Tifton - Expect to hear a lot of outrage from Georgia politicians today about the NCAA's decision to suspend Georgia star tailback Todd Gurley for two more games as punishment for accepting money from memorabilia dealers.
"I'm disappointed in the NCAA. That's a little bit long in terms of suspending him. But at least he'll be back for the Auburn game," Gov. Nathan Deal said in an interview after a campaign stop in Tifton. "I'm not aware of anything we can do about it, except to do as I have done: Express our disappointment with the way we have handled this situation."
Democrat Jason Carter said much the same at a campaign stop in metro Atlanta. He told our AJC colleague Jeremy Redmon that the suspension was "harsh."
"You have a system that is broken and you have got to fix it," he said. "That to me shows we have a really broken system that is unfair."
Both Deal and Carter made quite a splash earlier this month when they jumped on the #FreeGurley bandwagon with dueling tweets. And Gurley's dilemma factored into a gubernatorial debate last week, when Carter used the occasion to question Deal's higher education policy.
The University of Georgia's rabid fan base is a juicy target for candidates, and both held large tailgates on campus before the home opener in August. The governor is a Mercer University graduate, but many of his staffers and administration members are Georgia alumni. Carter, who went to Duke University, graduated from Georgia's law school in 2004.
Democratic Senate nominee Michelle Nunn, locked in her own tough fight against Republican David Perdue, offered her take as well:
“I am going to be pulling for Georgia this weekend against Florida and I am thinking they’re going to pull it out and we’ll be ready to welcome him back with excitement and enthusiasm when he’s able to rejoin the team.”
No word yet on who the tailback will be supporting, but rest assured the fight for the UGA alumni vote is in full swing.
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