Isaiah Crowell chooses FCS school Alabama State over JUCO route
In a decision that will surely surprise some, ousted Georgia running back Isaiah Crowell has decided to transfer to Alabama State University.
Alabama State coach Reggie Barlow confirmed Crowell’s transfer in a phone conversation Thursday evening. He said the rising sophomore has already registered for classes at the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) school in Montgomery, Ala., and will begin classes on Monday. Pending the outcome of his court case on three weapons charges, Crowell will play football for the Hornets this fall.
“We’re going to show him how we do things and let him turn the page,” said Barlow, the Hornets’ coach since 2007. “We’re giving him an opportunity to start over.”
Crowell was dismissed by the Bulldogs this past Friday, just 13 hours after he was pulled over and arrested at a road block. He was charged with two felonies and a misdemeanor after a 9-mm Luger handgun with a scratched-off serial number was found underneath the driver’s seat of the 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis he was driving. Crowell this week retained the services of high-profile Atlanta criminal defense lawyer Steve Sadow to represent him on those charges.
Barlow said Crowell’s legal troubles were taken into consideration and discussed at length among Alabama State administrators.
“The court system is the court system,” Barlow said. “That will be worked out over there [in Athens]. As far as us, he left Georgia in good academic standing. We know he’s a young man who has made some mistakes and has has learned from them and we’re going to give him a chance to restore his credibility.”
Crowell was Georgia’s leading rusher this past season with 850 yards and five touchdowns and was named SEC Freshman of the Year by The Associated Press. But he was twice suspended from games due to team policy infractions and was unable to play most of the last four games due to an ankle injury.
Barlow believes the Hornets are getting a very special player.
“Well, that’s an understatement,” said Barlow, a former NFL wide receiver. “If you’ve got eyes you’ve seen him. He can play. He’d be a great player on any level. We’ve had SEC players here before. It won’t be a walk in the park. But obviously he has some skills few others have.”
Barlow said there could be some unexpected good fortune in it for the Bulldogs. He said the last three times he has had players transfer to Alabama State from SEC schools, those schools went on to win national championships the coming season.
“That’s no lie,” he said of Alabama, Florida and Auburn. “I think there’s something to it. So tell the Bulldogs to be ready.”
NOTE: In other news Thursday, redshirt sophomore linebacker Brandon Burrows of Marietta has decided to transfer due to a lack of playing time or prospects at Georgia.
Burrows issued a statement through UGA.
“I came out of high school playing the defensive end position in a 4-3 defense which is what I truly love,” said Burrows, who was redshirted as a freshman in 2010 and missed the 2011 season due to a shoulder injury.”The coaching change here led to a 3-4 defense. I have worked with that transition but decided that I want to get back to playing defensive end. I think another program may give me the best opportunity to succeed at that. I’m eternally grateful for the opportunity Coach Richt has given me at UGA and for the fact that he gave me an unconditional release. I know I’ll be hard-pressed to find a group of coaches and players that will develop into the leaders and friends that I have known here in Athens.”
Said coach Mark Richt: “Brandon is an outstanding person, student-athlete and has a wonderful family. We’ve enjoyed having him as part of our program and will provide whatever assistance we can in his transition. I am completely understanding of his decision and wish him nothing but the best.”
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313 comments Add your comment
Jed
July 6th, 2012
12:30 am
What a complete waste of UGA’s resources. Another example of drafting over-hype from pretty much every conceivable angle. This kid is a bum who put little effort into his year here.
Yeah, a waste of time.
Columbus
July 6th, 2012
12:33 am
He has no prior record and people are saying jail time, prison in his future etc. He did not USE a gun, there was a gun in the car under the seat. You clowns are more overly dramatic and more hysterical tabout the deal than a woman. Grow up little criticizing little boys. I mean girls. Haters. He is NOT going to prison. Morons. Ever. He WILL make millions though inspite of your ill-will and hateful comments. Losers.
I dropped my fried twinkie
July 6th, 2012
12:37 am
ARE WE SURE?……………So much has been said that he is or isn’t going to trade the red&black bulldog for the Gold&Navy Hornet I am not sure.
