Mike Gundy addresses Trey Rucker's status with Oklahoma State after DUI arrest
Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy addressed the status of safety Trey Rucker, who was arrested last week on suspicion of DUI. The Cowboys had a bye this past week, so Rucker has not played since the incident occurred, but was a starter in the first four games of the season.
As OSU prepares to face Kansas State in Week 6, Gundy said Rucker will be “active” for that game. However, he was careful with his words, saying the Cowboys must “let the system run its course” before making any further decisions.
“He’s active until the system takes its place and then we can make a decision,” the coach said. “Essentially, I can’t get ahead of the process based on the type of incident that took place. I’ve gotta let the system run its course and then make a decision from that point.”
Rucker had an initial court appearance on Thursday and his preliminary hearing is set for Nov. 6. Oklahoma State will play five more games before that date.
Trey Rucker is in his third year at Oklahoma State after transferring from Wake Forest. He’s moved into a starting role for the Cowboys after having appeared in just six games the previous two seasons combined.
Rucker ranks fifth on the team with 18 tackles, including one for loss so far this season. If he doesn’t play, OSU would be in danger of missing both of its starting safeties as Lyrik Rawls is considered day-to-day after sitting out Week 4’s loss to Iowa State. Redshirt freshman Cameron Epps started in his place and finished the game with 10 tackles and one pass defended.
With the bye week, Oklahoma State will hope Rawls can be healthy enough to return after as it looks to bounce back from two straight losses. The Cowboys kick off against K-State at 6:30 p.m. CT on Saturday in Stillwater.
Details on Trey Rucker’s arrest
At approx. 9:30 a.m. Sunday morning, Rucker was arrested after police suspected he was driving impaired, a police report said. Callers said a vehicle didn’t move past a stoplight even though it cycled through multiple times.
“I observed a silver Chevy car three cars back from the traffic signal,” the patrol officer wrote in his report, via the Stillwater News Press. “When the light turned green for east and westbound traffic, the two cars in front of it moved ahead, but it did not.”
Once officers arrived at the car, they caught a smell of an alcoholic beverage when Rucker rolled down the window. They performed a field sobriety test and he missed heal to toe on nearly every step of the walk and turn test, according to the report. He also said he wouldn’t take the portal breath test without talking to his lawyer.
Rucker was transported to the Stillwater City Jail and has a hearing scheduled for Thursday at 1:30 p.m. CT.
“His eyes were glassy, and his speech was low and slow. He said he was fine. He said he was on his way home from watching film at the OSU Cowboys Stadium,” the officer wrote in the report. “… He seemed to have no comprehension of what had happened the past several minutes.”