UPDATE III: Georgia TB Isaiah Crowell dismissed after weapons arrest

Georgia tailback Isaiah Crowell, who rushed for 850 yards as a freshman last season, was expected to start for the Bulldogs this fall.

Georgia tailback Isaiah Crowell, who rushed for 850 yards as a freshman last season, was expected to start for the Bulldogs this fall. (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)

UPDATED: CROWELL DISMISSED FROM TEAM

ATHENS – Georgia tailback Isaiah Crowell has been dismissed from the team following his arrest early Friday morning on three weapons charges.

Georgia coach Mark Richt made the announcement in  short news release sent out by UGA Sports Communications at 5 p.m. on Friday.

“We have a dedicated and committed group of men who are working hard to prepare for the coming season,” Richt said. “Our total focus will be directed toward the team and this effort.”

Crowell, a sophomore from Columbus, was booked at 3:37 a.m. on charges of possessing a concealed weapon, having a weapon in a school zone and having an altered ID mark on that weapon. His bond, originally set at $7,500, was raised to $9,500 late Friday morning. According to booking records, Crowell was released early Friday afternoon.

According to the police report, four other Georgia football players were also in Crowell’s vehicle, including three 2012 freshman signees. Those persons were outside linebacker Josh Harvey-Clemons, wide receiver Blake Tibbs and defensive back Sheldon Dawson. Also present was sophomore defensive back Quintavius Harrow. None of the four were charged.

According to Athens-Clarke police spokesperson Hilda Sorrow, Crowell was arrested at a “vehicle check-point” — or road block — on East Campus Road at Green Street at 2:20 a.m. Friday. Officer Kathryn Thornton reported smelling the odor of marijuana in Crowell’s silver four-door 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis. Crowell gave consent to search the vehicle, himself and four other  occupants. No marijuana was discovered but a black 9-mm Luger handgun with an altered serial number was found under the driver’s seat. Crowell was immediately arrested and taken to jail.

According to the police report, Crowell denied knowing the gun was in the car and said people drive the vehicle. He. The owner of the vehicle is listed as Crowell’s mother Debbie. The report also indicted that the five were coming from the  nightclub Aftermath, where Crowell said the smell of marijuana originated.

The police report also indicated that Crowell has no criminal history.

Crowell’s mother, Debbie, was clearly distressed when reached by telephone Friday. “I don’t want to talk to a reporter right now,” she said. “”If I want to talk to anybody it’s God.”

Crowell, who came to UGA in 2011 as the No. 1-rated running back prospect in America, was slated to start for the Bulldogs at tailback this season. He rushed for 850 yards and 5 touchdowns as a freshman despite missing playing time due to suspensions and injuries. He was benched for the first quarter of the Vanderbilt game on Oct. 15 as a punishment for an undisclosed disciplinary infraction and he was suspended for the Nov. 5 New Mexico State game, reportedly for failing a drug test.

With Crowell out of the fold, Georgia will turn to redshirt sophomore Ken Malcome and senior Richard Samuel to carry the load early on, along with junior Brandon Harton. The Bulldogs also signed Keith Marshall of Raleigh, N.C. — the top running back prospect in the country, according to 247Sports.com — and four-star prospect Todd Gurley of Tarboro, N.C., to play running back. Marshall enrolled in January.

Marshall and other running backs were offering support for Crowell via Twitter.

“Pray for Isaiah & that he will learn from his mistake,” wrote Marshall from @Truthh4.

Derrick Henry, a highly-touted running back prospect from Florida who once was committed to Georgia, also weighed in via his Twitter account, @KingHenry_2: “Pray for Crowell instead [of] bashing him . . . because everyone wasn’t raised the same. . . . So everyone should just pray he sees a better way”

More information to come when it’s available.

1,565 comments Add your comment

Buckeye

June 29th, 2012
9:32 am

You can take the boy out of the hood but you can’t take the hood out of the boy.

Stay classy in your recruiting, dogs.

Maxwell the chihuahua hunter

June 29th, 2012
9:32 am

Sounds like Leggs is a proud CC grad.

