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Heather Dinich, ESPN Senior Writer
Georgia starting linebacker Smael Mondon and backup offensive tackle Bo Hughley were arrested this week on separate misdemeanor charges of reckless driving, according to booking records from the Athens-Clarke County Sheriff’s Office.
On Tuesday, Hughley was charged with failure to maintain lane/improper driving on road and reckless driving, both misdemeanors. The documents show he posted a total of $26 bond and was released at 10:08 p.m.
On Wednesday, Mondon was charged with racing on highways/streets and reckless driving. Records show he also paid $26 and was released at 12:25 a.m. on Thursday.
According to the Athens-Clarke County Police report, which was obtained by ESPN on Thursday, a police officer saw two vehicles side-by-side accelerate “at a high rate of speed and begin to race one another.” Mondon was in the left lane, driving a 2022 black Dodge Charger, and his teammate, freshman defensive back Demello Jones, was in a 2021 gray Porsche Panamera.
According to the report, the officer paced Mondon at 75 mph in a 40 mph zone and pulled him over. Mondon denied racing and stated that he didn’t know the driver of the other vehicle. Jones then pulled over, though, and told the officer he was checking on his “teammate.”
The officer stated that Jones was released on a citation for racing because he voluntarily pulled over and was not the primary vehicle in the traffic stop. According to the report, as Jones was beginning to leave, Mondon “leaned over to [Jones] and stated: ‘Do not say anything in the group chat.'”
On the way to the jail, Mondon continued to deny that he knew Jones, according to the report. The officer asked Mondon about his remark about the group chat, and Mondon “changed the subject and began asking about my personal life.”
Mondon played in 13 games last season, including 11 starts at linebacker, and he ranked second on the team with 68 tackles. Hughley redshirted last season.
The racing charge is significant, considering its devastating history within the program.
In January 2023, Georgia football player Devin Willock and recruiting staff member Chandler LeCroy were killed in a car wreck in Athens.
Jalen Carter, a former Georgia defensive lineman who is now with the Philadelphia Eagles, was driving with a suspended license during the night of that accident, leading to misdemeanor charges of reckless driving and racing, court documents show.
The vehicle that Carter was alleged to be racing against crashed, resulting in the two deaths. Following the crash, ESPN reported Georgia football players and their cars were involved in at least 10 reports of traffic-related moving violations in Athens-Clarke County in the five months following the incident, according to records obtained by ESPN. Coach Kirby Smart and the university faced questions about the culture within the program.
A school spokesman for Georgia did not immediately return a request for comment.
ESPN’s Mark Schlabach contributed to this report.
