TCU quarterback Casey Pachall is fifth in the FBS in quarterback efficiency rating, with 10 touchdowns and just one interception this season. The junior has the arm, size (6-5, 226 pounds) and athletic ability to project as not just one of college football's better quarterbacks, but also a future pro. He seemed like a suitable replacement for TCU legend Andy Dalton.
Too bad he seems to be throwing his potential away.
Pachall was arrested on a charge of driving while intoxicated, and then was suspended indefinitely by Horned Frogs coach Gary Patterson, NBC 5 in Dallas-Fort Worth reported. TCU coach Gary Patterson put out a statement through the school's sports information department, via the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:
"Casey Pachall has been suspended indefinitely from competition. My job as a head coach is to win games, educate our kids and help them with their lives."
If this was an isolated incident it might be explained away as a really bad decision, but it's the latest in a line of self-destructive behavior that could turn Pachall into a cautionary tale, and could ruin any NFL future he has.
[More: Ex-PSU coach Mike McQueary files $4 million whistleblower lawsuit]
Pachall apologized for his actions in early August after reports said he admitted to a Fort Worth police officer that he smoked marijuana and failed a drug test. He also admitted to using cocaine and ecstasy in the past. TCU never suspended Pachall, with Patterson saying Pachall had completed university-mandated drug and alcohol counseling and no further action would be taken, a decision that looks even more shortsighted based on Thursday's news.
Pachall was arrested Thursday morning, only two months after apologizing publicly and saying, "I've learned from those mistakes and I'm still learning. It's a day-to-day process for me of trying to be a better person." An officer saw him fail to stop at a stop sign and hit a curb. NBC 5 said Pachall's blood-alcohol level was estimated to be .17, more than twice the legal limit. His arrest came a little more than 60 hours before TCU was to play Iowa State on Saturday.
Pachall won't be playing against Iowa State on Saturday, and there's no indication when he'll play again. Hopefully it won't be before he cleans up his act.
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