Herschel Walker expressed concern about the number of Georgia football players arrested this year, saying coach Mark Richt has “got to take control” of the issue and the players “have to take responsibility.”

The former Georgia football great, who led the Bulldogs to the national championship as a freshman 30 years ago, was asked about the issue during an appearance Wednesday on ESPN’s “College Football Live” program.

“That’d concern me a great deal,” Walker said. “The losses, that is going to concern me as well, but when you got kids that got off-field problems, we need to get into and see what’s going on. Because when you got off-the-field problems, there’s something going on with that program.

“And I think Coach Richt has got to get a hand on it. I love Coach Richt. He’s a great coach, and there’s no doubt: I do not think Coach Richt should be fired. We got to find out what is going on within that program when you got 11 guys since March that have been off-the-field problems.”

Of the 11 players arrested this year, four were kicked off the team by Richt, one left the program after getting a six-game suspension, one got a two-game suspension and three received one-game suspensions.

“He’s got to fix it,” Walker said of Richt. “He’s the leader there on that team, so he’s got to take control.

“Athletes got to have responsibility,” Walker added. “That’s one of the problems I think athletes have today. They don’t want to take responsibilities, but they have to take responsibility. You’re in college; you’re not out in high school anymore; you’re in college.  . . . If you got a problem, you got to be penalized. Now, Coach Richt does that, but I think you got to be a little bit more harsher.”

AJC