Who Needs 8
02-13-2006, 01:00 PM
http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaab/news;_ylt=Aq2Q3nA5gJdEQUGBeMguOR7evbYF?slug=ap-sutton-accident&prov=ap&type=lgns
TULSA, Okla. (AP) -- Eddie Sutton was cited with driving under the influence after he was injured in a car accident, and the Oklahoma State basketball coach will take a medical leave for the rest of the season.
Friday's accident in Stillwater, along with chronic back and hip pain, prompted the 69-year-old coach's decision, the school said Monday. Sean Sutton, his son and head-coach designate, will finish this season as coach. Oklahoma State was home Monday night against Kansas. The university said no decision has been made on who will coach next season.
Sutton was hospitalized overnight for a head injury and released Saturday after the two-vehicle accident. The occupant of the other SUV received minor injuries and was released at the scene, officers said.
In a statement released by the university, Sutton said that "with my deteriorating physical condition and other issues, I have been under a tremendous amount of stress."
The coach said he had been close to taking a medical leave after a Feb. 4 trip to Kansas State because "the pain in my back was making it very difficult to coach."
"After Friday's events, I know it is best to go on medical leave the remainder of the season to address my future health," he said. "It is very difficult to step away from the team. But I know they are in great hands."
Stillwater police cited Sutton after the accident but did not jail him on a complaint of driving under the influence because of a lack of physical evidence, the city's police chief said Monday.
Police are awaiting the results of blood tests that will confirm whether the coach was driving under the influence, Stillwater Chief Norman McNickle said. It could take six to eight weeks to receive the test results. Sutton was not given a field sobriety test at the time because he needed medical treatment, McNickle said.
Before issuing a DUI citation "officers have to have reasonable suspicion to believe the person was under the influence at the time," the chief said, declining to discuss those suspicions because they are part of an investigation.
The police department has filed complaints against Sutton for speeding and crossing the road's center line, the chief said.
Under Oklahoma law, driving under the influence can include a range of substances, including prescription painkillers or alcohol. The university said it would not comment on the DUI citation because of privacy and legal reasons.
Sutton was traveling to the Stillwater airport to fly with his team to College Station, Texas, when the accident happened. According to a police report, Sutton's sport utility vehicle went left of the center line on a Stillwater street, corrected and then struck another SUV from behind at about 60 mph.
Witnesses told police that shortly before the accident, Sutton was unsteady on his feet and struck his head after falling in the parking lot of Gallagher-Iba Arena before entering his vehicle, Stillwater police said Saturday.
Sutton resigned in 1989 from a Kentucky program placed on four years' probation and arrived at his alma mater in 1990 with a chance to rebuild the Cowboys. At his introductory news conference he said he recognized three years earlier that he had a problem with alcohol, and said "I've dealt with it." He received treatment at the Betty Ford Center.
At Oklahoma State he added to his record of 15 straight seasons of at least 17 wins. He has taken the Cowboys to the Final Four in 1995 and 2004.
He entered this season -- his 16th at Oklahoma State and 36th overall -- with a chance to reach 800 wins. If he fell short of the mark, Sutton said he'd consider retirement.
With six regular-season games remaining, Sutton ends the season with 794 wins. The Cowboys are 13-11 and 3-7 in the Big 12. The coach recently criticized his team's mental and physical toughness, calling it the "softest team in 16 years that I have ever coached."
"The season has not gone as we wished, but we have a talented and fine group of young men and I look for them to finish the season strong," Sutton said in Monday's statement. "I won't be on the bench, but I'll be with them."
Assistant coach James Dickey, who took Sutton's place on the Big 12 coaches conference call Monday, said Sutton addressed his players twice by phone Sunday.
"I'm sure they were disappointed," Dickey said. "As you can imagine, the players listened intently. But they all wished him the best, told him they loved him. He told them he loved them, to stay on the books and play hard and do their best."
TULSA, Okla. (AP) -- Eddie Sutton was cited with driving under the influence after he was injured in a car accident, and the Oklahoma State basketball coach will take a medical leave for the rest of the season.
Friday's accident in Stillwater, along with chronic back and hip pain, prompted the 69-year-old coach's decision, the school said Monday. Sean Sutton, his son and head-coach designate, will finish this season as coach. Oklahoma State was home Monday night against Kansas. The university said no decision has been made on who will coach next season.
Sutton was hospitalized overnight for a head injury and released Saturday after the two-vehicle accident. The occupant of the other SUV received minor injuries and was released at the scene, officers said.
In a statement released by the university, Sutton said that "with my deteriorating physical condition and other issues, I have been under a tremendous amount of stress."
The coach said he had been close to taking a medical leave after a Feb. 4 trip to Kansas State because "the pain in my back was making it very difficult to coach."
"After Friday's events, I know it is best to go on medical leave the remainder of the season to address my future health," he said. "It is very difficult to step away from the team. But I know they are in great hands."
Stillwater police cited Sutton after the accident but did not jail him on a complaint of driving under the influence because of a lack of physical evidence, the city's police chief said Monday.
Police are awaiting the results of blood tests that will confirm whether the coach was driving under the influence, Stillwater Chief Norman McNickle said. It could take six to eight weeks to receive the test results. Sutton was not given a field sobriety test at the time because he needed medical treatment, McNickle said.
Before issuing a DUI citation "officers have to have reasonable suspicion to believe the person was under the influence at the time," the chief said, declining to discuss those suspicions because they are part of an investigation.
The police department has filed complaints against Sutton for speeding and crossing the road's center line, the chief said.
Under Oklahoma law, driving under the influence can include a range of substances, including prescription painkillers or alcohol. The university said it would not comment on the DUI citation because of privacy and legal reasons.
Sutton was traveling to the Stillwater airport to fly with his team to College Station, Texas, when the accident happened. According to a police report, Sutton's sport utility vehicle went left of the center line on a Stillwater street, corrected and then struck another SUV from behind at about 60 mph.
Witnesses told police that shortly before the accident, Sutton was unsteady on his feet and struck his head after falling in the parking lot of Gallagher-Iba Arena before entering his vehicle, Stillwater police said Saturday.
Sutton resigned in 1989 from a Kentucky program placed on four years' probation and arrived at his alma mater in 1990 with a chance to rebuild the Cowboys. At his introductory news conference he said he recognized three years earlier that he had a problem with alcohol, and said "I've dealt with it." He received treatment at the Betty Ford Center.
At Oklahoma State he added to his record of 15 straight seasons of at least 17 wins. He has taken the Cowboys to the Final Four in 1995 and 2004.
He entered this season -- his 16th at Oklahoma State and 36th overall -- with a chance to reach 800 wins. If he fell short of the mark, Sutton said he'd consider retirement.
With six regular-season games remaining, Sutton ends the season with 794 wins. The Cowboys are 13-11 and 3-7 in the Big 12. The coach recently criticized his team's mental and physical toughness, calling it the "softest team in 16 years that I have ever coached."
"The season has not gone as we wished, but we have a talented and fine group of young men and I look for them to finish the season strong," Sutton said in Monday's statement. "I won't be on the bench, but I'll be with them."
Assistant coach James Dickey, who took Sutton's place on the Big 12 coaches conference call Monday, said Sutton addressed his players twice by phone Sunday.
"I'm sure they were disappointed," Dickey said. "As you can imagine, the players listened intently. But they all wished him the best, told him they loved him. He told them he loved them, to stay on the books and play hard and do their best."