South Carolina football rival has yet another offseason arrest

This offseason has been loaded with legal trouble for a couple of South Carolina football rivals.

Both the Georgia Bulldogs and Clemson Tigers have had at least three arrests since the end of the 2023 season, and early Friday morning saw UGA suffer another.

According to a report from DawgsHQ's Jake Rowe, Georgia Bulldog wide receiver Rodarius "Rara" Thomas was arrested and booked during the 3:00 AM hour on Friday morning. At least three charges have been filed against Thomas, two for battery and one for cruelty to children. The battery charges are misdemeanors, while cruelty to children is a felony. According to Rowe's report, all three charges have been tagged with "family violence" designations, indicating domestic violence.

This is not Thomas' first domestic violence issue as, shortly after his transfer from Mississippi State to Georgia, he was arrested on similar issues but had his charges dropped.

During his first season at UGA, Thomas logged 23 catches for 383 yards and 1 touchdown, but the projected starter's status is unknown for his second season in Athens.

Thomas joins running back Trevor Etienne (DUI/reckless driving/failure to maintain lane/affixing materials that reduce visibility of windows and windshield), linebacker Smael Mondon (reckless driving/racing on highways, streets), offensive lineman Bo Hughley (reckless driving/failure to maintain lane/improper driving on road), defensive back Demello Jones (reckless driving) and wide receiver Sacovie White (reckless driving/driving wrong way on one-way roadway) as arrested Georgia players this offseason.

In the past two years, Kirby Smart's program has had at least 12 arrests, and at least 10 of them have been traffic-related. The ongoing problem has not seemed to let up at all despite the tragic deaths of recruiting staffer Chandler LeCroy and offensive lineman Devin Willock. According to Coach Smart at SEC Media Days, "fines and suspensions" have been levied against some of the players arrested, but he did not provide details.