HOLLYWOOD — When Oregon plays Utah on October 23 at Autzen Stadium, there will be an underlying storyline: Darren Carrington’s return.
Carrington, a star wide receiver for Oregon over the past three seasons, was dismissed by head coach Willie Taggart following a DUII arrest in the early hours of July 1. Following his dismissal, Carrington transferred to Pac-12 rival Utah.
“I think it’s always tough because you always want to help young people,” Taggart said. “You know, you don’t ever want to throw them out or kick them to the curb. You want to help them reach their dreams, goals and aspirations, but in the same sense we have rules. And the rules, you have to abide by the rules, and when you break the rules, there are consequences.”
Taggart continued: “Unfortunately, the consequences for Darren were for us both to move on. I wish him nothing but the best. He’s a great football player, and I hope things get right for him.”
Sophomore linebacker Troy Dye understood the decision that Taggart made.
“We all know he meant what he said,” Dye said. “It’s super unfortunate what happened with Darren. Coach Taggart did what he thought was best for the team and we have to follow that and rally behind him. He really wants the best for everybody, whether you’re on our team or not. He understands that it’s more than football at the end of the day, it’s about bettering people’s lives.”
Carrington is already on Utah’s campus, according to Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham. He said the Utes looked at their options when deciding to bring in Carrington, and ultimately felt a level of trust with him for the New York native to make his way to the mountain school.
“We spent a lot of time talking to him, his parents, coaches that I know that have had direct contact with him,” Whittingham said. “It’s very apparent that he’s the first to admit that he’s done some dumb things made some bad decisions, but he’s got the right attitude right now and he’s bound and determined to put this behind him, move forward, try to have a successful senior year and hopefully have the chance to move onto the next level.”
With that being said, the Utah staff will keep a close eye on him.
“You treat players how they deserve to be treated,” Whittingham said. “With his missteps in the past that definitely puts him on a shorter leash.”
Whittingham: “You’ve got to make a decision on all the information you can gather. It’s a judgment call, not always right but I feel in this case it was the right thing to do to give Darren an opportunity.”
When the Ducks take on the Utes in October, it is unknown how the Autzen crowd will react to the potential return of Carrington. Dye isn’t too concerned about that.
“We’re just looking forward to playing the Utah Utes as a collective team,” Dye said. “It’ll be pretty fun to see Darren come back to Autzen and play against him.”
Follow Shawn Medow on Twitter @ShawnMedow