Former UGA player says he experienced racism and manipulation

ATLANTA — Former Georgia defensive back Otis Reese says he left the school because of racist treatment on campus, and contends that coach Kirby Smart manipulated him to continue playing for the Bulldogs last season after he expressed his intention to transfer.

Reese transferred to Mississippi in January after two seasons at Georgia and is awaiting a ruling from the NCAA and Southeastern Conference Commissioner Greg Sankey on his request for a waiver to play immediately.

Georgia, which is ranked fourth in the country, denied the allegations and said it would share its full response to Reese’s waiver application if he is granted permission.

Reese released a statement Tuesday night on Twitter expressing frustration that his waiver had yet to be granted. He addressed it to the NCAA, the SEC and Sankey.

Reese said he decided to transfer because his 1½ years at Georgia “took a devastating mental toll on me. From my first moment I stepped on campus, it was not what I expected. The racist events that I kept experiencing weighed on me heavily and seemed never-ending.”

He said he told Smart on Oct. 4 of last season that he planned to leave Georgia. The Bulldogs were 4-0 at the time and ranked third in the country heading into a game at Tennessee the next day.

“I was led to believe by Coach Smart that if I finished the season and not ‘ let my team down’ as he requested, he would support both my decision to transfer and my request to be immediately eligible,” Reese said.

He added that a copy of the text message he sent to Smart on that day has been forwarded to the NCAA, showing he “was manipulated to play the very next day, when I truly was at my darkest moment.”

Smart declined comment on Reese’s allegations but denied that he was standing in the way of him playing right away for Ole Miss, pointing to SEC rules that mandate anyone transferring from one conference school to another must sit out a season.

Another Georgia transfer, offensive lineman Cade Mays, is still awaiting a decision on whether he can play right away for Tennessee.