West Virginia Men's Basketball Head Coach Bob Huggins Arrested for DUI in Pittsburgh

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA - MARCH 16: Head coach Bob Huggins of the West Virginia Mountaineers reacts during the first half against the Maryland Terrapins in the first round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Legacy Arena at the BJCC on March 16, 2023 in Birmingham, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

West Virginia University men’s basketball head coach Bob Huggins was arrested Friday night in Pittsburgh for driving under the influence.

According to Chris Anderson of 247Sports, the arrest report states that Huggins was in an SUV that was in the middle of the road and blocking traffic due to a flat tire. When police asked him to pull to the side of the road, they saw him having difficulty moving the vehicle, at which point they administered a field sobriety test, which Huggins failed.

Per the criminal complaint against Huggins, he failed multiple sobriety tests and had a blood-alcohol level of .210, which is over 2.5 times the legal limit:

Matt Norlander @MattNorlander
Parts of the criminal complaint against Bob Huggins, obtained by CBS Sports, which includes an alarming .210 breathalyzer reading “after multiple failed attempts.”
Huggins failed multiple field sobriety tests on scene. pic.twitter.com/0WjTKbOmYh

West Virginia University released the following statement, acknowledging it is aware of Huggins’ arrest:

Pat Forde @ByPatForde
Statement from WVU: pic.twitter.com/SsARaQQx3a

The 69-year-old Huggins is set to enter his 17th season at WVU after previously serving as the head coach at Akron, Cincinnati and Kansas State.

Per Anderson, Huggins was previously arrested for DUI in 2004 while at Cincinnati. Huggins pleaded no contest, and was removed from his position with the Bearcats in 2005.

Last month, Huggins twice used an anti-gay slur during a radio interview, resulting in West Virginia suspending him for three games, reducing his salary by $1 million and requiring him to attend sensitivity training.

The school also amended his contract from a multi-year deal to one that will be re-evaluated on a year-to-year basis.

According to Anderson, WVU president Gordon Gee said at the time: “We have made it explicitly clear to Coach Huggins that any incidents of similar derogatory and offensive language will result in immediate termination.”

Huggins owns a career record of 935-414 as a collegiate head coach, placing him eighth on the all-time wins list among men’s college coaches.

He has taken teams to the NCAA tournament 26 times, including Final Four appearances with Cincinnati in 1992 and West Virginia in 2010.

The three-time Conference USA Coach of the Year and one-time Big 12 Coach of the Year has led the Mountaineers to the tourney 11 times out of 15 opportunities, including last season when they went 19-15 and were knocked out in the first round by Maryland.

Huggins was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame last year in recognition of his consistent success as a college head coach.