DL Derrick Lott becomes latest roster casualty for Bulldogs
ATHENS — Defensive lineman Derrick Lott has become the latest roster casualty for the Georgia Bulldogs.
Lott, a 6-foot4, 303-pound junior from Kennesaw, decided to transfer “in order to obtain more playing time,” according to an announcement Friday night by head coach Mark Richt. No word on where Lott is headed but, if it is on the FBS level (formerly Division 1) he will have to sit out a year.
Lott
“Derrick and I met and he believes he will have opportunities for more playing time elsewhere,” Richt said in a statement. “We support him and will assist in any way possible during this process.”
Lott could not be reached for comment. He was probably attending a show.
Lott played in just five career games. He concludes his UGA career with 10 total tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss.
Defensive line coach Rodney Garner spoke glowingly of Lott’s progress and abilities earlier this week. Though a career backup, Lott had tripped over some bad fortune — he ripped open his leg in a scooter accident before this past season — and appeared to be coming into his own this spring. According to several accounts of recent interviews with Lott, he spoke excitedly and optimistically about the upcoming season and the prospects it held for him.
Lott’s decision comes on the heels of the news that two more defensive players — All-America safety Bacarri Rambo and star linebacker Alec Ogletree — had flunked drug tests and are going to be suspended for multiple games at the beginning of the season. Alan Ingram, Rambo’s coach at Seminole County High School, said yesterday that as many as five Georgia players had failed surprise post-spring-break drug screenings.
Two other defensive starters are also expected miss games due to arrests in the last two months. So that’s 10 players that have either left the Bulldogs, been dismissed from the team or are expected to miss games due to suspensions since the calendar flipped to 2012. The others are:
- TB Carlton Thomas, Sr.: Three separate one-game suspensions in 2011. Quit team before spring practice
- CB Branden Smith, Sr.: Faces suspension of at least one game for marijuana arrest.
- CB Sanders Commings, Sr.: Gets 2-game suspension for simple battery, disorderly conduct conviction.
- WR Sanford Seay, RFr.: Dismissed from team in January for rules violation.
- DB Chris Sanders, So.: Dismissed from team in January for rules violation.
- DB Nick Marshall, So.: Dismissed from team in January for rules violation.
- CB Jordan Love, Jr.: Quit team shortly after season due to a lack of playing time.
– Chip Towers, The UGA Blog
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285 comments Add your comment
Ckgator
March 31st, 2012
2:47 pm
Abolish UGA’s School of Communication! Those darn journalism students are at it again. Stop them before the entire team defects!
Bahaha Gdawg you’re funny.
Terry
March 31st, 2012
3:06 pm
GT fan, What does it madder which coach it is? It still leaves a black eye on your College, and by the way, they didn’t even fire him, He was placed on administrative, leave with pay. And I never said what kind of coach it was, Stupid!!! Didn’t think with that high IQ, Wink, Wink, I needed too, LOSER!!!
captain obvious
March 31st, 2012
3:12 pm
Knowing that scholarships are renewed on an annual basis how exactly do you justify including players that quit/transferred/dismissed during the 2011 season or earlier in your lists of scholarship athletes for 2012? There’s no need to point out all of those examples since Ealey and Mettenberger are glaring enough flaws to discredit the list. It’s also interesting how seven recruits who failed to qualify academically in 2011 or earlier find there way onto a list of UGA scholarship athletes for 2012, but I think the definitional standards change from blog troll to alternate team fan for instance an Alabama fan may choose to identify a similarly regarded over-signed recruit as a gray shirt player of the future. That takes care of more than half the list, but if you want to harp on the arrests and suspensions just remember how many other teams are starting sex offenders like Mettenberger or domestically violent guys like Rainey at UF. Some coaches just have moral boundaries while the competition apparently doesn’t. For all of you actual UGA fans here don’t let the pretend facts/lists dissuade your support of a program examined under a fabricated microscope, and to the trolls feel free to continue to bash us, we treat jealousy as a form of flattery.
bucket
March 31st, 2012
3:24 pm
Wow, while I have been out enjoying a beautiful Saturday in the great state of Georgia I see the Gator, Tech, and Bama fans who have “UGA obsession syndrome” have been trolling the UGA SPORTS BLOG and trashing UGA. Yet you say UGA is irrelevant. Kind of ironic don’t you think?
bucket
March 31st, 2012
3:27 pm
@ CT – I also see the headline got changed. I am a Dawg fan who doesn’t expect you to be a cheerleader for the Dawgs or hide damaging information. However, when your article about a player transferring because of a lack of playing time appears under the headline of “Another UGA player abandoning ship” you are going to catch some grief from Dawg fans on the UGA Sports Blog.
GT fan
March 31st, 2012
4:34 pm
Terry (aka Mental Midget) ……
Have you ever heard of the phrase INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY???
