to get other better players but not UGA and Mark the Saint….
wolfman
May 9th, 2011
8:38 pm
The mouth from ECI is gone…. “I (got) run (out of) this state!”
Joey
May 9th, 2011
8:39 pm
Good move for Ealey.
He broke Herschel’s records in high school.
He broke Herschel’s per carry average at Georgia and matched Herschel’s td per carry ratio at 20 to 1.
Perhaps Richt will get the message after losing 3 mega talented players in the last 3 years for the same reason: Mettenberger, Gray, now Ealey.
Play the guys who perform the best, or lose em.
You got to be Kidding Me!
May 9th, 2011
8:39 pm
It would take a biased uneducated UGA fan to justify your leading rusher to transfer. For all the issues he had, he was the go to guy when needed. You now are putting your chips in the hands of a back who has not done anything in 3 previous years after being a 4 star player, then two other guys who were not good enough to play in 2010, and a freshman running back who by all accounts is more injury prone than the other backs on your current roster.
The biggest UGA fan has to realize this program is in trouble and the “SPIN” is just that, SPIN.
The UGA program under Richt has SPUN out of control.
David
May 9th, 2011
8:41 pm
Forget about Boise State, Carolina and the rest of the S.E.C. DEFENSES are licking their chops !!
Mr. SEC
May 9th, 2011
8:42 pm
FINALLY! SOMETHING IS GOING RIGHT IN ATHENS! THEY CAN’T WAIT TO GET HIM AT GEORGIA SOUTHERN, HE WILL FIT RIGHT WITH THME, BUT I’VE ALSO HEARD THAT GEORGIA SOUTHERN IS HAVING SOME DISCLIPLINE ISSUSES WITH SOME PLAYES ALSO; SO IT COULD HE A LITTLE HARDER FOR HIM TO GO ANYWHERE! ANYWAY, THANK GOD HE’S GONE!
cmac22
May 9th, 2011
8:42 pm
Hey Joey – did you ever see Gray throw the ball? If you had, you would have known he was better suited to be a spectator than a QB!
GT Man
May 9th, 2011
8:42 pm
Wished he would have left 2 years ago, then maybe Paul Johnson wouldn’t have choked and we could have beat UGA