Mike Gundy defends Ollie Gordon decision: ‘You got out light because you make a lot of money to play’
Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy opened up about the decision to bring Ollie Gordon to Big 12 Media Days despite the running back being charged with DUI.
Gordon was arrested earlier this month after being pulled over with open containers of vodka and tequila in his car. He had a blood alcohol level of .11 and .10, just above the legal limit of .08 in the state of Oklahoma.
The Cowboys RB was not suspended as a result of the arrest, leading Gundy to be asked his reasoning for that decision in an interview on ESPNU. The coach opened up on several perspectives, including his own as a parent, the mistakes he has made in his own life and how the changing landscape of college sports played a role.
“College football has changed and we all know,” Gundy began. “We can say these guys aren’t employees, but they’re really employees. These guys get paid a lot of money, which is fine. But there needs to be a side to what they do that they have to be able to, for lack of a better term, face the music and own up to things. When I looked at it, I thought, okay, I’m gonna be real honest with myself first, and then make the best decision for what I think’s good for Ollie, our university and our team. And then, I started thinking about being a parent. I have a 28, I have a 23 and I have a 19 [year-old]. And first, I thought, OK, so I looked it up on my phone, what would be the legal limit? In Oklahoma, it’s 0.08, and Ollie was 0.1. So I looked it up, and it was based on body weight – not to get into the legal side of it.
“But I thought, really, two or three beers, or four – I’m not justifying what Ollie did. I’m telling you what decision I made. I thought, I’ve probably done that 1,000 times in my life. Which is fine. So I got lucky. People get lucky. Ollie made a decision that he wished he could’ve done better. But when I talked to Ollie, I told him, you’re lucky. You got out light because you make a lot of money to play football. Back in the day, being able to cover the cost of what he’s gonna go through would be difficult for a college player. It’s not for him. I’m not speaking for him, but I’m just saying that’s not an issue for him. Nobody got hurt. I said, we see people doing this and people losing their lives across the country – not just football players, but everybody. So you got out lucky.”
This story will be updated.
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