Georgia coach Mark Richt sidesteps questions on player suspensions
ATHENS — Georgia coach Mark Richt didn’t shed much light on the Bulldogs’ suspension situation when he addressed an unusually large media contingent at the end of Thursday’s practice. In fact, he didn’t as much as flick on a flashlight.
Richt would not even confirm that there are new suspensions despite numerous report Thursday that at least two of Georgia’s defensive stars have run afoul of the athletic association’s drug policy.
“I can’t confirm anything,” Richt told more than a dozen reporters and two Atlanta television news crews. “I’m just going to be waiting for us to go through our process. When there’s something to report, I’ll report it to everybody.”
Earlier Thursday, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution was able to confirm that All-America safety Bacarri Rambo is facing a four-game suspension for failing a UGA-administered drug test this week. Rambo’s high school coach, Alan Ingram of Seminole County, said it was Rambo’s second violation of Georgia’s drug policy regarding marijuana, which according to the student-athlete handbook calls for a 30 percent suspension from the total number of competition dates. Rambo plans to appeal the suspension through UGA’s appeals process.
Ingram said he understands from his conversations with Rambo that junior linebacker Alec Ogletree also failed a similar drug test and is facing a similar length of suspension. In fact, Ingram said he believes as many as five UGA players failed drug screenings that were administered shortly after spring break.
But Richt refused to confirm or deny any of it. Before he entered the interview room on the second floor of Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall, UGA sports communication personnel passed out a brief written statement from him.
It read: “There is a process we follow regarding team guidelines and policies. I cannot make many comment until that process has run its course.”
Afterward, when Richt was asked questions regarding suspensions or player behavior in general, he referred to the statement.
“Don’t know if you’ve seen our handout but you might want to read it because you’ll hear it repeated again,” he said, smiling.
Asked exactly what process to which he was referring, Richt said: “Just, we’ve got our guidelines, we’ve got our policies. There are certain things we’ve got to do when we’re taking care of business and that’s what we’re talking about.”
Asked how he felt about handling player behavior issues, he said, “I don’t like distractions, that’s for sure.”
More details to come. . . .
Chip Towers, The UGA Blog
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
417 comments Add your comment
Flat Tire on I-95 in Jacksonville
March 30th, 2012
5:32 pm
Altamaha
How many bad bits of publicity on UGA during the Richt tenure is it going to take before you come to reality that Richt garners no respect from his players which has led to years of mediocrity
Dawghater
March 30th, 2012
6:05 pm
UGA should tell all the players DON’T TO EAT THE BROWNIES!
The kids were all framed!
SEC Football Morning Coffee: Mark Richt Dodges Suspension Questions | SEC Football
March 30th, 2012
8:46 pm
[...] head coach Mark Richt didn’t address the reports that key players on his defense are facing multi-game suspensions, writes Chip Towers of the [...]
bobwhite
March 30th, 2012
9:15 pm
I can tell a pot head when i see one and most of the dread locked wonders we recruit should be given a drug test before we even accept their letter of intent
AltamahaDawg
March 30th, 2012
9:48 pm
Well same as always when you ask me for an answer based on YOUR opinion that I might not agree with. I don’t know how many. To me its not nearly as simplistic as “no respect”.
I could easily point out some very obvious ways UGA could lesson the occurance of those tidbit, if thats all there was to it, and it would not mean they did have more respect. Would it? My belief is that it far more likely that players anywhere respect thier head coach, whoever that is. So no, i don’t buy that as the only logical assumption to explain it. especially the way it was framed. That they get themselves suspended becasue they arent afraid of enough of the most stringent p. Just seems completely backwards logic to me.
Now, If you are asking me how many more times before I am convinced that what they are doing is working, I’d say a long time ago. I have said so many times.
AltamahaDawg
March 30th, 2012
9:50 pm
oops. I meant is NOT working.
AltamahaDawg
March 30th, 2012
9:52 pm
well shoot, read………..arent afraid enough of the most stringent penalties in the league.
How can you be # 4 best coach in America when you are # 21 in Wins Current 6-Year Period ?
March 30th, 2012
11:15 pm
We may the only fan base in The South who have any fans at all who rush to make up flimsy excuses for all the bad press. We need to change our name to DISNEYdawgs.com because we read a guy tell you that he is a graduate of the Terry School of Business 1990, no doubt with Honors, that he hasn’t missed a game from 1990 to 2005 that he couldn’t count on his 2 hands both home and away, and still in reply to even that, you still have the unmitigated gall to call him a fan of some other team because he isn’t happy with all these arrests suspensions players kicked-off the team transfers out and BAD PRESS along with having lost 9 games in a row to teams who made the top 25 and having lost 7 games in a row to teams who made the top 10 all the way back to 2006, when the 2006 season was now this up-coming 2012 season seven (7) seasons ago -
yet, you admit you don’t even go to the games.