Funny he looks like he is a GT Yellow Jacket. HAHAHAH couldn’t even read the street signs on I75-I85 downtown connector to find TECH but he will be wearing similar colors. HAHAH Holding up the all WHITE dWag and in red and black but now he is in basically TECH colors. i guess it beats Prison(Tennessee, Auburn or Clem&sons) ORANGE.
I dropped my fried twinkie
July 6th, 2012
12:43 am
he is Charlie Brown trying to kick the ball Lucy is holding………….EPIC FAIL in 3……………2…………………..1…………….UGH lying on his back dreaming of what could have been.
the angry hippy
July 6th, 2012
12:52 am
Enter your comments hereWith all the money, coaches and grad assistants that the program has you tell me no one knew Caleb King wasnt going to his summer school classes, or that Washaun Ealey had missed a court date and had a suspended license or that Crowell had a gun in his car!! Your telling me he never showed it off to teammates or Richt never had a serious speech to the team that no guns were needed or tolerated at UGA. I dont expect the head coach to tuck each kid in bed every night but someone on the staff must have a relationship with each player. Thats what Richt promised each one’s mama! “We’re gonna look out for and teach your son to be a man.” Ill bet the prized cattle in Watkinsville is look after better. Richt failed this family!! Even more so as he simply said “He’s a bad seed and no longer welcome here.” If a officer searches a car based on him smelling marijuana and doesnt find any, it seems to me Ed Tolly could get the whole search thrown out. How about standing with the kid through the process like his parents would do. Suspend him for the season for the stupid decision, let him transfer if he wants, just dont wash your hands of him and send him home a felon. In just one year the football dept. made alot of money off this kid. Crowell may be a prima donna but thats what two years of millionaire coaches blowing smoke up his ass (the recruiting process) will do. It was Richt’s job to make the kid humble again.
t2go
July 6th, 2012
12:56 am
Crowell is overrated! He got a good percentage of his yards last year in one game…vs Miss State. He was rarely a factor in any big games that I can think of. I just don’t see this guy making it unless there is a huge turn around in work ethic and attitude…..I think its unfortunate for him…..he blew a golden opportunity..all of yall saying he is gonna be making millions in the NFL are wrong…this kid will be an a good example for how NOT to do things…I doubt anyone will know where he is in 5 years.
I dropped my fried twinkie
July 6th, 2012
12:58 am
What ATHENS is really like to a football player………..
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=444017315618504&set=a.132161103470795.15758.128309870522585&type=1&theater
I dropped my fried twinkie
July 6th, 2012
1:02 am
What is the difference in Crowell and Murray?
Black RB
White QB
All great stats are against the Weak SEC teams and bad OOC teams.
nasty que dog
July 6th, 2012
1:05 am
So many of these “high profile” recruits are not READY for the rigors of big time college football. IC has been coddled since his pee wee days, so why would he think he can conform in one year in Athens. These high school coaches need to be straight up with these athletes, remind them that after you leave home, it is definitely a BRAVE NEW WORLD that awaits you. There are plenty of IC stories that will be reported yearly.
I dropped my fried twinkie
July 6th, 2012
1:16 am
nasty que dog….So many of these “high profile” recruits are not READY for the rigors of big time college football.
That may be true on the football field but it is MORE EVIDENT in the Classroom. The state of Georgia government schools so under-prepare these kids for a college education it isn’t even funny.
Really?
July 6th, 2012
1:29 am
How can you transfer when you aren’t part of a college ?
Blake
July 6th, 2012
1:58 am
Wait a second…..Alabama,Florida, and Auburn players get in trouble and cut from their teams too? According to the AJC only UGA have players getting into trouble.
Blake
July 6th, 2012
1:59 am
Really?
Crowell got kicked off of the team, not kicked out of college.
Blake
July 6th, 2012
2:03 am
fried twinkie,
The difference between Crowell and Murray is that Murray doesn’t ride around at 2:20am in the morning with an illegal firearm under his seat and the stinch of weed in the vehicle. If you have to ask again, then you just don’t get it.
dbc
July 6th, 2012
2:08 am
Watch “Friday Night Lights” again. “You want to win, put Booby in?” And that’s all I have to say about that…
William
July 6th, 2012
2:08 am
We need players. Too many being lost. We will need to recruit 35 players this year to catch up. Don’t know how we will do it. Something has to change. Time for the coaching staff to step up and get to work.
