Wisconsin’s Jack Del Rio resigns after crash and OWI arrest

Former NFL coach Jack Del Rio and senior adviser to Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell will resign after he was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated following a crash in Madison, Wisconsin, early Friday.

Del Rio, 61, was arrested shortly after midnight Friday after a vehicle he was driving crashed into a street sign, broke through a fence and came to rest in a yard, according to a Madison police incident report. At 12:35 a.m., officers were dispatched to the scene west of campus and Camp Randall Stadium

Witnesses directed officers to the driver leaving the area, according to the incident report. No injuries were reported.

Del Rio “showed signs of impairment” and admitted to driving the vehicle. He was arrested for his first OWI and released.

“He’s going to move on and resign and move on,” Fickell said Monday. “But it is a difficult situation. Decisions for which we must all be able to take full responsibility. So that’s what Jack is going to do and we’re going to keep moving forward.”

Wisconsin issued a statement saying it was aware of the incident and “takes matters like this very seriously.”

The former Jaguars and Raiders head coach joined Fickell’s team at Wisconsin in August. Del Rio previously served as the Commanders’ defensive coordinator and held coordinator roles at Carolina and Denver.

Del Rio played linebacker for four NFL teams before beginning a coaching career that was spent exclusively at the professional level until his arrival at Wisconsin.

The Badgers are coming off a bye week and head to Saturday’s home showdown against No. 1 Oregon.