Some of us are actually not satisfied, most especially with the RICHT-O-PHILE fans who feel it is their Mission from God to Defend Mark Richt from all foes, foreign and domestic – who just ain’t satisfied no matter what your lies we ain’t as good a fan as you.
How can you be # 4 best coach in America when you are # 21 in Wins Current 6-Year Period ?
March 30th, 2012
11:33 pm
“Now, If you are asking me how many more times before I am convinced that what they are doing is NOT working, I’d say a long time ago. I have said so many times.”
___________________________________
AltamahawDawg, you are just piling on our football coach, who refuses to even address all the Suspensions and players kicked-off the team and transfers out for Favoritism where Starters get lesser punishment or none, while back-ups are kicked-off the team for far lesser Offenses as Starters are allowed more Offenses and Worse Offenses for BAD PRESS.
BAD PRESS for being # 21 in wins over the Current 6-Year Period all the way back to after our last SEC Championship.
BAD PRESS for DISNEYdawgs.com fans who don’t even go to the games writing rambling posts of how they somehow unmentioned are better fans because they keep up the EXCUSES in face of their posts that they themselves are convinced that what Mark Richt is doing is NOT working.
Mike Hunt
March 31st, 2012
8:41 am
All this and a contract extension to boot. What a cluster.
dawginduluth
March 31st, 2012
8:45 am
Dicht again!
Hardtruth Soldier
March 31st, 2012
10:13 am
O.k. the first year this stuff happens you say, “Oh it’s just college kids”, the second you start suspending some to get everybody’s attention, now it’s time to start making these young men suffer as one. Accountability amongst teammates has to be a must, and GEORGIA isn’t doing it. Really(and I reassure you he’s doing it) if I’m Nick Saban I point to the number #1 recruit in the nation, which happens to be here and say to him, “Kid why go to a program where you have no discipline, no national champions, and a coaching staff that doesn’t get it. We’ve fallen behind Alabama, LSU, and at this rate Arkansas. Geez not to mention we’re years behind Florida. Thirty two players in what two, maybe three years? The “Dream Team”, which by the way 5 guys are gone has become a joke, and the bottom line is Georgia isn’t winning with way to much talent. Prime example, let’s look closely people, Knowshon Moreno(Denver), Kregg Lumpkin(Tampa Bay) Danny Ware(Giants), Matthew Stafford(Detroit), Muhammed Massaquoi(Cleveland) Clint Boling (Cincinnati)Fernando Valaquez (Tennesee) Kris Durham (Seattle), and finally A.J. Green(Cincinnatti) all on the field all at Georgia at the same time at some point, and we can;t play in a National Championship. People notice I didn’t mention one defensive player, but trust me it’s a few. CMR just isn’t getting it done with the talent he has, and gets year end and out. Promise you if Nick Saban was at Georgia college football and America would be locked on what’s going on at UGA. WE GOTTA STOP SHAMING A PROUD PROGRAM AND WIN AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL.
Max
March 31st, 2012
11:45 am
When Seminole County coach Alan Ingram talked about the possible suspension of Baccari Rambo one of the first things he said in defending his former high school player was that the University of Georgia was guilty of stupid timing in conducting drug tests right after spring break. That’s seems to indicate that he feels using drugs on spring break is OK and Georgia should look the other way. Did anybody else read it that way as well, and should he be coaching a high school team with that attitude?
short memories
March 31st, 2012
8:45 pm
11 players have quit, been dismissed or facing suspension. Lets extend Richt’s contract and give him a raise with a bonus if he could ever beat a top twenty five team
I feel better
March 31st, 2012
8:50 pm
knowing they were all stoned. Watching them play I just thought they were stupid
This will be known
March 31st, 2012
8:56 pm
as the dark years of UGA football many years from know. People will wonder how the AD and administration could be so stupified by the Music Man. The cautious administration politicals will be rewarded for their no guts no glory approach with continued misery and mediocrity
dawginduluth
April 1st, 2012
11:57 am
Legally, testing positive for maijuana is the same as possession. Fialure to report is legally obstruction. The first a misdemeanor, the second a felony.