I dropped my fried twinkie
July 6th, 2012
2:12 am
BLAKE…………MURRAY’s indiscretions have been overlooked or forgiven with no public airing of the problems. #1 Murray underage drinking at FSU on UGa’s BYE week. It was posted on the net and youtube.
I dropped my fried twinkie
July 6th, 2012
2:14 am
dbc…….but Boobie Miles does it in Black Nike cause black is beautiful.
Blake
July 6th, 2012
2:14 am
William,
I believe we’re gonna finish strong. We have 18 or 19 with the couple of guys we’ve had decommit. That’s a lot for this time of year. There are always gonna be kids that are gonna be wishy washy and change their minds. We’re gonna have some in our favor and some that go against us. They’re gonna sign about 30 players this year and that’s gonna be plenty. Only about half of them at best are gonna play year one anyway and only about half of those are gonna see signigicant time.
Blake
July 6th, 2012
2:22 am
fried twinkie,
If you think Murray has character issues anywhere close to Crowell, then your brain must be made of fried twinkies!
Former Georgia RB Crowell enrolls at Alabama State - Fox News – BBONews.com
July 6th, 2012
2:25 am
[...] will be eligible to play for the …Former Georgia RB Crowell transfers to Alabama StateUSA TODAYIsaiah Crowell chooses FCS school Alabama State over JUCO routeAtlanta Journal Constitution (blog)Ex-UGA back Crowell to Ala. State after [...]
Jason
July 6th, 2012
2:31 am
@angry hippy, the Caleb King situation was weird. I use to teach at another SEC school and if I had any athletes in my class (not just football players), every two weeks I received a card from the athletic department asking if the athlete had been attending class and was making good progress. Maybe UGA doesn’t have the same system or maybe some professors just don’t like filling out the cards. In the end though, the real problem is that to be competitive schools have to recruit players who normally wouldn’t make it through the admissions office, if they were even interested in trying.
Derailed
July 6th, 2012
2:35 am
Cant believe the amount of people on here who think Alabama State is a D2 school. Shows the lack of intellegence of people who really think they know football.
Blake
July 6th, 2012
2:38 am
Jason,
You’re exactly right. I admire kids that can excel in the classroom as well as on the field, but in order to compete you must get the most talented guys. Some take the opportunity and turn into pretty good young men, but the idiot fringe will always look at it as a jumping point to the NFL and care nothing for themselves or their team members. I think we had a guy here once that was all about recruiting the “student athlete”…..his name was Ray Goff…..how did that work out?
You are blessed
July 6th, 2012
2:59 am
I am praying for you IC.
I dropped my fried twinkie
July 6th, 2012
3:06 am
Derailed……………you are a MORON what is the SWAC? FCS (div 1 AA)
SWAC Standings
EAST CONF OVERALL
Alabama A&M 0-0 0-0
Alabama State 0-0 0-0
Alcorn State 0-0 0-0
Jackson State 0-0 0-0
Mississippi Valley State 0-0 0-0
WEST CONF OVERALL
Arkansas-Pine Bluff 0-0 0-0
Grambling State 0-0 0-0
Prairie View A&M 0-0 0-0
Southern University 0-0 0-0
Texas Southern 0-0 0-0
your lack of a GED is showing now for sure,
I dropped my fried twinkie
July 6th, 2012
3:17 am
derailed people miss used D2 for 1-AA but most said FCS. Most people can’t match the teams to the conference in the FBS out side the ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big10, Pac12 & SEC.
I dropped my fried twinkie
July 6th, 2012
3:28 am
derailed…..NCAA FBS (Division I-A). People were using D2 as meaning Double A(FCS) as opposed to single A(FBS)……… it was a mistake in the use of the term but not meaning a step down to DIVISION 2 really. If you can’t tell that from the post then you are the not so BRITE person.
