Arkansas investigated interim coordinator’s altercation with player, per report
By Andrew Olson
Published:
On Monday, Arkansas interim head coach Bobby Petrino addressed a report about an altercation between interim defensive coordinator Chris Wilson and a Razorback player.
Chris Hummer of CBS Sports reports that in mid-October Wilson struck a player in the face and left him with a bloody lip.
The incident allegedly began when the 56-year-old Wilson called the player an expletive in the locker room. After the player asked to whom Wilson was speaking, Wilson allegedly doubled down,” Hummer wrote.
The two sides then squared up, seemingly as a joke. Multiple sources say Wilson swung at least once — one source says Wilson swung twice, another source said the player may have swung first — connecting with the player’s face with enough force to cause bleeding. Wilson left in a huff.
The player sought Wilson out elsewhere in the football facility, a source said, to gain an understanding of what happened. Wilson told the player that he had just been messing around.
Hummer writes that CBS elected to protect the player’s anonymity due to the nature of the incident. Arkansas investigated the situation and concluded that both were “joking around.”
“Our athletic department quickly looked into the matter, conducting independent interviews with the interim head coach, as well as the coach and player allegedly involved,” Arkansas said in a statement to CBS Sports. “Those conversations revealed the same recounting of the situation, in which both the coach and player said they were joking around. With everyone on the same page concerning the situation, the athletic department considers the matter closed with no further action necessary.”Â
Petrino was asked about the reported incident in his Monday press conference. He revealed the player to be defensive end Ken Talley. He said that Wilson and Talley were “shadowboxing” and the bleeding was caused by Talley biting his lip.
Arkansas closes out its season against Mizzou in the Battle Line Rivalry game.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