Kinda like Jarrad Tarrant a few years back ……
Boy and a girl meet at a college party where there are drinking…..they are attracted to one another…..one thing leads to another, and something sexual happens between the two (consenting adults). IDK if it was the next day or several days later the girl decides she wished the sexual encounter never happened, and decides now that she was raped. Tarrant was put on “administrative leave” from the team and later, charges were dropped. But people like you will always consider him a rapist.
So, with your take, it doesn’t matter what sports program or office (maybe he/she oversees the entire athletic program) a university employee holds. If he/she does something bad it’s a black eye to the college.
Have you heard of a guy named Damon Evans?
Barry
March 31st, 2012
5:03 pm
Let the “Crap” flow down the drain where it belongs. However, the dogs might just start looking harder for quality kids, even if they are not the absolute 5 star guy, if he has questionable character. Coach Vince Dooley won a gazillion games over 25 years as head coach, certainly with some super stars, but mostly with good players who also were good kids who really cared about UGA.
In fairness though – NCAA rules now restrict the ability of coaches to really get to know what they are getting with the limited amount of contact they can have with prospects. That is why they try so hard to get young players into the summer camps for a week – to get a better feel for who/what they really are. Not always easy to predict how they will turn out in 3-4 years. Some are plainly sorry – some disguise it really well – until they are caught!
Tom
March 31st, 2012
5:22 pm
UGA should schedule panty league games for the first two games of each season. That way the bums that cant live by the rules wont hurt the team, and it would give them (the bums) incentive to walk the straight and narrow path. I mean, who would want to miss those games.
Hairy Dawg
March 31st, 2012
5:34 pm
Some of you is being dum and blinded by hatred just trying to lynching party for Coach Richt. This is all about roster manegement. Coach Richt is Christian and is casting out the players that can’t play in SEC cause they stinkys and wicked servants of Lord from not exposing talents. Then we can sign new Dream Team recruit with the open schollie.
This is how Sabans winning with the Bammers. Coach Richt needs to do more roster manegement to cut loose the stinkys boys. Then he can call up talent stockpile of real mens players who showed development at Hargraves. Also he can sign more top players each year with open schollies from cutting loose the stinkys boys.
But Adams trying to choke recruiting in keeping Coach Richt from even playing field with Bammers. That why McG got to go bat for Coach Richt in standing up Adams. And us fans got to supporting Coach Richt against Adams and the pointy head profs to fixes the problem.
Hairy Dawg
March 31st, 2012
5:45 pm
And another thing I tell you is that the way to show dominants is by doing rooster manegement. That has helped Bammer to win but the bad fans blaming Coach Richt for doing what Bammer did to get champ winning success. The bad fans just trying to hot sit Coach Richt despite Coach Richt recruiting talent and now learning to be more Christian in casting out those that not exposing the talents to play with SEC speed. The good fans know Coach Richt needed contract extendsion. And the bad fans need to be hot sitted not Coach Richt.
Hairy Dawg
March 31st, 2012
5:48 pm
rooster not roster
Roll Tide
March 31st, 2012
5:49 pm
Is Saban responsible for this also ajc butt hurts?
Hairy Dawg
March 31st, 2012
5:49 pm
Dang it!
Roster not rooster
Hairy Dawg
March 31st, 2012
5:53 pm
Saban is dirty for coming into GA and trying to steal our players when Dawgs own state and recruits. Saban should only getting left over scraps from GA. But Saban right on cutting loose the stinkys boys for roster manegement.
Joe
March 31st, 2012
5:56 pm
Richt has recently consistantly overlooked the high profile athletes he recruited for continiously providing publicity for the few skilled profiled people, either good or bad publicity of the stars. Team concepts means you keep everyone involved to provide happiness for the players. He cannot continue to put these high profile freshmen into positions without making sure the others feel they are being rewarded for their efforts and time. All of them are not like Richard Samuel who is willing to play anywhere. But my point how much pub has been given to these kids that are stars but someone with a greater sales pitch is recruited. In Lotts case, Jones and Gaither, In the other case using Mitchell on defense and not the kid that is already part of the defense. I am not saying those are not better than the ones that transfer. You have to keep them happy to prevent attrition. Someone is not doing this on the Coaching staff maybe Richt, maybe Grantham, maybe Bobo. Just seems all the recent player attrition except Thomas is on the defense.. As good a coach as Grantham is….What is the reason? Confusing to me.
TY
March 31st, 2012
6:11 pm
If you are going to bring the “Color” item into this conversation…First look at the total roster and use the math before you label anyone with that monaker..
Hairy Dawg
March 31st, 2012
6:16 pm
On field you keep the good players happy by winning champs and getting them to NFL payday. Off field you keep the pointy heads away from them so they can enjoy Athens parties and lots of ladies. But winning champs means roster manegement and recruiting without restrictoins. Roster manegement means cutting loose the stinkys boys to free schollie and stockpiling talent at Hargraves. Recruiting restrictoins and stopping from cutting loose stinkys players is coming from Adams and his pointy head schooling boys. Someone (like McG) needs to put Adams and pointy heads in place as the unimportant petty school boys they is. Then Dawgs can run Athens and win lots of SEC and BCS champs.
