No suspension for Tide player Courtney Upshaw

TUSCALOOSA — University of Alabama linebacker Courtney Upshaw, a sophomore from Eufaula, practiced with the team Thursday hours after he and his girlfriend were released from Tuscaloosa County Jail on domestic violence charges against each other.

Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban said he had discussed the situation with Upshaw and his punishment would not include suspension.

“He knows what his punishment is, he knows what his penalty is, he knows what he’s going to have to do,” Saban said. “He’s never had any other issues or any problems academically, socially or as a football player, so he’s not going to be suspended over this.

“He is on behavioral probation and does have things to do internally in the program to learn from the mistake that he made.”

Saban said Upshaw “was put in a little bit of an uncompromising position and he didn’t handle it very well.”

According to court documents, Upshaw and Kendall Lynn Gryzb were arguing in the student rec center parking lot Wednesday night.

Those documents, filed Thursday morning, indicated a campus police officer saw Upshaw chase after Gryzb, who turned around and yelled at him.

The police report indicated the altercation became physical.

“At this time, Upshaw grabbed Gryzb by the back of the neck and hair with his right hand, and pushed her downward in what appeared to be an attempt to push her to the ground,” officer Rusty Romine wrote in his report.

The girl broke away and tried to slap Upshaw. He grabbed her arm and pushed her away. Upshaw told officer Romine she slapped him because he was talking to another woman.

“He obviously made a mistake in how he handled the situation,” Saban said. “I think nobody feels worse about it than he does.”

Upshaw and Gryzb were arrested Wednesday night after the incident, which took place around 9:20 p.m.

Upshaw and Gryzb, both 19, were charged with third-degree domestic violence harassment. Bail was set at $500. They were released from Tuscaloosa County Jail before noon on Thursday.

After practice Thursday, Saban praised Upshaw’s character.

“Let me start with the fact that this is as fine a young man as we have in the program. Really, a great person,” the coach said. “He really works hard academically. You couldn’t ask anybody to be a better representative of the organization than he is. He really overachieves as a football player and has done a really good job for us and the organization.”

Upshaw played as a true freshman last year. He was a special teams standout, leading Alabama with 18 tackles on special teams.

The 6-foot-2, 249-pound sophomore is competing for a job at the jack linebacker spot. He had 22 tackles last year, three tackles for loss, two pass breakups and a quarterback hurry.

Saban said he hoped the entire team could “learn something from the mistake that he made.”

Linebacker Rolando McClain said he didn’t know all the facts.

“But I know we support Courtney the fullest. It’s unfortunate that it had to happen, especially to him. He’s a good guy,” McClain said. “It happened, but it’s not going to affect us as a team. We acknowledged it, put it behind us and we’ll keep going.”