OKLAHOMA COACH Mike Gundy has come under fire for his comments regarding Ollie Gordon II’s recent DUI arrest.
Gundy, 56, discussed why he won’t suspend his star running back at the Big 12 media conference.
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He added that he looked at legal drinking limits in Oklahoma and admitted he may have gone over the limit in the past.
“I thought, actually, two or three beers, or four — I’m not justifying what Ollie did, I’m telling you the decision I made,” Gundy said.
“Well, I thought I’ve probably done this a thousand times in my life.
“So I was lucky. People are lucky. Ollie decided he wished he had done better.”
Gordon, 20, was pulled over on July 2 after his 2024 black Cadillac was seen swerving and speeding on a local interstate.
Officers claimed to have smelled “an odor associated with an alcoholic beverage” coming from the vehicle during the arrest.
They reported seeing a half-full bottle of vodka lemonade and a half-full bottle of tequila.
Gordon — the 2023 Big 12 Conference Player of the Year — reportedly admitted to the Oklahoma Highway Patrol that he had a drink.
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His alcohol level samples returned 0.11 and 0.10 — above the state limit of 0.08.
Gundy said he didn’t suspend Gordon because he wouldn’t do anything to help him.
“He’s going to play,” Gundy he told ESPN.
“I’m going to do what we think is best for Oklahoma State football. And I think it’s better for Ollie to play.
“If there’s any punishment, it’s making him carry the ball 50 times in the first game.”
One user X said “I don’t know how you respond so much worse,” while another called his response “horrible.”
Gundy recognized the dangers of drunk driving.
We hope that, more than football, you can learn from the situation you went through.
Mike Gundy
“‘No one was hurt. We see people doing this and people losing their lives all over the country,” he added.
“Not only [from] football players, but everyone, so you’re lucky.”
Gordon attended the media day, where he apologized and said he will learn from his mistakes.
“We might say these guys are not employees, but they are actually employees, these guys get paid a lot of money,” Gundy explained.
“Which is fine, but there needs to be an edge to what they do, that they have to be able to – for lack of a better term – face the music and own things.
“I said, ‘You’re not going to hide. You’re going to face the music, you’re going to have to stand up and talk to people and answer questions. And hopefully, more than football, you can learn from the situation you’ve been in.
“Because if not, then we have a real problem.”
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