Dawg grows human hand to scratch his head!!!

June 29th, 2012
9:32 am

He must be armed at all times, he has to protect himself from all of the people attempting to kiss his backside throughout the day, do his homework for him and light his J’s for him.

In the famous words of GW Bush: “fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can’t get fooled again.”

Kick him to the curb is my only real comment on this one.

thomas

June 29th, 2012
9:32 am

Sources say that Crowell hurt his ankle while running away from the cops.

zincc

June 29th, 2012
9:32 am

It is amazing how these supposedly smart individuals can be so stupid. This young man had a good life waiting for him, if he just kept himself from trouble. Well, his lack of self-control and stupidity just cost him that! What an idiot!!!

DooDa

June 29th, 2012
9:33 am

OK …… really who out there thinks it was something other than a gun. UGA needs to send him “packing” in the “heat” of the night. What a joke. I bet his Mama and her Baby Daddy proud o him.

Cobb Dawg

June 29th, 2012
9:33 am

“Dog Gone It”, have you ever set foot on ANY college campus? Or are you the typical Bama/AU fan who calls the 8th grade “my senior year”? The state of Alabama does have professional football…..well a pay-for-play system for college football anyway.

Big Crimson 75

June 29th, 2012
9:34 am

Another black-eye to the SEC thanks to the dwags.
Can We get this sorry excuse for an Institution of Higher Learning out of the Conference already??!!

Kramer

June 29th, 2012
9:34 am

Jacksonville State sounds like a good location for this punk. Or the Georgia State Correctional Facility. Either one, it is time for him to go.

TampaGator

June 29th, 2012
9:34 am

To you saying this may lead to Henry recommitting. That is like saying that maybe, if my house burns down, I will have a place to put up my tent. This is a negative for recruiting RBs….not a postive. This is NEGATIVE for the Georgia program….and does not make recruits…..at any postion WANT to attend Georgia now. I don’t think depth chart was the issue with Henry. He is a 5-star RB. As he said, he just committed too early and wanted to take a closer look at other programs and be honest with Georgia. And Henry has already said that Georgia has not been eliminated from consideration. But the Crowell incident just might cause him to do that….not the other way around. Richt simply has to recruit more “character” and shy away from the Crowells of the world. Many wondered why Wilder went to FSU over Florida when he always wanted to be a Gator. Well….you now know…..character issues.

John Gruden

June 29th, 2012
9:35 am

Time for John Gruden to be coach at UGA.

HammerDawg

June 29th, 2012
9:35 am

Good. Couldnt be happier for him. Maybe someone with heart and a brain will carry the load

BRYANT

June 29th, 2012
9:36 am

Remember CMR had 10 players line up with no tailback. Can hardly type for laughing. There is still no tailback. Now tell the truth dog fans would you really rether have Saint Mark or Lord Saban as your coach? RTR

Parent

June 29th, 2012
9:36 am

UGA..have the worst Fans ever….Please keep in mind this is someone child and if you are a parent you don’t know what your child will do or have done and with that said …Pray for him and his family

Kramer

June 29th, 2012
9:36 am

Simplythetruth

June 29th, 2012
9:32 am
Don’t worry bout it. Make a “small” donation to Obama’s campaign, Holder threatens ATF, Crumbwell is home free.

It’s sad but, it is probably true. It would work. God help us.

Nothing Could Be Finer

June 29th, 2012
9:36 am

jackson

June 29th, 2012
9:32 am

I think it’s it time for UGA to stop recruiting in GA

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Post of the day

Atlanta Native

June 29th, 2012
9:37 am

I knew there was a reason I don’t like football. I mean, you don’t see the first chair violinist of the UGA Symphony Orchestra being caught with drugs and weapons.

bye

June 29th, 2012
9:37 am

Seriously! Can’t they focus more on the season and being a good influence instead of getting arrested! Sick and tired of this!
Bye Crowell and any other player who decides to act stupid! Don’t care if we lose all of our games…as long as we have some integrity.

