Georgia Bulldogs wide receiver Nitro Tuggle was arrested early Thursday morning on charges of reckless driving and exceeding speed limits, according to Athens-Clarke County arrest records.
The 19-year-old Tuggle was released later on a $26 bond.
Tuggle, a former four-star recruit from NorthWood High School in Indiana, appeared in seven games for the Bulldogs during the 2024 season, catching three passes for 34 yards.
The rising sophomore still has three years of eligibility remaining with the team.
The arrest comes just after the Bulldogs concluded their fourth spring practice on Tuesday, and Georgia head coach Kirby Smart is facing yet another incident involving his players’ conduct off the field.
Smart, who has been outspoken about the need to address such behavior, will undoubtedly have to address the situation yet again.
For some reason, there’s been a disturbing pattern of reckless driving and DUI arrests withing Smart’s program.
Since the tragic fatal crash in January 2023, which took the lives of former UGA football player Devin Willock and recruiting staffer Chandler LeCroy, Georgia’s football program has been embroiled in a troubling pattern of player arrests related to reckless driving, speeding, and DUI offenses.
Shockingly, Tuggle’s arrest brings the total number of players arrested for such incidents to at least 26.
In an effort to combat this ongoing issue, Smart said last July that the program had taken steps that no other program has attempted.
“I can’t tell you the things that we’ve done that no one in the country has done,” Smart said at the time. “Let’s start with defensive driving, requiring certain incoming guys to take that course which, as far as I know, nobody in the country has done.
“Discipline, we suspended a player [Marcus Rosemy] for speeding and driving last year, which is rare. Nobody’s ever done that. That hasn’t controlled it and prevented it, so why are we still talking about it? Because we’ve had guys make poor decisions.”
As part of the program’s renewed approach, Smart has implemented fines on players through the Classic City Collective’s NIL deals for those involved in repeated violations.
“The [NIL] collective has fined players substantially,” Smart added. “We’ve dismissed players that have been involved, and I’m talking about like routine traffic, repeated, repeated violations.
“I actually think the best key is the pocket because you look at what the NFL has done, their model is defined. And if you asked any of our players what they would rather have, they want their money.
“When I say substantial – very substantial – in terms of the hits that some guys have taken.”
Despite these efforts, Smart acknowledges that these actions have not yet fully curbed the problem.
Now with Tuggle’s arrest, it’s clear that the program’s struggles with reckless behavior are far from over.
It should be noted that Georgia is far from the only program who is dealing with these types of troubles. However, the rate at which it’s happening in Athens is extremely alarming.
The question Kirby and everyone wants to know is: Why is this such a reoccurring problem with players in the Georgia program???
