The Truth Sets Jonathon Ledbetter Free
NEW ORLEANS - Jonathon Ledbetter has a hard time saying anything other than the truth.
On Kirby Smart: “I’m appreciative of him. He’s my guy. He can coach. He can’t dance.”
On Georgia: “I am forever grateful to Georgia. I’m blessed.”
Then this: “We are a top four team in the country. I think everyone knows that. At the end of the day they know it, and we do, too.”
He’s right.
That fight is no longer worth fighting. Like Ledbetter, we all learned that the College Football Playoff is not about getting the best four teams. Like many things, one thing is said, and another thing is done. Meanwhile, we are expected to believe our lying eyes.
But that the senior from Tucker said it out loud once more, in his final meeting with the media before his career ends at the Sugar Bowl, underscores what I have liked so much about Ledbetter for so long - he’s honest.
In May 2014, I scheduled a photo shoot for him for another publication… in other words, this wasn’t for me to go write a story on him. At the time he was publicly committed to Nick Saban, Kirby Smart and Alabama.
“No, I’m not committed to them any more,” he told me.
(I should note at the time he didn’t wear the unfortunate glasses he wears today…)
“Does anyone know that?” I asked.
“Alabama does,” he said.
We were just talking. It wasn’t an interview. It was off the record. He was just telling the truth, and not misleading me. He didn’t owe me that. Although we grew up in the same town, went to the same high school and knew many of the same people, Ledbetter didn’t owe me anything - but he was being honest.
Then, after two alcohol-related arrests in 2016, Ledbetter’s career at Georgia was put in jeopardy. More importantly, it shed light on the growing concern that Ledbetter had a problem.
“Certainly we are disappointed and recognize he has a serious problem,” Kirby said in a statement in 2016. “We have provided help for him previously and we are committed to providing whatever assistance is necessary for Jonathan that will contribute to immediate improvement but also ensure that his long-term well-being is secure.”
“I have a problem and have received an incredible amount of support and treatment through the Athletic Department for the problem,” Ledbetter said in a statement at the time. “For that I am thankful. I ask for everyone’s support as I continue to receive additional treatment for this disease and work toward a healthy life.”
Two years later we are two years closer to a healthy life for Ledbetter.
“I try to take it one day at a time and slow down,” he said Saturday. “It’s the little things that start to matter more when you get older. You start to realize they have more input for the big things. If you do those right, everything starts to fall into place. I learned that recently.”
UGA DL D’Andre Walker has grown up a ton in four years, but Ledbetter has probably grown the most of anyone in the program. He’s one of four captains at a place that he not only helped changed, but that changed him in ways that very well could have saved his life.
Is there anything more important than that?
His legacy will be one of personal growth and redemption. In all that’s wrong with college football - and even in the world - Ledbetter is an example of what is right. Perfect? No. Look at those glasses for proof that Ledbetter still has room to get better.
And it has to be noted that what got Ledbetter in so much trouble in 2016 doesn’t just go away. No, it will always be there. It is something he will always have to live with.
But as long as he keeps telling the truth - to the world, and more importantly to himself - he’s going to do just fine.
