Should Evans Be Out at UGA?
Bazemore/ AP
The University of Georgia is making the wrong kind of headlines at the moment. Athletic Director Damon Evans was recently arrested by the Georgia State Patrol, charged with DUI and failure to maintain a lane. The arrest came just before his new five-year contract extension was to take effect. The extension would raise his annual salary to $550,000.
Evans was all apologies at a recent press conference, and has taken responsibility for his mistakes. He admitted that his “actions have put a black cloud over [Georgia's] storied program.”
But will that contrition be enough to save him?
UGA is in an interesting position. Evans, who took over for longtime A.D. Vince Dooley, has helped the department make financial strides and has reduced what many insiders considered to a bloated staff. Moreover, Evans is a former Bulldog football player and was the SEC’s first African-American A.D. Unfortunately, that immediately makes race an issue, and when race is involved nothing is ever simple.
However, UGA must look past that problem. It must rise above whatever negative publicity might attach itself to Evans’ firing.
The 40 year old Evans, who is married with two children, is in more than just legal trouble. He was accompanied by a 28 year old woman, Courtney Furhmann, who was also arrested, charged with disorderly conduct. Evans, who was caught with the woman’s underwear in his lap, admitted that he and Furhmann were romantically involved. These circumstances complicate matters for all involved as personal conduct and morality come into play. Though not against the law, it is certainly something the university must take into account.
“My behavior and my actions are not indicative of what we teach our student athletes,” said Evans. That is, perhaps, a rather large understatement.
Evans also made repeated assurances to the arresting officer that he was not attempting to leverage his status as the school’s top sports figure. But in fact, his words implied the exact opposite:
“I am not trying to bribe you but I am the athletic director of the University of Georgia.”
then,
“I am not trying to bribe you, but is there anything you can do without arresting me?”
and referencing his companion’s resistance to the officers,
“I apologize and don’t want to use my influence but she is trying to protect me.”
It’s understandable that he would want to keep a low profile and avoid what would certainly be a very public arrest, but the State Patrol showed its integrity by treating him as it would anyone else. And Evans’ repeated references to his position layered yet another inappropriate action on top of a night already full of them.
Ironically, it was Evans who represented the program in by recording a taped message that is played at every home football game. The public service announcement reminds fans and players not to drive under the influence. The exact message was, “If you drink and drive, you lose.”
In those words lie justification for his dismissal. Putting aside the personal failings and apparent infidelity, Evans broke the law and the rule he once espoused.
“I feel pretty good,” Evans told the arresting officer. He then laughed, and later stated, “we go through life and we all drink and jump in a car.”
This, of course, isn’t true. Evans should certainly have heeded the warning he once delivered to a packed stadium, because such visible ignorance of his own words cannot be overlook. He drank, and he drove. Now he should lose.
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Perhaps you are hearing it here, first… but, don’t be surprised when Wednesday night’s UGA dui / adultery scandal hits the fan, hard, and morphs into a new Tiger’s tale… as, in, “a la Tiger Woods” scandal.
The new buzzphrase in this story will soon be, “… coming out of the woodwork.” ( Even I didn’t know about this newest potential homewrecker, Ms. Fuhrmann, so, apparently, Damon has been quite busy… once again.)
Expect new admissions from various scorn women who believed that they were actually Damon Evans’ special, secret “…dimepiece.” (Damon is quite famous for privately boasting to male buddies/golf partners, family members and ex UGA football players of, in Damon’s words, his numerous “…white girl conquests…,” as well as bragging about taking advantage of the 24/7 attention he gets from his vast number of female NCAA/SEC groupies, on and off campus.)
As everyone (including wife, KERRI) can now believe what they were warned even years, prior — Damon uses his UGA position to get OUT of trouble, yes, but just as often to intentionally get INTO a little “trouble,” if you catch my drift. His ongoing, controlling and macho behavior within the privacy of their Bogart home virtually dares KERRI to leave the comfy lifestyle and prestige she enjoys and likewise flaunts around Athens and throughout Georgia. I personally witnessed this, often, and could only sit and listen to him spew his old-school, man-of-the-house type statements. Damon knows exactly how to turn on the squeaky-clean switch — but, those clean-cut red ties and black blazers which he sports for his AD appearances could never fully camouflage his true womanizing spirit which dates back years, even past when he “multi-timed” then-girlfriend KERRI while playing for the UGA football team.
Trouble often runs silent + deep within this (in)famous Georgia/New England family — but, money, denial and arrogance usually keep their biggest secrets, secret, in sticky issues ranging from chronic philandering (which shall likely be fully exposed within the very near future, as well as in a prolonged fashioned), all the way to attempting to slickly make room for and lure Michelle Obama’s coaching brother + potential Martha’s Vineyard summer vacation crony / boarder*, CRAIG ROBINSON, to UGA Basketball — of course, all at the career expense of easy target, MICHAEL FELTON… but, I digress.
* ( The Obamas were expected and wooed to stay in the EVANS / BUDD Martha’s Vineyard compound, during their much-hyped 2009 New England holiday stint in Massachusetts)
http://nymag.com/guides/summer/2009/57472/
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/05/04/marthas-vineyard-prepares-possible-obama-vacation/
Attending the news conference, as you know, was “apparently-supportive” spouse, KERRI (BUDD) EVANS… but, in reality, Kerri’s real persona is as an unusually jealous wife who has on her own, now, suddenly updated interests of quietly preparing for her exit / custody grab, and in using smoke and mirrors to get past today and yesterday’s humiliating and eye-opening headlines… not to mention, avoiding the potential broadcast of some embarrassing Cobb County mugshots of her own, lurking about. (please see public record link below)
http://www.cobbsuperiorcourtclerk.org/scripts/courtscr.dll/CriminalDetail?caseno=90903267&source=/CriminalByName
There’s much more, but perhaps this nugget is enough to answer a few questions which have been raised about the TRUE character of these (mistakenly) beloved Georgian figures, as well as to help complete earlier puzzles and discrepancies about what everyone else thought was UGA’s own, Clark Kent.
For now, expect Damon to try to go underground (per Kerri’s super-lawyer dad’s sage advice), so that Damon is not even available to deny subsequent descriptions of indiscretions or to answer to the press. (Did you see Kerri staring THROUGH Damon at the Thursday evening’s presser, or catch her best friend using an iPhone to record the event??) Frankly, “The Courtney Problem” is simply the tip of the iceberg and the AD post is only HALF of Damon’s nightmare.
Apparently UGA agreed that his dismissal was the way to go. I wonder if the firing will forestall the breaking of a larger scandal, or if the whole thing will snowball even though he's jobless.
It's understandable that money makes people free. But how to act if one does not have cash? The one way is to get the loan and just credit loan.