GwinnettDad
July 6th, 2012
4:45 am
@Columbus – denial is killing a lot of young men. Sounds like you’re a candidate to become a crime statistic, and that it’s only a matter of time. The tragedy of talent lost to selfish stupidity! So many gifts being thrown away for a few trinkets of fool’s gold. What a shame! This is a plague, a historic plague on young men of talent that throw away their future for a bong, or a hit, or a drink, or a lay. IC couldn’t get out of his own way. Nothing any good is going to happen to him after 2 AM. Maybe a hot shot lawyer can play a race card, and get him off. No matter, unless he sincerely changes, he has no future beyond making license plates, if he’s lucky. If you’re lucky. Hope you’ll live to be happy in an orange jump suit picking up trash along side of the road on a sunny day.
Grace
July 6th, 2012
6:13 am
Good luck IC a higher being has granted you a second chance and take advantage of it. You are going to a new environment and hopefully you will surround yourself with people who will make a positive impact in your life. Association brings on Assimilation so please keep that in mind as you start this new journey of your life.
Old Dawg
July 6th, 2012
6:25 am
Alabama schools will take the other state’s leavings. Like Cam Newton.
Old Dawg
July 6th, 2012
6:27 am
“Crowell got kicked off of the team, not kicked out of college”
Why not – is that the type of student UGA wants?
TY
July 6th, 2012
6:34 am
Well, just another “thumbng your nose at the law”. How many years in jail will he have if he is not acquitted of the charges. What will he have learned? What a joke! I wish him well too, but the average citizen would not ever be afforded this kind of opportunity. As far as comparing Crowell with Cam Newton…There is no comparison to their situations.
BobDawg
July 6th, 2012
6:42 am
One person that seems to get a pass with all of our running back troubles is Brian McClendon they RB coach… While the guy is a fantastic recruiter… you have to manage then “stable” once they get to Athens and away from Momma and Daddy. I would be doing random bed checks during the week and waiting for these guys at 3 am in the morning… This wasn’t the first time they were out this late…
RedandBlackDAWG
July 6th, 2012
6:43 am
If an athlete loses his scholarship, doesn’t that mean he is no longer a part of the university? Is Crowell going to pay to stay at UGA as a student? Are there any other benefactors out there that will pick up the tab so he can continue to go to classes at UGA? Is Crowell a student first, and a athlete second? Would he be in school if not for his athletic talents?
BobDawg
July 6th, 2012
6:44 am
… and what about the 3-4 stud frosh who were in the car with him… That had to be a wake up call to the rest of the coaching staff??!!! Hopefully they are puking their guts out right now on the stadium steps….
BobDawg
July 6th, 2012
6:47 am
RED AND BLACK… IC was dismissed Friday… end of story in Athens, right???
Bulldawgman49
July 6th, 2012
6:55 am
Well Maybe this guy will grow up now, It;s a shame that something bad has got to happen before these guys start to do things right . The only bad thing that was said in this interview that all SEC players that have transfer to this team has won a National Championship okay maybe the streak is over but you never know LOL GO DAWGS !!!!!
TeachAManToFish
July 6th, 2012
7:07 am
Are you kidding me? Good riddance.
Mid Town Joe
July 6th, 2012
7:08 am
Athletically, Crowell is a sophomore. Academically, he is a freshman.
tell me again
July 6th, 2012
7:11 am
IC will not make it. He will go to A.S and go into culture shock over the facilities and field and stadium facilities – he will not work as hard out nor will he have the supervision or guidance he had at UGA – in essence, he is going to a place where he knows he can behave like he did in high school and get away with it. If I was his Mom, I would be more concerned with getting him good counseling than good legal representation. The lawyer will get him off the hook on a technicality and only show him that he can beat the rap instead of paying for his mistakes. This kid has learned nothing from his experience. He’ll be working on a farm shoveling cow dung in a rural Alabama town in a couple of years. All because we think foo baw is the ultimate goal in life. IC is a train wreck, and though he may be the Frankenstein monster, we’re the doctor that created him and others like him. Aren’t we proud.
Fair n Balanced
July 6th, 2012
7:19 am
I still think he ought to go to jail for a while. If he did the crime, (Richt sure must think so), then he ought to serve time. He should not be playing ball in the Fall.
