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The Georgia football team continues to deal with off-the-field issues following an offseason full of legal run-ins. Seven of Kirby Smart’s UGA team members have been arrested since March.
Many of those incidents involve driving related offenses, but the latest was a bit more troubling.
Transfer wide receiver Colbie Young was booked in Athens-Clarke County Jail on Tuesday morning on charges of battery and assault of an unborn child. That arrest stemmed from an alleged altercation between the football player and his pregnant girlfriend.
Police reports documenting the incident say Young went to the woman’s apartment to have a conversation before things became heated. He’s said to have grabbed her and “squeezed her torso and abdomen very hard.”
Bruises on the woman’s body aligned with her story, though the wide receiver is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Though a ruling in the case has not been handed down, Georgia football coach Kirby Smart has laid out his punishment for the transfer.
Kirby Smart suspended Colbie Young indefinitely.
It provided a strong stance to the growing issues that continue to overshadow the Bulldogs’ 2024 season. Having seen dozens of run-ins with the law under Smart’s tenure, many have been begging for harsher punishment from the Georgia coaching staff.
Fellow transfer wide receiver Rara Thomas was dismissed from the team after a pair of serious incidents in the offseason.
Running back Trevor Ettienne, meanwhile, missed the season opener against Clemson following a DUI and reckless driving arrest.
Kirby Smart has attempted to fix the off-field-issues by docking players’ NIL money, but in many cases, it hasn’t seemed to be enough.
He’s taken a stiffer stance on the latest situation. We’ll see if the indefinite suspension makes a difference in the locker room.