Alabama running back Altee Tenpenny was arrested in North Little Rock and charged with possession of a controlled substance March 24 while he was at home on spring break.
Police officers found a bag containing 2.1 grams of marijuana in Tenpenny’s car, according to an incident report, after he was pulled over at 2:21 a.m. on McCain Boulevard because the vehicle’s license plate light wasn’t working.
Tenpenny was arrested, transported to the police station and later released with a citation. He has an April 10 court date.
“I’m aware of the situation with Altee, and this is obviously not the kind of behavior we expect from our players,” Alabama Coach Nick Saban said in a statement released Wednesday. “In addition to any punishment he may receive from a legal standpoint, we will have some internal discipline as well as education that he will be responsible for working through.”
Tenpenny, a sophomore, played in 13 games for the Crimson Tide last season, primarily on special teams. He rushed 22 times for 82 yards and 1 touchdown, caught 1 pass for 4 yards and had 5 tackles.
According to the incident report, after Tenpenny was pulled over an officer noticed he was nervous and that his hands were shaking uncontrollably. The officer detected an odor of burnt marijuana, and when Tenpenny was asked about it he admitted to smoking a marijuana blunt with his older brother about an hour earlier.
Tenpenny denied he had marijuana in the car when asked, according to the report. After an officer found a clear plastic bag containing a substance that a field test confirmed was marijuana, Tenpenny confirmed it belonged to him.
Tenpenny is continuing to go through spring practice with Alabama.
Tenpenny was a member of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette’s All-Arkansas team in 2012 and was highly sought by colleges after rushing for 1,385 yards and 20 touchdowns on 203 carries.
He ran for at least 100 yards in seven games his senior season, including 167 against Pine Bluff, and returned a kickoff 98 yards for another touchdown against Searcy while helping North Little Rock compile a 10-2 record.
Sports, Pages 15 on 04/03/2014