Georgia Football should seek new answer for Marijuana policy

Georgia Football has by far the toughest Marijuana policy in the SEC. With all schools expected to self-police, should UGA change with the times?

Over the past couple of weeks, I have seen the UGA defence struggle a bit without Natrez Patrick. Patrick, of course, is suspended for 4 games after his second arrest for Marijuana. This has led to me thinking a lot about UGA’s current penalty system and whether it’s time for a change.

While sports players are punished with missed games, regular students are also punished if they break the school’s regulations. That includes marijuana, possession of which results in 12 months probation for the student.

This is a difficult subject to write about because a lot of people have strong opinions. However, society and the laws in Georgia are changing in regards to this issue. Just last week, Atlanta unanimously voted to decriminalize marijuana. Other cities such as Savannah are already considering doing the same.

Believe it or not, this is also particularly relevant to our sporting teams. Georgia is competing against all the other schools in the SEC in plenty of sports, none of whom are as tough on this particular issue as UGA. Football is the focal point for us fans, so it’s easy to point at those players, but this policy applies to all student-athletes. As things change, can the University of Georgia really continue to keep treating this drug in the same way, even as everyone else moves on?

The current policy:

UGA currently has the strictest policy in the SEC when it comes to drug offences. A first offence means the player misses 10% of the season (1  game). A second means 30% (4 games) and lastly, a 3rd offence means instant dismissal from the team.