The seemingly annual off-season transgressions at Georgia continued Friday, when leading returning rusher Isaiah Crowell was arrested on weapons charges, including two felonies.
Crowell, the nation’s No. 1-rated running back coming out of high school, was charged with carrying a concealed weapon, possessing a weapon in a school zone and an altered identification number on the gun, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
As a freshman, Crowell rushed for 850 yards and five touchdowns last season, despite off-and-on injury and disciplinary problems that caused him to miss ample playing time.
ESPN’s Georgia reporter Radi Nabulsi, citing the UGA student-athlete handbook, tweeted that felonies are punished by immediate suspension from athletic competition.
Mark Richt has already handed out discipline to four starters this offseason: Linebacker Alec Ogletree, safeties Bacarri Rambo and Sanders Commings and corner Branden Smith are expected to miss at least the first two games (vs. Buffalo, Sept. 1; at Missouri, Sept. 8).
UGA is deep at running back, with Carlton Thomas, Brandon Harton, Richard Samuel and Ken Malcome all seeing playing time last season. But Crowell is considered the most talented of that bunch and rushed for nearly more yards than all four of his backups combined.
The Bulldogs did bring in two highly-touted running back recruits in Keith Marshall and Todd Gurley.
