Will Alabama’s Da’Shawn Hand play against Florida State?

Alabama pre-All SEC first team DE Da’Shawn Hand was arrested on Saturday for a DUI. Details of how much was in his system have not been released as yet.

Details of how much was in his system have not been released as yet.

To say the least, Alabama’s head coach Nick Saban was not pleased. “This type of behaviour is not acceptable and we are disappointed in Da’Shawn’s actions“, he said.

However, the next thing worried The SEC Football Blog: “We are still gathering information and will evaluate what we need to do in terms of appropriate discipline as we move forward, so better choices and decisions can be made in the future.”

Having said that, I couldn’t help but worry that Nick Saban won’t take this DUI as seriously as the rest of the country’s coaches would.

The reason why? Saban – under the guise of how he loves to give players who run into the law ‘second chances’ – has a reputation of giving players (especially those that are important to him) reduced sentences so they can play in big games.

Alabama’s first game of the season – if you haven’t heard – is against Florida State in Atlanta in one of the biggest games of the season. And in one of the biggest games of the season, the Crimson Tide is going to need their All-SEC defensive end – who had 21 tackles, 1 sack and 1 forced fumble last year but really hasn’t matched up to his five-star billing since his arrival in Tuscaloosa.

We know one thing for certain: Hand will use all the promises in the world and excuses in the world to attempt to avoid Saban’s full ire – and a reduced suspension and start some of the Florida State game.