Richt vows crackdown on unlicensed Dogs after Vance arrest

By Tim Tucker

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

ATHENS -- Georgia offensive lineman Vince Vance was arrested Wednesday morning for driving without a license, prompting coach Mark Richt to declare a crackdown to ensure that all of his players have valid, unrestricted driver's licenses.

"I'm highly frustrated," Richt said Wednesday night, "and I've taken things a little more into my own hands."

He later added: "It's a real pain in the rear, quite frankly."

Vance was pulled over by UGA Police for running a red light and was arrested when the officer determined he did not have a valid driver's license, UGA Police Chief Jimmy Williamson said. Vance, 22, has a learner's permit but violated the conditions of that permit by not having a 21-year-old licensed driver in the vehicle with him,  Williamson said.

Vance spent about two hours in the Clarke County Jail before he was released on $1,000 bond. He was at practice later Wednesday.

His playing status for Saturday's game against Florida will not be affected by the incident, Richt said.

Vance became the second UGA player arrested this month on traffic-related charges. Backup cornerback Vance Cuff was arrested Oct. 13 for driving a motorized scooter on a sidewalk with a suspended license. Richt suspended Cuff for one game.

Richt said Wednesday night that he'll take steps to check on the driver's license status of every UGA player.

"Now my feeling is every single Georgia football player must have not only a valid license but a Class C [unrestricted] license," Richt said. "Now I can't snap my finger and get it done overnight.

"It's one thing to get stopped and get a [traffic] citation. I don't think anybody gets too bent out of shape. But if a guy gets stopped and gets arrested, then it's a more serious matter. These are misdemeanor issues, but it's an arrest nonetheless and it's embarrassing to the program and to them.

"So we've got to do a better job, and I'm taking the blame for not making certain these things were taken care of. But we're going to get it straight."

He said players must take responsibility, too.

"That's part of growing up, part of college, part of what we're trying to help these guys understand," he said. "They got to grow up, be mature enough to handle your responsibilities, so we don't have to deal with this. But we have got to make sure we're monitoring these things so we don't have these things blow up on us."

Vance has started two games this season and was working with the first-team offensive line in practice last week. Richt would not say if Vance will start Saturday, but said the decision won't be affected by the arrest.

Vance was unavailable for comment Wednesday, as usual for most of Georgia's offensive linemen.

Asked why Vance still has a learner's permit at 22, Richt said: "That's a good question, a very good question. ... Because he didn't take care of it. He doesn't have a car, and he claims that he never drives unless [he has] someone 21 [with him]. ... But he drove by himself [Wednesday] and had a traffic violation, and when they ran it he broke the law."