Say it ain’t so, Ramon …

In the world of college football in this day and age, it’s only a matter of time before your program’s number is called regarding run ins with the law.

Hurricanes linebacker Ramon Buchanan is the first UM player arrested since eventual-transfer, quarterback Robert Marve punched a car mirror and ran from police on Halloween night 2007.

While the lack of trouble is commendable (credit to Randy Shannon for running a tight ship), Mr. Buchanan certainly seems like he made this one count. Again, the key word here is ‘allegedly’ – but according to the police report, No. 45 was drunk, disorderly, ran his mouth and acted above the law – and if that truly is the case, all eyes will be on head coach Al Golden, regarding disciplinary action.

Buchanan has since been ‘suspended indefinitely’, which is fair at this point. Innocent until proven guilty should apply – especially when talking about the future of a college student who made a mistake that many have made after one-too-many ‘190 Octane’ frozen concoctions at Fat Tuesday.

According to Sgt. Javier Ortiz and Officer Artice Peoples of the Miami Police Department, Buchanan was drunk and caused a disturbance in the men’s bathroom of the popular watering hole in Cocowalk.

After being told he was under arrest, Buchanan was placed in a chair in the security office and allegedly charged Peoples and “began to thrash his body”, attempting to headbutt Ortiz and spitting on the officer’s palm. After refusing to respond to orders, Buchanan was forced to the ground.

Even more disturbing that Buchanan’s actions- his words. According to the report, Buchanan told then supposedly stated, “I’m a UM football player and I don’t give a f**k what you do. I’ll get out of it. F**k the police.”

If I’m Coach Golden, those three sentences, if accurate, would have Buchanan thrown off my team for good. Again, if accurate and if “allegedly” becomes “absolutely”.

Being a University of Miami football player might’ve made you above the law in the 80s – but not in 2011 and not when this program has spent the past three decades working to clean up its image.

As clean as a program as Miami has run this past decade, this is the type of story that will make headlines — because it’s Miami, because much of this nation hates ‘The U’ and because once a certain stigma is attached, it never goes away.

The University of Florida had over thirty arrests on Urban Meyer’s watch the past several years – but many were swept under the rug or quickly forgotten. A big reason is due to Gainesville being a podunk college town with a small media market. (As if Pat Dooley from the Gainesville Sun is really going to crucify a then-head coach with two titles in three years in a town that bleeds orange and blue.)

Mess up in South Florida and there are dozens of beat writers and national writers ready to make the story prime time. It’s the nature of the best.

No. 45 deserves the right to share his side of the story, but based on this initial report, it comes off like a standard drunk and disorderly with a college athlete who felt they were above the law. Not sure how much more light can really be shed, but time will tell.

Hopefully this is the case of an overzealous cop looking to make something out of nothing. Regardless, the bad press is a real disappointment and hopefully Coach Golden isn’t afraid to rule with an iron fist. Even with the lack of depth and production at linebacker the past few years, no one is bigger than this program.

If Buchanan did what was reported – again, if – then it’s time to pack his bags. This type of behavior cannot be tolerated at Golden’s new-look, old school ‘U’.

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