The University of Florida has a competitive academic environment and stringent entry requirements, though neither of the two were evident in the Tuesday morning actions of defensive end Carlos Dunlap.
Dunlap, 20, was arrested at around 4 a.m. after police found him passed out in the driver’s seat of a vehicle stopped at a red light.
The police didn’t want to wake the sleeping Dunlap in fear that he’d remove his foot from the brake and drift into the intersection. Instead, an officer reached through the cracked window to unlock the vehicle and proceeded to place the car into park before waking him.
Police subjected Dunlap to a field sobriety test after smelling alcohol on his breath.
His performance was described as poor. Dunlap denied breathalyzer testing. This might have been his smartest move.
Dunlap was probably too drunk to remember that he had the Southeastern Conference championship against fellow undefeated rival Alabama in four days.
Or maybe he just wanted to dream about the National Football League draft, where ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. projected Dunlap would be taken third overall for millions of dollars.
Head coach Urban Myer had no choice but to bench his leader in sacks this season after the DUI charge.
The punishment from Myer is more severe than it may appear. Just weeks before, Meyer only benched Dunlap’s defensive teammate linebacker Brandon Spikes one half for blatant eye gouging.
Spikes missed playing in a game against Vanderbilt, a team UF’s recruiting class could likely beat.
All of Dunlap’s likely replacements are veterans that will not compromise the team’s chances in the SEC championship.
While Dunlap and Spikes will still both be drafted, the stupidity stemming from the UF players proves they are blinded by college fame and are not above drinking and driving their careers to a red light before they even get a chance to start.
Bobby Winsler can be reached at bwinsler@gmail.com.