CHRISTOPHER WALSH: Is something fishy around here?

TUSCALOOSA | Roy Upchurch. Brandon Fanney. Brandon Deaderick. Simeon Castille. Rashad Johnson.

All University of Alabama football players.

All arrested along The Strip, at or near The Legacy bar, within the last year.

All black.

If that doesn’t set something off at least in the back of your mind, it should, especially after Johnson had to make an unusual public apology as part of the agreement to have charges of disorderly conduct dropped.

Coincidence? There’s no way to know for sure, especially without being witness to any of the incidents.

Statistically, on face value the answer appears to be no.

Last year, the police made 581 arrests along The Strip, including 440 citations, 137 misdemeanor arrests and four felony arrests. Of them, 91 percent were white (529), 8 percent black (46), and the rest Hispanic (six).

Despite those statistics, there’s a growing perception and concern in the community as a whole and among students that black athletes are being targeted along the off-campus district, whether it’s true or not.

For those of you who have never walked through The Legacy’s front door, it’s one of the nicest, if not the nicest, clubs near campus. It’s both convenient and clean, which is a lot more than you can say about a number of other places around here.

Although the club books a variety of musical bands, it caters especially to the traditional Greeks, who are active, social and spend a ton of money. No organization on campus comes close to matching its influence, and roughly one-fourth of the student body belongs to some form of fraternity or sorority.

Want to take a guess how many of them are black? But I digress. That’s a subject for another place and time.

On a typical weekend night, just about anyone not wearing a polo shirt stands out at The Legacy. That includes those not college-aged, visiting fans, and football players, even the ones who aren’t bigger than the security guards.

What’s different is the magnifying glass along The Strip is more intense than ever.

University enrollment is up while the town has been limiting the number of bar and lounge licenses in the district, giving students fewer options if they want to go out. That doesn’t even factor in the Houndstooth’s ongoing renovations.

Bars now have to close at 3 a.m. Friday nights, increasing the likelihood of friction between patrons and security guards who are trying to get everyone out (and usually not polite about it because no one’s listening), and there’s a stronger police presence.

It’s been that way since two shootings over a three-week period in 2006. One was just outside of The Legacy, the other essentially across the street.

Granted, any football player, black or white, is going to be noticed and singled out in any Tuscaloosa establishment, and, you know the old saying about how nothing good ever happens after midnight, especially when alcohol is involved.

Yes, they all could have been smarter, but what sparked each incident wasn’t much different from what one might see on any night in any town: A dispute over the dress code, a guy essentially trash-talking in the street, an incident that originated with someone else.

Johnson had the lousy timing of being arrested mere days after Jeremy Elder was charged with two counts of first-degree robbery. That was a million times more serious than what occurred with the Crimson Tide’s co-captain and All-SEC safety, but amazingly drew less continual attention and discussion locally.

So we’re left with five arrests, none of the offenders white, and, like head coach Nick Saban, pondering the possibilities. How can he, and we, not?

Christopher Walsh’s column appears Saturdays. Reach him at christopher.walsh@tuscaloosanews.com or at 205-722-0196.