A s talk radio and message boards buzz with allegations the Tuscaloosa Police Department has targeted Alabama football players, one thing I can verify: The arrests last summer were an issue during the recruiting season.
I was told by one recruiter, the issue was raised by prospects last year. I was told recruits ask about the opportunities to have fun on a campus; something all students are interested in knowing before enrolling.
The expectation is the Rashad Johnson arrest will exacerbate the problem in the next recruiting class.
It doesn’t matter if the Tuscaloosa police are targeting football players or not, Tommy Tuberville, and others in the SEC West are going to use this issue.
Political tension
Whatever is happening in Tuscaloosa, there remains political tension between the University and the city government. Why? There remains a strain over the University’s plans on the Strip (which were later scrapped or modified), and the Fall 2006 policy requiring freshmen to live on campus.
I know FOR A FACT that there’s a rift between the Tuscaloosa Police Department and the UA athletic department. Having gone to school there and interacting with officers, they all carry a huge chip on their shoulders, seemingly inconvenienced that they have to attend to matters concerning the University. I once had an officer pull me over after a football game (with my wife in the car and pajama-clad infant daughters in my back seat) because he thought I blew my horn at a traffic stop. All he had to spout was how long he had worked for the game that way and that “I was not going to blow my horn at him.” I’m telling you, there is a resentment within that PD towards the University, and whether its individuals or department driven, it’s there. You cannot tell me AU players aren’t going out and having a good time, sometimes crossing the line. Armed robbery is one thing; but kids acting like kids do is another. Frankly, I’m tired of it, and I think the PD needs the microscope turned on it.
I’m more interested in this “political tension” part of the post. Could you flesh that out Cap?