WR Albert Dukes - (transfer to Valdosta St.)

[BuckeyeNation27]

from what I remember from HHs comments....this was the furthest thing from rape. Dukes thought this girl was his girlfriend and her mom decided to be a bitch.....if i recall. (HH probly didnt call her a bitch though )

[Vikes]

Thats good news. 3 months probation. hmmm no felony or even a misdeamenor. I don't know why they wouldn't accept him back on the team.

I think I heard somewhere he is equivalent to holmes are a little better. Another scoring threat added to the OSU arsenal (Ginn, Holmes, Gonzo, and Dukes oh my). TS and JZ probably smiling.

[wadc45]

I am really happy that Albert will be able to continue getting his education and playing football at OSU...this is his second chance and I hope he does well with it.

[Taosman]

Very excited for this kid! This could turn his life around. Dustin Fox , who sees the wide receivers practice every day, says, "Dukes could be better than Holmes,eventually". This kid could be special.

[Folanator]

Good news. Now don't [censored] up again.

[jwinslow]

Awesome news! And unlike some who think Dukes should have been made into an example, the kid got manipulated by a backstabbing mother. From what I remember, Dukes thought she was older, but regardless of what he thought the mom dropped the charges and then resurrected them about a year ago. HH or someone else can correct my mistakes in that story.

This kid will be special. Especially with Santonio leaving next year, it will be great to have another slasher once Lyons nabs the SE position. Having a 6'4" jump ball receiver (with great athleticism) along with 3 speedsters (Ginn, Gonzo, Dukes) will be awesome.

Welcome back Albert! We were all pulling for you, and can't wait to see what you can do at practice.

And also, everyone keep in mind that many of us thought this legal battle was going to claim Albert as a victim. So don't be too hard on the kid if he can't make it back up to full speed this spring (I think he will, but he might be a step or two behind if he was more focused on classes and his legal woes, plus he probably was working too)...

[gbearbuck]

That's good news... He will prob. need to take a full schedule of classes spring and summer to maintain eligibility, but nice to have him in the fold.

If he continues to develop he'll be another weapon for the O to take advantage of...

[scooter1369]

If this really puts Dukes in the free and clear, great. But it just seems funny...

[LloydSev]

Originally Posted by Bucknut319

Some kind of charges were pressed and Dukes plead guilty or no contest to some kind of charge. Otherwise, he wouldn't be on probation for 3 months...you can't put a person on probation unless they were charged and found guilty. I'm sure it was to a lesser (more accurate) charge.

Good luck to him.

Uh... it says an agreement was made, meaning there was no designation of guilty or not guilty made.. it never went to trial.

Pleas are reached all the time just so people can avoid the costly trials that usually occur if they don't.

[osugrad21]

Originally Posted by scooter1369

If this really puts Dukes in the free and clear, great. But it just seems funny...

Agreed. Where are our lawyers this morning? There had to be a plea bargain but I'm curious to the charge now.

[exhawg]

If Dukes is back and in shape for the spring he and Gonzo are my picks to be offensive players of the spring game. I don't see Holmes and Ginn playing much so the other players should be able to shine.

[buckzip]

If he screws up again, JT, and tOSU will be killed by the media.
I hope he has learned his lesson

[Buckin' A]

Originally Posted by LloydSev

Uh... it says an agreement was made, meaning there was no designation of guilty or not guilty made.. it never went to trial.

Pleas are reached all the time just so people can avoid the costly trials that usually occur if they don't.

Even if a plea is reached and it doesn't go to trial, there is still a plea entered by the defendent. If the charges were dropped, he would not be on probation...he would be free and clear.
Since he is on probation now, it means that he PLEAD guilty or no contest to some sort of charge.

[jwinslow]

Who assigned this probation? Was it a standard response to having charges brought against you? Or did the team put him on probation since they probably would kick him off the team if he did anything else...

Just curious exactly what kind of probation we're talking about here...

[tsteele316]

dukes would have pled to something to get probation. being that he has 3 months probation only, it would be something very mild.

secondly, while the dukes family may have well thought that they could win the court case, this was likely an agreement in which it was fully known that he would be able to play for osu this year and keep his scholarship, versus sitting through a trial, taking his chances, and possibly having to foot the bill for a year of academics to get eligible to play again.