Georgia sophomore defensive end Jonathan Ledbetter was arrested early Sunday morning for driving under the influence and underage possession of alcohol, according to the Athens-Clarke County jail's online booking report.
The 6-foot-4, 251-pounder from the Atlanta suburb of Tucker was booked on the two misdemeanor charges at 6:05 a.m., and his bond was set at $2,000. He was released at 10:24 a.m.
Ledbetter also was arrested at an Athens bar on March 20, when he was charged with underage possession and for possessing false identification. That case was dropped when prosecutors elected not to pursue charges.
Georgia announced a one-game suspension following Ledbetter's arrest, but first-year coach Kirby Smart said his status for the Sept. 3 opener against North Carolina in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic would be determined later once his charges were dropped.
Smart is scheduled to appear Tuesday morning at the Southeastern Conference media days event in Hoover, Ala. There have been eight known player arrests since Smart took over, though Ledbetter, sophomore defensive end Chauncey Rivers and freshman cornerback Chad Clay account for six of the arrests.
Rivers and Clay are no longer in the program.
Rated a top-100 national prospect in the 2015 signing class by Rivals.com (No. 48), ESPN (No. 62) and Scout.com (No. 91), Ledbetter played in seven games as a freshman and made four tackles.
Bulldogs now No. 2
Smart's Bulldogs moved past Alabama and are now No. 2 behind Ohio State in the 247Sports.com team rankings for 2017 after receiving commitments Sunday from running back Toneil Carter of Houston and offensive tackle Andrew Thomas of Atlanta.
The 5-11, 197-pound Carter is rated by 247Sports.com as the nation's No. 5 running back. He also is the 107th-ranked prospect overall.
Thomas, a 6-5, 310-pounder from Pace Academy, is the nation's No. 10 tackle and the No. 49 prospect overall.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.