Nick Saban's Second Chance for Jonathan Taylor Backfires with Player's Arrest

Update: Jonathan Taylor's accuser has recanted her story, according to Stephanie Taylor of The Tuscaloosa News:

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Nick Saban knew exactly what he was getting into when he signed embattled defensive tackle Jonathan Taylor from the junior college ranks.

He had the history, but Saban took him anyway.

Photo courtesy 247Sports

On Saturday in Tuscaloosa, Taylor was arrested for a second time in his college football career on domestic violence charges.

According to a Tuscaloosa Police Department release, a victim told police “she was assaulted by her boyfriend at approximately 6:00 p.m.” Saturday. The victim “had minor injuries to her neck from the assault,” police said.

Taylor was arrested on one count of domestic violence third-degree assault and one count of domestic violence third-degree criminal mischief. He was held on a $1,000 bond for a mandatory 12-hour domestic-violence hold.

The TPD incident report, provided to Bleacher Report, also listed a bedroom closet door with a hole punched in it.

Taylor’s history, combined with Saban’s willingness—and at times, even combativeness—in signing him make this a massive black mark on the coach's tenure at Alabama, one that has otherwise been pretty sterling.

After the proper authorities deal with Taylor, Saban should shoulder much of the blame for this incident.

This was not Taylor’s first or even second strike.

He was only at Alabama because Georgia kicked him out on a similar charge. According to Chip Towers of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, “Police said evidence and witness accounts indicate the 6-foot-4, 340-pound Taylor 'choked' and 'struck with a closed fist' his 5-11, 170-pound female victim.”

Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Before that, per Towers, Taylor was arrested for theft by deception after double-cashing meal checks. Georgia coach Mark Richt dismissed Taylor after the domestic-violence arrest.

Saban did not immediately reply to a request for a comment through a spokesperson. He is scheduled to meet with the media on Monday evening. A UA spokesperson released the following statement: "UA is aware of the incident. The student has been referred to judicial affairs."

Update: Taylor has been dismissed from the team, Saban announced in an emailed release through a spokesman on Sunday afternoon. “This will still need to go through the legal process," Saban said. "But when he was given an opportunity here, it was under strict guidelines and we made it clear there was a zero tolerance policy.”

Alabama athletics director Bill Battle released the following statement:

End update

Still, Saban defended Taylor through national signing day.

First, Saban gave an impassioned speech during the 2014 season about second chances and keeping players off the street, seemingly out of the blue. He didn’t mention Taylor, but in hindsight, it was clear who he was referencing.

On national signing day, once Taylor’s signing and subsequent enrollment had been made official, Saban again defended the move and laid out the conditions that came with it:

"

This was a decision that got made by a lot of people here. It was a university decision. We recruited this young man out of high school and we felt that from what we knew about him, what his high school coach said, what the people at the school that he was at said about him, and where he came from in junior college, that he was the kind of guy that deserved a second chance. But with that chance, we also have stipulations of things that he needs to do from a personal development standpoint so that he won't make any kind of mistake like this ever again.

That's an ongoing process with him and that's something that we continue to monitor and he has done a very good job with. …

The guy was charged. There's no question about that. He was accused. I can't discuss the circumstances of all that. I said this before that when people are young -- and that is not a mistake that we condone in any shape or form. That's any disrespect to any person, let alone a female. There's some occasion to not condemn them for life, but to give them another chance. It's up to them to prove that they deserve that chance. And when they get that opportunity they need to definitely do their very best to take advantage of it. This is the decision that we made. I know the sensitivity of the issue, and we're going to do what we can to help this young man have success here and not have issues anymore.

"

Taylor’s charges from the Georgia incident are still pending, according to Aaron Suttles of TideSports.com.

Saban answered the questions cordially, but behind the scenes, he took exception to them. He wasn’t happy that his decision was being questioned, but he didn’t show it publicly.

Now, it’s come back to bite him in a big way, affecting not just the football team but the life of a young woman in Tuscaloosa.

Many Alabama fans, whose intense passion can often cloud rational judgement, took to Twitter to express their frustration with Saban and the football team:

"

.@AlabamaFTBL ashamed to be a fan. Can't believe you allowed scum like Jonathan Taylor on the team.

— Cambro Living (@CambroLiving) March 29, 2015"

"

This is 100% on Nick Saban. He deserves ever bit of shit he gets for it. Jonathan Taylor never should have been on our football team.

— Hunter Johnson (@HunterLJohnson) March 29, 2015"

National media chimed in, too:

Even a current player showed exasperation after the team’s second arrest in 24 hours:

Make no mistake: This is on Nick Saban.

Saban was very much aware of what he was getting in Taylor. Sure, Taylor could have been a run-stuffing defensive tackle on a defense that was losing Brandon Ivory. But more than that—infinitely more important than that—Taylor had a history of domestic-violence charges, an issue that was already at the forefront of the sports conversation when Saban was trying to sign him.

Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

In fairness to Saban, he has, so far, had a good track record of second chances. D.J. Pettway, who was dismissed in the spring of 2013 in connection with an on-campus robbery, came back on the team after a year in junior college to be a productive player for Alabama.

And second chances are all well and good. Saban was right earlier in the season. One bad decision should not necessarily hang with a person for their entire life.

But this is different. This is an exponentially more damaging and serious allegation than a petty theft or robbery.

The University of Alabama is not the only place for one to cash in that second chance. Saban holds his team to the highest of standards on the field and strives to do so off the field, too.

Saban took a massive risk signing Taylor. It has backfired in an incredibly tragic and horrifying way.

He knew what was possible and should bear a large portion of the burden for what’s happened.

Marc Torrence is the Alabama lead writer for Bleacher Report. All quotes and reporting were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Follow on Twitter @marctorrence.