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Alabama Football: Da’Shawn Hand arrested for suspected DUI

By Matthew Bartlett

TAMPA, FL - JANUARY 09: Defensive lineman Da'Shawn Hand #9 of the Alabama Crimson Tide reacts during the first half against the Clemson Tigers in the 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship Game at Raymond James Stadium on January 9, 2017 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
TAMPA, FL - JANUARY 09: Defensive lineman Da'Shawn Hand #9 of the Alabama Crimson Tide reacts during the first half against the Clemson Tigers in the 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship Game at Raymond James Stadium on January 9, 2017 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /
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According to a report from AL.com, Alabama football defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand was charged with a DUI on Saturday morning in Tuscaloosa.

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With fall camps just around the corner Nick Saban wants his players to be fully focused on football. He doesn’t want to deal with off field issues. Saban won’t have that luxury any more after Hand was arrested on Saturday.

It’s been a relatively quiet offseason for the Crimson Tide. Even Saban’s annual address at SEC Media Days seemed a bit more mellow. Up to this point they’d managed to have a distraction-free summer. Now they’ll have to address an offseason issue from one of their starting defensive studs.

Hand has waited his turn to start on the defensive line at Alabama. A 5-star recruit and the No. 1 player in Rivals Top 100, the Virginia native could have stepped into a starting role just about anywhere. Instead he elected to join the Tide and play behind NFL-caliber players like first round pick Jonathan Allen. Hand was selected to the Lombardi Award preseason watch list, an award given to the best lineman in the nation, of which Hand is certainly in the running.

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In three seasons in Tuscaloosa, Hand has tallied six sacks, 11.0 tackles for a loss and one forced fumble. Hand is a big bodied, freakish athlete that will terrorize even the best offensive lineman in the SEC.  He figures to step into a much more prominent position on the defensive front in 2017, assuming of course that he can stay out of trouble.

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