Last month, Alabama head coach Nick Saban made an important note on second chances at a press conference.
Saban expressed that “there’s always a lot of criticism out there when somebody does something wrong, everybody wants to know how you’re going to punish the guy. There’s not enough for 19- and 20-year-old kids, people out there saying, ‘Why don’t you give them another chance?’
“Where do you want them to be? Guy makes a mistake. Where do you want them to be? You want him to be in the street, or do you want them to be here graduating?”
Now, Saban is sticking to his mantra by signing former UGA DT Jonathan Taylor for the Tide’s 2015 season.
Taylor was one of the four UGA players arrested for theft by deception in 2014. The players dodged dismissal from the team by enrolling in a pre-trial intervention program. However, Taylor was dismissed from the team later in the year when his charge for aggravated assault appeared in July. According to reports, there was sufficient evidence that Taylor strangled the female accuser.
All of Taylor’s recruitment seemed to be kept under the radar due to his misconduct that led to his exit from Georgia’s football program.
This past year, Taylor spent the 2014 season at Copiah-Lincoln Community College and had been recruited by LSU and Auburn as well. According to TideSports.com, Taylor had to be cleared from any remaining legal issues before enrolling, as well as clearance from the NCAA.
Supposedly, all charges have been taken care of and the NCAA approved Taylor to join the Tide’s 2015 recruiting class as an early enrollee. Yesterday was Taylor’s first day at Alabama for the spring semester. He will have two more years of eligibility and will be qualified to play in the 2015 season.
Taylor appeared in ten games in his last season with Georgia and recorded ten tackles and one sack. At JUCO, he recorded 44 tackles with 11 for a loss. Jonathan Taylor came to UGA as a four-star recruit and was the No. 7 ranked defensive tackle in nation.
Second chances don’t come easy, but Saban is risking it for this skilled athlete.
*Section Photo credit to Doug Benc, Getty Images; Featured Photo (above) credit to Dale Zanine, USA Today Sports.