Fair n Balanced
March 31st, 2012
7:45 pm
These drug failing players……..Awful! Awful! Awful! Lack of respect for UGA, CMR, UGA coaching staff, family, fans and God. Disgusting but also really dumb! These guys know the rules. Refusal to obey them is just rebellion. Send em home. Or jail! I’m tired of this.
LCDawg
March 31st, 2012
8:24 pm
I guess Ray Drew looks good at DE
phillip
March 31st, 2012
8:48 pm
Now if this Alabama, everyone would be saying that he got “processed.”
Ronaldus Hyattus
March 31st, 2012
8:53 pm
“players who do not feel the need to help UGA get where they should be ” Tell that to GA State, Ga Southern, Tech and the other, better state institutions of learning.
CMR Bobo
March 31st, 2012
9:47 pm
Looks like the soldia boys are at it again. Maybe we can blame Nick Fairley!
Spike 80DF
March 31st, 2012
10:07 pm
Marc Deas and Lott transferring right now with what’s going on at their positions really smells if you know what i mean…..I think these guys failed the drug test too and they must have been given the option to transfer. Lott would have played a lot and probably a starter next year, Deas would have played a lot until Rambo came back…..
chuck
April 1st, 2012
1:10 am
IF UGA doesn’t sign about 10 early enrollment players along with however many open scholarship positions that have available to get our scholarship roster up to 85, CMR should be fired for incompetence. I’m sick of us playing with a roster of 65 to 75 players.
1%
April 1st, 2012
1:32 am
Lott is a 99% er
1%
April 1st, 2012
1:33 am
Enter your comments here
The Truth
April 1st, 2012
8:19 am
Rambo and Ogletree should have gone to AL. They could smoke weed and not have to worry about failing a drug test.
Chicken Bone
April 1st, 2012
10:01 am
Mr. Lott you will look good in PANTHER blue in the Dome!
I think
April 1st, 2012
3:12 pm
about 30 posters here owe Derek Lott and apology. He’s a human being too.
Anthony
April 1st, 2012
6:13 pm
I have been a CMR supporter since the beginning but their comes a time when a change might be needed. The AD needs to be more involved in the entire football operation. He should force CMR to make a policy that if you transfer to another school it cannot be in the SEC or GA Tech. Other programs have the same policies and it keeps a 4or 5 star recruit out of your backyard that you signed 2 years earlier. QB Mett. at LSU will be a problem when we play them in he SEC champonship. He should have not been allowed to play in SEC. As far as the suspensions, you are what you recruit. Garner must go along with Bobo and a few other associate COAHES. This is Grantham’s last year. He will be a head coach in college or a DC in NFL in 2013. Both Auburn and Clemson have gone out and got great offensive coordinators. Why can’t we do the same. CMR is loyal but needs to do what is best for the pogram. If your coordinators are not in line for the head coaching job where they coach then they should be geting HC offers within 3-4 years. Bobo
has had no offers and it will stay that way. If you look at other programs that are successful mot of the time their coordinators get HC jobs. How many assistant coaches at UGA have become HC at other schools since CMR cam to UGA. Answer, 2 Calloway and Van Gorder. CMR shoud hire a co-coordinator for the offense. 4 months until kick-off. Go dawgs..
LogicalUS
April 1st, 2012
7:59 pm
“enough players to go 12-0 and play in the SECCG”
Good lord, put down the “geogia brownies”.
UGA may back into another SECCG but you can bet the house they will be 0 fer Columbia this season and relegated to becoming SEC West fans once again to derail SC.
The SEC East will be decided in Baton Rouge on October 10th, so everyone go a buy their purple & gold beanies.
01HAWK
April 1st, 2012
11:41 pm
Anthony………………………………….Mettenberger transferred to a Junior College after he left UGA………………………………………………..He could have gone to any school he wanted to if he was admitted to that school.
RCB
April 2nd, 2012
8:59 am
My advice to Mr. Ingram is to leave off the sermons about “surprises” and brownies, and quit being an enabler. Is it too much to ask a football player to follow the law when on scholarship during spring practice?
funny...
April 2nd, 2012
10:15 am
Someone asked where it ends….
when Richt is finally run out of town.
Philomath Dawg
April 3rd, 2012
12:33 am
With us losing linemen and DBs and who knows what else, we might need to take another look at some of the Samoan recruits, such as Fehoka “Big Kahuna” Fanaika. He’s been called the best lineman out of Samoa since Vasi “Tombstone” Papulu. Papulu has been linked to the Dawgs in 2011 and 2012 (to a lesser degree). Don’t know much about Fanaika, but Papulu is supposed to be around 6′6 360 and a total beast. Plus, scooters are popular in Samoa, and he already has training and a license. Lott is not the only Dawg to have a scooter accident in the past 2 seasons, so this should not be overlooked (sarcasm intended)………