Butch Davis was having a great weekend. The Heels had just finished up having six verbal commitments in 10 days with some of the top football prospects in the nation having decided to play future ball in Chapel Hill. To illustrate the point, Scout.com has UNC currently having the 8th best football recruiting class for 2011. Unfortunately, for Tar Heels' fans and Coach Davis, that elation quickly turned to disappointment when news came out reporting that star Linebacker Quan Sturdivant had been cited for marijuanna possession over the weekend in Albemarle.

Sturdivant was part of Coach Davis' biggest recruiting effort in Chapel Hill: getting 5 juniors to return on the nation's 6th best defense that all could have opted out for the NFL. While Sturdivant is one of the lesser talented of those guys, he's been the most productive. A converted QB from high school, Sturdivant has called the plays for a defense that has significantly improved with each season. After collecting 47 tackles as a true freshman in his first year playing the position, Sturdivant led the nation in solo tackles with 87 as a sophomore leading the team with 122 total stops. Last season, the Oakboro native again led the Heels in stops on his way to being selected First Team All-ACC.

He is the most experienced and productive member of a team that has folks in Chapel Hill talking football again for the first time since the Mack Brown era ended in 1997. Sturdivant is a candidate for many awards this season and was poised to be named the defensive captain. One bad decision later and his image has been tarnished.

Now I know there are those of you out there who say, "It was just marijuanna and that it should be legal, in addition to the fact that smoking cigarettes is more harmful". However, when you are the leader, and the best way of leading is by example, you can't put yourself before the team.

It's not like UNC faces the Sisters of the Blind in their season opener. No, instead they have a chance to make a statement for both their program and for the ACC in a nationally televised game vs. LSU in Atlanta.

So Butch has a tough decision on his hands. Do I run him to death or suspend him? That's a tough and delicate balance. Helping the fact is that this was a first time offense for Sturdivant since he's been on campus.

Should fans be more upset at the fact he got caught or that he's doing drugs in the first place? Now again, he does have a court date Aug. 2nd to explain himself. What's the bigger issue?

I'm sure Sturdivant isn't the only star player in the country doing things he shouldn't, or even on his own team for that matter. 

However, he's supposed to be a leader and what do leaders do?: LEAD BY EXAMPLE!

What kind of example is this? Didn't Sturdivant learn from Brandon Tate? How about Will Graves?

Hopefully, he'll learn from this before being suspended for a long period of time similar to Graves after he failed several drug tests during UNC's 2009 National Championship Basketball season.

If nothing gets to Sturdivant then maybe this will: Look at the 4 other guys who turned down millions for a chance to compete and take UNC places it's never been on the gridiron, with you being a part of that in mind. Why should Marvin Austin, Bruce Carter, Kendric Burney, and Deunta Williams suffer for his selfish actions? Only time will tell. John Bunting kicked Fred Sparkman, Adarius Bowman, and Isaiah Thomas off the team in 2004 for similar reasons. Butch hasn't been as harsh as Bunting was, but keep in mind this is the same Butch Davis who cleaned up Miami after probation in a city that some consider the drug capital of the world. Again, he's got a delicate decision to make; make an example or give yourself the best chance to win come Sept. 4th. Regardless, watching this play out will be UNC fans' version of Decision 2010 not involving a Lebron James.