ATHENS – At this rate Georgia may be out of defensive backs before the season opener next fall.
Branden Smith, who is slated to start at cornerback for the Bulldogs next season, became the latest member of UGA's secondary to jeopardize playing time because of off-field trouble. The rising senior from Atlanta was arrested and jailed in South Alabama overnight Monday for possession of marijuana and two minor traffic violations while driving to Panama City for spring break.
According to the Henry County Sherriff's Department in Abbeville, Ala., Smith was pulled over at 11:30 p.m. Sunday on U.S. Highway 431 for following too closely and having a tag light out. The officer detected the odor of marijuana in the 2007 Dodge Charger that Smith was driving and an ounce of marijuana was discovered wrapped up under a seat during a search of the vehicle, police said.
Smith and passenger Danze Woods, also of Atlanta, were taken into custody at 11:41 p.m. and transported to the Henry County Jail. Smith was released at 2:15 a.m. on a $2,000 bond by G&I Bonding. He has been assigned an April 10 court date in Henry County District Court to face the misdemeanor charges, according to court records.
"I don't know all the details yet, so I don't want to throw anybody completely under the bus, but I'm not thrilled that I'm having to deal with it," said Richt, speaking at a previously-scheduled news conference Monday morning at UGA's Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall. "But when guys make mistakes, two things I think are very important: How we handle it and how he handles it. In due time, we'll let you know what's going to happen with that."
Athletic Director Greg McGarity said marijuana arrests carry a mandatory suspension of 10 percent of competition dates for UGA student-athletes. In football, that can mean up to two games and is left to the discretion of the head coach, McGarity said.
Georgia opens next season against Buffalo but then faces pass-happy Missouri on the road in the Tigers' SEC debut on Sept. 8. Senior Sanders Commings, slated to start at the other corner position, has already been suspended for the first two games after his January arrest for domestic violence/simple battery.
Two other Georgia defensive backs were dismissed from the team in January. Nick Marshall of Wilcox County and Chris Sanders of Tucker (along with wide receiver Sanford Seay) were kicked off the team after admitting to stealing money from the dorm room of a teammate. Their names were added to a list that also included safety Jakar Hamilton and cornerback Jordan Love, who left the team last season due to a lack of playing time.
Smith's arrest is the fourth of a Georgia football player in the last five months. Junior tight end Orson Charles, who has already declared for the NFL draft, was arrested this past week on DUI charges. Outside linebacker Cornelius Washington was arrested for DUI last October.
"Yeah, I’m frustrated," said Richt, who was leaving on a trip Monday with wife Katharyn to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary. "The timing wasn’t very good, either. I’m not thrilled that I'm having to deal with it.”
McGarity said all of UGA's athletes were warned about behaving during spring break in a meeting last week at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education.
"Then each sport has their own way of handling it past that," McGarity said. "I think we're doing enough, but is it enough? Who knows? We've got 600 young men and women in our program and, when somebody steps outside the lines, then we have to self evaluate. Is there more we could have done? At the end of the day I think it comes down to accountability for student-athletes."
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