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Cornerback Geno Smith must sit Crimson Tide’s opener

By David Paschall August 21, 2013 2 min read

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Alabama cornerback Geno Smith got to play in his hometown last season when the Crimson Tide won the Southeastern Conference championship game in Atlanta.

Smith squandered his second opportunity.

Tide coach Nick Saban has suspended the 6-foot, 186-pound sophomore for the Aug. 31 opener against Virginia Tech inside the Georgia Dome. Smith was arrested early Sunday morning in Tuscaloosa and charged with driving under the influence.

“He’s got other things to do in-house, and if he does them, then he’ll be OK to play after that,” Saban said Tuesday. “We’ve never had an issue with Geno. He’s an excellent person. He’s never been in trouble before, and he’s never been in my office before.

“This is something everybody should learn from.”

David Paschall

David Paschall has covered sports at the Chattanooga Times Free Press since 1999 and wrote for the Chattanooga Free Press in the nine years before that. David has mostly covered college athletics, with a focus on the University of Georgia from 2000 to 2019 and the University of Tennessee since 2020. He grew up in Chattanooga and is a graduate of the Baylor School and Auburn University. David has received multiple writing awards and has served as a Heisman Trophy voter since 2003. He has also worked in radio in Chattanooga and has been on the SEC Network's "Classic Rewind" series since 2014. David and his wife, Kelly, have three children — Conner, Emily and Spencer.

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.