-
Dave Wilson, ESPN Staff Writer
Texas linebacker S’Maje Burrell has been identified as the driver of a vehicle that hit an SUV driven by former Longhorns defensive lineman T’Vondre Sweat on Sunday morning, resulting in Sweat crashing the SUV and being arrested for driving while intoxicated.
Police said Sweat was driving a Ford Bronco when he was hit from behind, causing him to lose control, veer off onto a service road and roll the car onto its side. When police responded at 4:41 a.m., the other driver, later identified as Burrell, had left the scene.
Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said Wednesday that Burrell has been suspended.
“We’re aware of the situation involving S’Maje Burrell and have suspended him indefinitely from all team activities for conduct detrimental to the program,” Sarkisian said in a statement.
Burrell, a second-year player from Fort Worth, Texas, did not play last season while redshirting. He was a four-star recruit in the class of 2023.
According to a copy of the police report obtained by LoneStarLive.com, Burrell was driving a 2020 Dodge sports car when he collided with Sweat’s car. The report says that later in the day, at 5:45 p.m., Burrell’s father Lorenzo Burrell, a Fort Worth police officer, called Austin police. Information about the call is redacted, as is much of the report.
Sweat’s blood alcohol was measured at .105 while in custody at 6:08 a.m., according to a police affidavit, with the legal limit in Texas being 0.08. Sweat, 22, was booked Sunday afternoon into Travis County Jail, before posting bond and being released. He faces a Class B misdemeanor, which in Texas carries a fine up to $2,000 and 180 days in jail.
Sweat, who was listed at 6-foot-4 and 362 pounds last season, is a top NFL draft prospect after winning the Outland Trophy as the nation’s top interior lineman. He finished the season with 2 sacks, 8 tackles for loss, 7 quarterback hurries, 4 pass breakups and 45 total tackles as Texas made the College Football Playoff.
ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. rates Sweat as the No. 3 defensive tackle prospect in next month’s NFL draft, behind Texas’ Byron Murphy II and Florida State‘s Braden Fiske.