Georgia’s Green Suspended

The University of Georgia’s star wide receiver – A.J. Green – will miss the Bulldogs’ next three football games, the NCAA announced late Wednesday.

That means Green will not play in this Saturday’s pivotal SEC opener against the University of South Carolina (1-0, 0-0 SEC). Nor will he play against No. 14 Arkansas (Sept. 18) or Mississippi State (Sept. 25).

What did Green do?

Honestly not much (as far as we can tell) … he sold his Independence Bowl jersey to an individual who apparently meets the NCAA’s definition of an agent. Green has since given the money he made off the jersey sale to charity – which makes us wonder why the NCAA came down on him so hard.

Green was reportedly also being investigated in connection with an agent-sponsored party in Miami that has landed players at Alabama, North Carolina and South Carolina in hot water, but he has vigorously denied those claims and the NCAA suspension made no mention of them.

“I want to apologize to my coaches, teammates, and the Georgia fans for the mistake in judgment,” Green said in a statement. “I very much regret all that has taken place and the distraction that’s been caused. I’ve learned a valuable lesson and hope others can learn from my mistake. I can only focus my attention now on practicing and looking ahead to getting back with my teammates as quickly as possible.”

Georgia will appeal the suspension – which the NCAA made retroactive to the Bulldogs’ season-opening win over Louisiana-Lafayette.

“Certainly I’m disappointed with the outcome,” Georgia head coach Mark Richt said. “However, we have games to play and that’s where our focus needs to be in the coming days and weeks. Other players will have to step forward and I’m confident they will do that.”

Green, a 6′ 4″, 212-pound junior, was Georgia’s go-to wide receiver a year ago, catching 53 passes for 808 yards and six touchdowns. In his place, senior wide receiver Kris Durham will get the start.

A former star at Summerville (S.C.) High School, Green is a preseason first-team all-SEC selection and is viewed by many as a potential NFL first round NFL pick.

Georgia comes into Williams Brice stadium on Saturday ranked No. 22 by the Associated Press, No. 19 by the coaches and No. 18 by ESPN. Those three polls have South Carolina ranked No. 24, 25 and 23, respectively. Oddsmakers have installed USC as a two-point favorite.

South Carolina, incidentally, is awaiting word from the NCAA on the status of three of its starters – offensive tackle Jarriel King, defensive back Chris Culliver and tight end Weslye Saunders. All three missed the Gamecocks’ season-opening 41-13 win over Southern Miss – with Saunders suspended indefinitely while the NCAA investigates his connection to the Miami agent party.

Saturday’s game kicks off at noon and will be televised nationally on ESPN2.