No. 1 Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian announced that defensive assistant coach Johnny Nansen has been arrested.
Texas Longhorns co-defensive coordinator and assistant coach Johnny Nansen was arrested Wednesday night for a misdemeanor charge of driving while intoxicated.
Texas, the new top-ranked team in the country on the AP Top-25 poll, is set to host UTSA in Austin on Saturday night. Nansen was not present for regular team practices this week before the latest upate.
Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian did not reveal any plans for Nansen's return to the sideline.
"We obviously are aware of the of the situation," Sarkisian said, per 247Sports. "I'm still gathering facts. I'm still monitoring the situation. We're obviously disappointed, but that's all I really have on that at this time."
According to Austin Police, Nansen, 52, was involved in a three-vehicle wreck. Nansen, one of the drivers in the incident, showed "multiple clues of impairment" during field sobriety tests.
The Associated Press reports that the initial report did not indicate whether Nansen conducted a breath test, nor whether Nansen or another driver was deemed at fault.
"So you know, we'll have more for you as we get closer to the ball game," Sarkisian added. "For us, you know, at the end of the day, for our players, I think keeping the main thing the main thing."
Nansen is in his second season with the Longhorns. He previously worked under Sarkisian at Washington and USC.
Will Muschamp has been calling the defensive plays for Texas as the full-time defensive coordinator. Nansen is also in charge of inside linebackers.
The news comes shortly after Texas' comeback win over former No. 1-ranked Ohio State last weekend was clouded by postgame controversy.
Quarterback Arch Manning issued an apology after his press conference remarks that referenced an AI-altered video of Sarkisian slapping ESPN reporter Holly Rowe.
Thursday, Sarkisian issued a lengthy assertion on the matter after Manning and Rowe's public statements.
"If hindsight's 20/20, if I could do it all over again, I would have exuded more patience in that moment and sat through and waited for the interview with Holly," Sarkisian said, also referencing his canceled halftime interview with reporter Laura Rutledge due to technical difficulties during the broadcast.
"Obviously, we have a ton of respect for ESPN and Holly. Holly and I go way back to even to my days of playing at BYU, and we've got a great relationship. ESPN is a great partner of ours. We know we're going to have more opportunities with that crew covering us, and we're looking forward to those opportunities.
"So, could have definitely handled that situation better with a little bit more patience in the moment. But that obviously led to the situation with Arch and his press conference as it pertained to the AI video, and obviously Arch recognizes he made a mistake, and it's an unfortunate one. Nowhere do we condone domestic violence or violence against women. Nothing in our program says that, nor Arch individually."
