The University of Alabama has been plagued by DUI arrests these past few years. Head Coach Nick Saban has been unpredictable when it comes to handing down punishment to players who have been accused of DUI. As AL.com reports, Da’Shawn Hand is just the most recent of many players to be arrested for suspected DUI.
Da’Shawn Hand was arrested and charged with DUI Saturday morning in Tuscaloosa. His bond was set at $1,000. Further details regarding the circumstances of the arrest were not immediately available.
Alabama head coach Nick Saban issued the following statement regarding the incident: “This type of behavior is not acceptable and we are disappointed in Da’Shawn’s actions,” he said. He continued with, “”We are still gathering information and will evaluate what we need to do in terms of appropriate discipline as we move forward, so better choices and decisions can be made in the future.”
Whether Da’Shawn is guilty of DUI and what his punishment from the legal end will be remains to be seen. However, Nick Saban’s record for disciplining players arrested for DUI has been inconsistent, when viewed from the perspective of them being allowed to play.
Geno Smith was arrested not once, but twice for suspected DUI. The first arrest came in 2013 and second in 2014. Smith played in both season openers those years, against Virginia Tech and West Virginia respectively.
Gunnar Raborn was arrested in September of 2015, and he was suspended indefinitely. He did play in one game that season, against Florida in the SEC championship game.
Alphonse Taylor, who was arrested in July of 2016 and found not guilty in August 2016 was still suspended for the USC opener.
It is unclear what kind of discipline might have been meted out unseen. It is also unclear at this point what discipline that Hand may face, both from head coach Saban and the Alabama legal system.
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