Later today, the initial rankings for the College Football Playoff will be unveiled. The Alabama Crimson Tide are expected to be ranked number one on the field. However, they also have issues off the field. On Monday, Deionte Thompson was indicted by grand jury on a count of aggravated assault that resulted in serious bodily harm.
The Background
The indictment is stemming from an altercation that happened in Spring. Thompson is alleged to have participated in a fight during spring break which resulted in the victim having several broken bones in his face.
Also, there is alleged to be a racial component to the case. According to at least one witness, racial slurs incited the fight. There are also reports indicating other witnesses that have provided written statements saying that Thompson was not even involved in the altercation. Thompson’s attorney, Sean Villery-Samuel, says he still hasn’t seen video evidence of Thompson participating in the fight.
When the initial news of the altercation occurred in the spring, Alabama head coach Nick Saban was reserved in judgement. On Monday, he did not move away from that notion. “We are continuing to follow the (legal proceedings). We are not going to make any judgments until that process has been completed.”
The Impact
Thompson is a red-shirt sophomore safety for the Crimson Tide. He has appeared in all eight games and has made 12 tackles on the season. The sophomore has primarily played on special teams this season. However, he has provided depth to a talented defense that has given up 9.8 points per game on the year. The Tide are entering into the meat of their schedule as they face three ranked opponents in their last four contests. That begins with hosting LSU this weekend. Saban has been able to manage distractions pretty well in the past, it will be interesting to see how this impacts their stretch run.
