Out of Bounds

List is Growing of Colleges Where Mettenberger WON’T be Playing Football

Of course UGA was the first. Coach Mark Richt felt he had no choice. The trust had been broken, Zach Mettenberger had to go. Now the question is, where will Mett continue, rather begin, his football career?

Looks like Valdosta State may be out of the question. It’s not that Mettenberger wouldn’t consider the Blazers or the Blazers wouldn’t consider Mettenberger. But the 18 year old may not have the option to continue his education there. He’s been banished from the town of Valdosta for a year.

Banished?  Banishment is still a punishment? From the entire town? Considering he was arrested by the REMERTON Police Department in REMERTON, Ga, makes the punishment seem even a little more strange.

But alas, it’s part of a plea bargain. The charges of  underage possession, disorderly conduct, obstruction and two counts of having a fake ID were dismissed due to the deal after the more serious sexual battery charges surfaced. Mett will serve 12 months of probation and pay a $2000 fine, and of course, stay the hell away from Valdosta!

Oh, and he’s not allowed to contact either directly or indirectly the victim. Who, by the way, Mettenberger apologized to in a statement after his sentencing. He must either get a mulligan on that one, or apologies don’t count as contact.

He is also not allowed during the term of his probation to visit ANY establishment that serves alcohol. Party’s over for you Mett; no more bars, significantly less choices of resturants, and, worst of all, no more Chuck E. Cheese!

Zach Mettenberger was  a few weeks away from potentially being named the starting quarterback at a major university, and couldn’t contain his ego and feelings of being above the law.  I do hope the fine, the 80 hours of community service, and the banishment (still sounds weird) teach him that he’s not, and keeps him from becoming one of those guys who consistently get their name in the news for these types of situations (*cough* Roethlisberger *cough*).

It’s Spring Break, do you know where your backup quarterback is?

One spring practice. One play from being “the man” on campus. One big mistake.

                            Aramis Hillary                                             Zach Mettenberger

These are a few things UGA’s Zach Mettenberger and USC’s Aramis Hillary have in common. Both a top backup QB for their respective school; both with a shot to win some playing time this spring. That golden opportunity took a huge blow this week for these two players.

Early in the week, Mettenberger decided to get his spring break started right – in Remerton, Ga. He partied a little hard at a bar called “Flip Flops”, and felt it ok to cause a scene. Cops were called, and “Mett” was arrested for disorderly conduct, obstruction of justice, underage possession and consumption of alcohol, and possessing fake identification. Not only that, he was carrying TWO fake ids! Good thinking Zach – always need a backup plan!

Mettenberger’s arrest really clears up any QB controversary at Georgia before it had a chance to develop. Not only was he predicted to challenge for playing time, he was expected to make a push at the starting job for 2010. Now, it looks as though fellow redshirt Freshman Aaron Murray will be the Dawgs signal caller this season.

Hillary, on the other hand, was attempting to earn some playing time in Steve Spurrier’s “cock ‘n fire” offense. Stephen Garcia is the unquestioned QB and leader for the Gamecocks, so Hillary’s goal this spring was to position himself for significant playing time this fall. Those hopes took a big hit Thursday when Hillary was booked for possessing and purchasing alcohol as a minor, as well as drunkenness, when the car he was travelling in was pulled over for doing 10 mph over the speed limit. Hillary didn’t cause any extra problems for the officers, and was released on his own recognizance later that morning.

Most college kids make mistakes such as these. Unfortunately for Mettenberger and Hillary, they are placed under a microscope due to their status on their respective football teams. While both broke the law, both made mistakes many kids make, and they will be punished. A game or two suspension surely awaits them both at the start of the upcoming season. More than likely, both have greatly hurt their chances at making a big splash on the field in 2010.

But also keep in mind, these offenses are forgivable. Thankfully, neither UGA nor USC is dealing with anything remotely as terrible as the University of Oregon, and their starting quarterback.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/11/jeremiah-masoli-charged-w_n_494482.html