Florida State suspends strength coach Vic Viloria following DUI arrest
Florida State has suspended strength coach Vic Viloria following his DUI arrest last week.
According to the Tallahassee Democrat, Viloria’s suspension, which is without pay, spans 30 days. The suspension, issued via a statement from school president John Thrasher, starts Friday, Sept. 2 and concludes Oct. 2, meaning Viloria will miss five games.
[Check out Dr. Saturday on Tumblr for entertaining things you won’t see on the blog]
Viloria was arrested early Saturday morning after being found by police asleep at the wheel on an off ramp with his car in drive and his foot on the brake pedal. Police said an officer tried unsuccessfully to wake Viloria up. He awoke a few minutes later but did not notice the officer standing next to his vehicle and drove away, police said. Police were eventually able to pull Viloria over, but only after he was observed driving off (and back up) an embankment and hitting a sign.
[ STACK: How Clemson’s Watson is preparing for biggest season in school history ]
Viloria, police said, admitted he was drinking at work before the incident. In Thrasher’s statement, it was revealed the coach was drinking whiskey with staff members from Showtime’s “A Season With” television program, which is documenting the Seminoles in 2016.
From the Democrat:
The coach said he was given a bottle of whisky by the “Showtime” crew and that he opened the bottle in his office and began to drink with two or three “Showtime” employees.
Viloria said he decided it was “inappropriate” to drink in his office where “other university employees or students could possibly see us,” so Viloria and the employees moved to the “Showtime” trailer. Viloria indicated he had initially planned to stay at his office all night but later decided to drive home.
“I have suspended Coach Viloria for more than a third of the football season to send a strong message about the very serious nature of his offense,” Thrasher said in a statement. “We have an outstanding athletics program, and fans must know it operates with class and reflects the university’s values. We are continuing to work with Showtime on their fall series showcasing our talented team, and they have been responsive to our concerns.”
[Visit Dr. Saturday on Facebook for stories you might have missed and chat with the writers]
Under the terms of his suspension, Viloria will miss Monday’s season opener vs. Ole Miss in Orlando, home games against Charleston Southern (Sept. 10) and North Carolina (Oct. 1) and road games at Louisville (Sept. 17) and USF (Sept. 24).
Viloria, 37, is in his sixth year with the Florida State program.
For more Florida State news, visit Warchant.com.
– – – – – – –
Sam Cooper is a writer for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
