Alabama OL Alphonse Taylor suspended after DUI arrest (Update)
Update: Monday, July 18 – 3:40 p.m. ET
A day after his arrest for DUI, Alabama offensive lineman Alphonse Taylor has been suspended indefinitely from the program.
“We are very disappointed any time a player makes a choice that leads to this kind of behavior,” head coach Nick Saban said in a statement. “We are still in the process of gathering all of the details on the situation, but from a football standpoint, Alphonse Taylor has been indefinitely suspended from the team.”
According to TideSports.com, Taylor was arrested after leaving the scene of an accident early Sunday morning.
Original story: Sunday, July 17 – 3 p.m. ET
Alabama offensive lineman Alphonse Taylor was arrested Sunday.
According to multiple outlets, the senior guard was arrested in Tuscaloosa for driving under the influence and was subsequently released from custody on $1,000 bond.
The 6-foot-5, 345-pound Taylor started all 15 games for the national champion Crimson Tide in 2015 and was recently named a second-team preseason All-SEC selection. Taylor also saw significant playing time at right guard in 2014, including two starts.
Despite starting for all of 2015, Taylor saw action with the second team offense for parts of spring practice. Tide head coach Nick Saban said after the spring game that Taylor needs to lose some weight.
“He’s going to continue to be on the second team if he doesn’t get his weight down and get in shape,” Saban said.
While Taylor worked with the second team, redshirt freshman Brandon Kennedy moved to the top unit.
Taylor is the third Alabama player to face charges this summer. Offensive tackle Cam Robinson and safety Hootie Jones were arrested on drug and weapon charges in May, but the prosecution opted not to pursue the charges.
At SEC Media Days, Saban said the two were unlikely to be suspended.
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Sam Cooper is a writer for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
