Strength and conditioning coaches have been garnering more and more attention the past few months. First, it was good news with Iowa making Chris Doyle the highest paid strength coach in the country at nearly $600,000 a year. The latest comes from the other side of the spectrum, from Florida State's Vic Viloria who was recently charged with a DUI. The university announced today that he will be suspended, without pay, for 30-days.
Florida State president John Thrasher explained the suspension via a release covered by the Tallahassee Democrat.
"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."
"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."
Viloria's suspension begins Friday September 2nd and will run through October 1st. In that four week span Florida State will take on Ole Miss (September 5th), Charleston Southern (September 10th), Louisville (September 17th), South Florida (September 24th) and North Carolina (October 1st).
Beyond the obvious responsibilities that Viloria has with the strength program, the Seminoles will also be missing a key game day piece with his suspension, and with games against teams like Ole Miss, Louisville and North Carolina, it will be interesting to see the impact the disciplinary action has on the program's season in a year where the expectations are extremely high.
The Tallahassee Democrat highlighted some of the details surrounding the DUI, stating that Viloria was given a bottle of whiskey by the Showtime crew that has been embedded with the team filming the special A Season With series chronicling their season. They opened the bottle in his office and had a few drinks before heading to the Showtime trailer with a few members of the crew.
The details of the actual DUI stop by police are also odd. A Tallahassee PD officer found Viloria asleep at the wheel on an off ramp at around 5am. The vehicle was in drive, and Viloria's foot was on the brake. The officer tapped on the window multiple times to get Viloria's attention, but that was unsuccessful. Viloria awoke a few minutes later, didn't see the officer at his window, and drove off when he then left the road, returned tot he road, and was successfully pulled over a little ways down the road.
Viloria, who registered a blood alcohol level of .125 (the legal limit is .08) has been charged with DUI and property damage. He has been with the Seminoles for six seasons.
Head over the Tallahassee Democrat for more on the situation