Big Ten Roundup (July 30): Fickell Gives Update on Jordan Turner, Tagovailoa Offered $1.5 Million by SEC Team
Wisconsin football coach Luke Fickell told media on Thursday that linebacker Jordan Turner will not receive further punishment after being suspended for his OWI arrest in June.
OWI stands for Operating While Intoxicated, and is used by the state of Wisconsin to describe what is more commonly known as a DUI. Turner was reinstated to the team on July 10.
Elsewhere in the Big Ten, Maryland quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa said he was offered $1.5 million to transfer to an SEC team this offseason. The news of Tagovailoa's offer was first reported by The Athletic's Audrey Snyder.
Here's everything you need to know in today's Big Ten Roundup:
Jordan Turner Not Facing Additional Punishment
One of the few hiccups Fickell has encountered in his short tenure at Wisconsin is the arrest of Turner. The redshirt junior linebacker is a projected starter, was an honorable mention to the 2022 All-Big Ten team and won the 2022 Guaranteed Rate Bowl Defensive MVP.
Turner shared on June 30 that he had been cited for an OWI first offense, along with other traffic violations, earlier that week. He was subsequently suspended from all team activities by Fickell and the coaching staff, only to be reinstated less than two weeks later.
Additionally, on the same day Turner announced his OWI arrest, an out-of-state arrest warrant from Farmington Hills, Michigan, was issued for Turner, according to WAOW 9 News. Turner reportedly was cited for impeding traffic in March, and failed to appear for his court hearing on June 7. The report also stated that a state trooper cited Turner driving 117 MPH in Rock County, Wis., on June 5, just two days before his missed court hearing.
Fickell, however, said that Turner will not face any additional team suspension or punishment.
Wisconsin's first game of the 2023 season and the Fickell era is on Sept. 2, in Madison, when the Badgers host MAC opponent Buffalo.
Taulia Tagovailoa Offered $1.5 Million to Transfer
Even if Maryland football coach Mike Locksley thinks that Tagovailoa is underrated, it's clear that someone in the SEC thinks he's pretty, pretty good.
The fifth-year quarterback has played for Maryland since 2020 after he transferred from Alabama, the school his older brother Tua became famous at.
After throwing for 6,868 yards and 46 touchdowns in the past two seasons, the Terrapin quarterback would be a highly desired talent for any team. However, Tagovailoa decided he'd be happier staying in College Park for his final college season at the end of the day.
“It would be hard for me to go to another place and not be happy but have all the money in the world,” Tagovailoa told Snyder in her story. “(I’d rather) be at a place where maybe I don’t have as much, but I’m happy and I’m here to work.”
Tagovailoa and Maryland are coming off an 8-5 season, the program's best since 2010, and have big expectations for 2023.
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