Nothing Could Be Finer

June 29th, 2012
9:38 am

“I don’t know. I sort of always liked playing them that second game because you could always count on them having two or three key players suspended.”

-Spurrier

Chris

June 29th, 2012
9:38 am

Everybody is on the Beat up Isaiah bandwagon for carrying a weapon at 3:37 am…….what was he doing in the first place that led to police searching Isaiah…….? If he isn’t perceived as a threat then the cops wouldn’t have bothered him regardless of what time of day or night it was and obviously he was carrying to protect himself, trust he didn’t just buy this gun, it had to be in his possession for quite sometime and you never heard of him doing anything ignorant with the gun. I can see if he fired shots in the air or something stupid like that but walking down the street, coulda been coming from a party, Auburn football players getting shot up over a woman, man until you know what the scene is like for college athletes, then you will never get a grip or understand that people have bulleyes on you sometimes………IT TAKES ONE NIGHT to night have your pistol on you…You can’t control who is watching you

St. Richt

June 29th, 2012
9:39 am

bye-

Richt and your ilk lost integrity a LONG time ago. Please leave and join the Ivy League…this is too common an occurence for the self-annointed “Harvard of the South”.

thesmad

June 29th, 2012
9:39 am

he was a puss anyway he had to come out if he broke a nail. what a wasted pick

I dropped my fried twinkie

June 29th, 2012
9:39 am

@CHRIS……………..Tech Students getting Mugged is very different than CROWELL Smoking Dope and driving with a gun.

To have a Conceal & Carry Permit you have to be 21 have a background check and the gun has to be registered. If i were a Tech student I would carry a gun too, but I would know if I were caught I would be in trouble. Better alive and in trouble than Dead.

What Crowell was doing is very different. Most tech Students jumped at night are cause they are going home from working in Labs on school work and going home.

J.D.

June 29th, 2012
9:39 am

You can’t make this stuff up. For the local police arresting UGA football players must be like shooting fish in a barrel. Only easier because these DawgFish run toward bad choices.

hmm

June 29th, 2012
9:40 am

I think it’s a bit hypocritical that you include a blog on football arrests, but there was nothing about the soccer player who stole tater tots back earlier this year.

corey simon

June 29th, 2012
9:40 am

@ Sloan

I sure would like to know where u get your information from (just conjecture) Talking about Mark and his mentor not being able to judge character. I guess u are the man for the job huh! UGA would not be able to field a team if you were.

TampaGator

June 29th, 2012
9:40 am

Chris…..

It is perfectly legal to carry a weapon is you have a permit…..you just apply for one and have good reasons for it. It is illegal to carry a weaon without a permit….which Crowell did. And Athens….dude….is not the same crime zone as downtown Atlanta. Did you skip logic 101 at Georgia….or whatever school you attended. You trying to justify Crowell’s actions is….well…..as I stated in my previous post…..just stupid….stupid as Crowell carrying a illegal weapon.

djtruk

June 29th, 2012
9:40 am

It must be summer the DOGS are in heat

secguy

June 29th, 2012
9:40 am

Let the Big DAWG shoot

truedawg

June 29th, 2012
9:40 am

Enough…To quote Waterboy..”Cut his ass” What a waste of tallent! Go Dawgs!! time to reload.

EELBB

June 29th, 2012
9:40 am

How much dirt can you put under the UGA rug? How many UGA football players will be in trouble before something is done about it?

Not Richt's fault

June 29th, 2012
9:41 am

My son just went to the football camp at UGA. I can tell you that CMR practices what he preaches, and he is not at fault for this kid’s actions. Last year was a warning, but this is Crowell’s death sentence at UGA. Mark will pray with this kid and set him free. It will be very hard for another program to take him now. Only God can save him, not anyone of us… Ya’ll remember Norman Cowins from the late 80’s??? He was a beast out of Douglas County High School, but cocaine did him in.

NJ Dawg

June 29th, 2012
9:41 am

Wow, the racist invective in these comments is appalling. Crowell is an idiot, and the sooner he’s kicked off the team and expelled from the university, the better, but at least he doesn’t make me embarrassed to be a UGA alum. Those of you spouting racist garbage should be ashamed of yourselves.

