BOZEMAN — Montana State head football coach Brent Vigen opened his Week 1 press conference Monday by addressing charges stemming from an alleged incident involving two assistant coaches.
Third-year Bobcats offensive coordinator Taylor Housewright was arrested May 6 on three misdemeanor charges including aggravated DUI. First-year running backs coach Sam Mix was charged for driving with a suspended license and obstructing a peace officer on the same night.
"I'd like to address the incident that involved two of our coaches back from early May," Vigen stated. "I want you to know we continue to deal with the coaches internally, regarding the repercussions for their actions. I do want to make it clear, in supporting these men, we are not dismissing the charges. We are simply showing that we believe in them and want to have them continue to work in the program because of who they are as people.
"We've taken this matter very seriously, and I say that on many ends. I mean one is just the improved, enhanced trainings that we will do and have continued to do within the program. So with that being said, in accordance with university policy, I'm not going to make any further comment, but I wanted to give an update relative to that situation."
According to charging documents obtained by MTN Sports, Housewright was cited at 12:28 a.m. after being pulled over and refusing a blood-alcohol test. In the documents, it is alleged that Housewright had earlier crashed a university-issued vehicle and fled the scene; the description of the violation states that a friend of Housewright's drove the crashed vehicle while Housewright drove a different vehicle.
Housewright was pulled over by a Montana Highway Patrol trooper outside Bozeman city limits at the location of Cottonwood and Patterson, according to the documents. Housewright was also cited for failure to give notice of an accident and leaving the scene of an accident resulting in property damage over $1,000.
Housewright pleaded not guilty the the charges during an arraignment at Gallatin County Justice Court on June 2.
Mix, according to documents, was charged for allegedly driving with a suspended license and obstructing a peace officer on May 6, also near the Cottonwood and Patterson intersection. The charges against Mix indicated that he "drove vehicle being flat towed from crash scene" and that his driving privilege is suspended out of Washington. Mix is from Sammamish, Washington.
Last Nov. 19, MSU defensive coordinator Willie Mack Garza was charged with DUI following the Bobcats' 55-21 victory over Montana. Garza was suspended for Montana State's second-round FCS playoff game against Weber State. He returned for the following week's game against William & Mary.
Garza, while at Wyoming, was suspended during the 2019 season following a charge for driving under the influence. In the early 2000s, Garza resigned from a defensive coaching position at TCU after being arrested on suspicion of DUI.
Montana State opens its 2023 football season Saturday at 6 p.m. against Utah Tech at Bobcat Stadium.
