The Maurice Washington saga continues to loom in the background for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Washington was scheduled to appear in court in California on Tuesday, but for the third time this year his court date was postponed. That has led to more and more people picking up on the story and criticizing second-year Nebraska head coach Scott Frost for his handling of the situation.
Nebraska RB Maurice Washington's California court case pushed back yet again #collegefootball https://t.co/eT2zrsqq7a
— CollegeFootballTalk (@CFTalk) September 4, 2019
Washington was originally scheduled to be in court on June 12, but that date was pushed back to July 25. His case was delayed once again shortly before the second scheduled date, and this is now the third time that Washington has had a preliminary court appearance delayed. He is now scheduled to appear in a Santa Clara County courtroom on October 17, as six-week deferments seem to be the trend.
Scott Frost decided that Maurice Washington's pending felony child pornography charge warranted a suspension for one whole half.
On the big-picture issues that worry me about a decision as soft as that from Frost: https://t.co/3toaurodOq pic.twitter.com/g1ejTmbcX7
— Connor O'Gara (@cjogara) September 2, 2019
The continued delays in regards to the Washington case have shined a negative light on Frost. Washington is being charged with a felony and a misdemeanor and the details of the case are pretty disturbing. In response, Frost only decided to suspend Washington for the first half of Nebraska’s season opener against South Alabama, but he has said that the running back may face additional punishment based on the outcome of the court case.
Washington is listed as Nebraska’s starting running back, and he was one of the stars of Frost’s first recruiting class. Washington was the third-highest rated recruit Nebraska signed in the Class of 2018, and he averaged 5.9 yards per carry as a true freshman in 2018.
In Nebraska’s season opener, Washington didn’t do much. He carried the ball six times for 39 yards, and he caught one pass for 13 yards in the 35-21 victory.
The Cornhuskers are set to renew their rivalry with the Colorado Buffaloes in Boulder this week, but Frost has yet to say whether Washington or Dedrick Mills will start the game at running back.
H/T College Football Talk
