ATHENS, Ga. — The Georgia Bulldogs have started their push toward college football’s 2024 season in earnest, and they did so without wide receiver Rara Thomas, who has been dismissed from the program after his arrest on charges of cruelty to children and battery.
Kirby Smart, entering his ninth season as head coach at his alma mater, said before Thursday’s opening practice for the Bulldogs that he met with Thomas on Tuesday and informed the junior of the decision.
Thomas was arrested early last Friday on felony charges of cruelty to children and misdemeanor battery charges. Georgia announced later that day that Thomas was indefinitely suspended. Thursday’s announcement made the removal of Thomas from the team permanent.
Thomas was released from jail on a $3,500 bond Tuesday.
“I had a chance to sit down and meet with him face to face on Tuesday, which I think was really important, to let him know he can no longer be a part of the football team,” Smart said. “He understands that, and we wish him nothing but the best moving forward.”
Thomas had 23 catches for 383 yards and one touchdown last season, and he was considered one of the team’s leading returning targets for quarterback Carson Beck.
It is the second arrest for Thomas in two years. Soon after transferring from Mississippi State, he was arrested by University of Georgia police on Jan. 23, 2023, on a felony charge of false imprisonment and a misdemeanor count of family violence battery. The charges were dropped when Thomas entered a pretrial diversion program.
The latest charges also are regarded as family violence offenses.
At the Southeastern Conference’s preseason media days event last month, Georgia was voted the favorite to win the conference, which has expanded to 16 teams this year with the addition of Oklahoma and Texas from the Big 12.
The Bulldogs had hopes of winning a third straight national championship last season, starting 12-0 before a loss to Alabama in the SEC title game led to Georgia being left out of the final four-team edition of the College Football Playoff, which will become a 12-team event this year. The Bulldogs bounced back to rout Florida State in the Orange Bowl and wrap up a 13-1 season.
Georgia had six preseason All-SEC first-team picks at media days last month, including Beck, running back Trevor Etienne, offensive lineman Tate Ratledge, defensive lineman Nazir Stackhouse, linebacker Mykel Williams and defensive back Malaki Starks.
The preseason first-team picks did not include a receiver. The loss of Thomas takes away an experienced option in the passing game after the loss of tight end Brock Bowers and wide receivers Ladd McConkey and Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, who have all earned NFL opportunities. Dominic Lovett and Arian Smith, both of them seniors, return as veteran wide receivers.
“We have depth at the top,” Smart said. “I think we’ve got to find more guys that can contribute in that room.
“I’m fired up about that group because we’ve got a good group of protectors around them, a good quarterback to get them the ball, and a good group of tight ends.”
The Bulldogs open their season against Clemson on Aug. 31 at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which hosts the SEC title game each December. They play their home opener the following week against Tennessee Tech, then are on the road for their conference opener against Kentucky on Sept. 14. An open date will precede a highly anticipated rematch with Alabama on Sept. 28 in Tuscaloosa.
AP file photo by Stew Milne / Georgia has dismissed receiver Rara Thomas from its football program after the Mississippi State transfer’s second arrest in less than two full years in Athens.LSU reinstates player
BATON ROUGE, La. — LSU projected starting cornerback Javien Toviano has been reinstated to the football program while he navigates legal issues stemming from his arrest on charges of video voyeurism.
Toviano was present Thursday at the Tigers’ opening practice for the upcoming season, after which coach Brian Kelly provided an update on the defensive back from Arlington, Texas.
“He’s back in football activities, and we’ll kind of get him going again, back in the mix,” Kelly said. “Obviously, he’s going to be a competitive player for us. He played for us last year, and we’ll get him going as he works through his legal matters.”
It is not immediately clear what has changed in Toviano’s case. East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore said the case remains under review. Toviano’s attorney, Philip House, didn’t immediately respond to a message left by The Associated Press.
The 19-year-old sophomore was arrested on July 21 when he surrendered to authorities. He’s accused of recording himself having sex with a woman without her consent, according to an arrest warrant.
The woman told detectives she found videos of the two on Toviano’s iPad that were recorded through a clock with a built-in camera placed near the bed.
Toviano’s arrest warrant stated he admitted during an interview with detectives that he used a hidden camera to record the sexual encounters. The player was suspended the day of the arrest.
As a freshman, Toviano appeared in every game the Tigers played, and he started three of the last five contests.