Half Century Dawg
July 6th, 2012
7:25 am
Good Luck IC, hope you make the most of a fresh start
tell me again
July 6th, 2012
7:28 am
College football has sold its soul to the devil. If any of us were thinking straight we would quit watching it – shut it down – and start all over. It’s supposed to be a game….. A GAME. Something fun, where whether you win or lose, you have a good time, learn some good lessons and then go home and talk about it and laugh over dinner. Now we have bribes, coaches being told who to recruit , paying off schools, and using prostitutes to lure players. And of course, the media is throwing money all over the place to get TV contracts and bowl championships and all of the other stuff. And what exactly does ANY of this have to do with helping these kids become better people and college students? How about absolutely nothing. These kids are chattel – they are throwaways – we use them like the Romans used the gladiators – they are here to entertain us and amuse us and to make some people a whole lot of money. And we – WE – have allowed this to happen with our infantile desire to win at any cost so that we can go around thumping our chests and claiming to be “champions”. Don’t you see? We, the fans, never “win” anything! We are so stupid – we are living vicariously through these kids- we are such a society of government educated idiots. This sport is not about US – it’s supposed to be about these young men! Don’t you get it? And the answer is – so obviously – NO. College football should be taken off of TV. If you want to see your team, you should have to go to the stadium. The entire atmosphere is artificial and exists to accomplish only one thing – make money. Congratulations to the media and colleges – you stumbled across a huge cash cow and you are milking it for all of the milk that Betsy can produce – and hey, it’s not your fault if the population is so stupid that it falls at your feet to lick up the drops you can’t carry to the frig. Welcome to “amateur sports.”
Dawg4Live
July 6th, 2012
7:28 am
Wishes him the best..
Go Jackets
July 6th, 2012
7:39 am
I guess the Sting(lol) of the Jasper Sanks fiasco had worn off so u dummarses went BACK to Columbus to recruit…..dont u guys EVER learn? Three towns to stay away from when recruiting football players…1. Memphis Tenn. 2. Columbus Ga. 3. Macon Ga. sad to say, but trouble follows almost EVERY time.
The Tide is Rolling and Nothing can stop it
July 6th, 2012
7:41 am
Dream Team!
Norris
July 6th, 2012
7:42 am
I’m glad Isaiah is getting right back into classes. No matter what you “EXPERTS” on here think, it is better that he is going in a classroom rather than sitting at home and possibly getting himself into trouble. I really don’t see Isaiah getting much out of those charges. The lawyer is saying what I said all along. If you looked at his mug shot, you saw a stone sober guy who knew he was in trouble. Maybe not all through the legal system, but by his head coach who more than likely had already given him just one more chance.
I do wish Isaiah well. I hate that he is leaving UGA the way he is. I can’t just write human beings off though. Please get your act together. Not for the chance of transferring back into a big SEC school. Do it for yourself and your mother. Get a degree and have a plan B set. Football is football and you never know when it will be gone. A diploma will last forever.
WnE
July 6th, 2012
7:44 am
re:
TY
July 6th, 2012
6:34 am
Well, just another “thumbng your nose at the law”. How many years in jail will he have if he is not acquitted of the charges. What will he have learned? What a joke! I wish him well too, but the average citizen would not ever be afforded this kind of opportunity. As far as comparing Crowell with Cam Newton…There is no comparison to their situations.
____________
You’re wrong!
Average citizens get first-offender status & diversion programs ALL THE TIME to avoid having a permanent criminal records, this difference is, is that average citizens don’t have their every move tracked on sports pages and on sports talk radio from the they are 17 years old.
You don’t know what you are talking about, if he avoids jail time it won’t be because he is a high profile athlete.
RedandBlackDAWG
July 6th, 2012
7:48 am
BobDawg
July 6th, 2012
6:47 am
My thoughts exactly. Wish him the best, at his new school and hope he get’s his life together. It is all semantics whether or not he got kicked out of school or off of scholarship. It means the same thing for both parties concerned. His days at UGA are over and he may get a fresh start at ASU. I hope he makes the best of it.