MichaelP

June 29th, 2012
9:41 am

Cut him loose.

Godawgs75

June 29th, 2012
9:41 am

Dear Parent,
This is an adult, not a child. He made a decision and now he has to pay the price. Everybody is a child, even murderers, so take that excuse somewhere else. He has been in trouble before, and as a football player he is held at a higher level and he knew. Go back to your own blog!!

McDonut

June 29th, 2012
9:41 am

This IS Richt’s fault. He didn’t hug Crowell enough or sing Happy Birthday to him. You clowns defending this kid are priceless.

Alter ID

June 29th, 2012
9:41 am

The Alter ID is the attempt to alter or to alter the identification on a firearm in an attempt to conceal the identity of the firearm. In other words, he was in possession of a firearm that the serial number had been scratched out or had marks indicating an attempt was made to scratch out the serial number, or it had a serial number on it that was stamped by the manufacturer.

bill john

June 29th, 2012
9:42 am

You can take the rat out of the hood….. eh, you know the rest.

sapelodawg

June 29th, 2012
9:42 am

Lack of institution

Vinings Dawg

June 29th, 2012
9:42 am

Co smelled something funny, gun under the seat, altered ID on the gun, Wow… Dude, it’s all about the company you keep. You had every chance. I genuinely feel bad for but you made a giant poo sandwich so now we must all take a bite. You here this Boo M.? It’s your time. Lock it up and keep the guys in line.

Dwight

June 29th, 2012
9:43 am

To all my “dog” friends, WHERE IN THE HELL DO YOU GUYS FIND THESE BALL PLAYERS. “ROLL TIDE’

Moobs Grantham

June 29th, 2012
9:43 am

Time for the Choke sign!

TDawgMoney

June 29th, 2012
9:43 am

have we ever gotten a “quality character kid” from Carver-Columbus?

Vinings Dawg

June 29th, 2012
9:44 am

Hopefully this will put everyone else on lockdown and this can maybe be the end of the UGA discipline problem! GD better be. It’s starting to wear on all of us.

WDE

June 29th, 2012
9:44 am

Here we go again, classic CMR team. Should be top 5 this year but other issues will keep UGA from success. As an Auburn fan I am starting the keep CMR fan club.

TampaGator

June 29th, 2012
9:44 am

Chris…..

You JUST don’t get it. You CAN’T carry a weaon without a permit. Crowell did NOT have one. Dude….and I don’t say this very often…..Shut up. You trying to make this a race issue is typical. It is the duty of the Athens police….or campus police…..to check out anyone walking around at 3 in the morning without obvious purpose….black, white, yellow, whatever. Have you asked yourself…..if Crowell is so scared of his surroundings in Athens that he has to carry an illegal weapon…what the hell was he doing out at 3 in the morning in the first place. The kid was up to no good. Period.

7576DAWG

June 29th, 2012
9:44 am

If Crowell is treated like most people would be treated he will spend some time behind bars. When something as serious as this happens he should not only be kicked out of Georgia he should not be allowed to attend any college. I wonder if he thought he was a BIG MAN carrying a weapon. If the ID was changed it is probably a gun.
Richt won’t have to even get involved with this one. Within two days Adams and McGarity will announce he has been kicked out of UGA.
Didn’t Auburn just lose a great running back because of something like this?

Big Time

June 29th, 2012
9:44 am

Time to transfer to Tech!!

Vinings Dawg

June 29th, 2012
9:45 am

TDawg. Jarvis…

Cobb Dawg

June 29th, 2012
9:45 am

“Big Crimson 75″, people like you make me lauch (at people like you). Kids from the state of Georgia only go to Awbarn or Alerbammer because they can’t get into UGA. And the only reason to go to either of those schools is to watch paid players perform on “Satadays”. Awbarn and Alerbammer are nothing but football teams with third-rate technical schools attached. And players at the Alabammer schools do the same things that players at other schools do. It’s just that when they get caught they get escorted back to their free apartments, after signing an autograph for the cop, rather than arrested.