ALBUQUERQUE — Two Arizona Wildcats were sent to the locker room early in today's New Mexico Bowl after getting into a fistfight during a timeout.
Defensive tackle Tevin Hood and linebacker Cody Ippolito had to be separated following the scuffle, which occurred on the UA sideline with the Wildcats trailing at the end of the first quarter. Ippolito was escorted to the Wildcats’ locker room immediately; Hood was sent out a few drives later.
The UA scored two touchdowns in the final 46 seconds of today's game and won, 49-48. The bowl win is Arizona's first since 2008.
UA coach Rich Rodriguez said he couldn't explain what happened in the fight, “because I didn’t see it.”
“But as soon as I heard what happened, we sent the guys to the locker room,” he said. “They went home with their parents.”
Hood, a junior transfer from Duke and the University of San Diego, played in every game this season, registering 24 tackles and two tackles-for-loss. He posted a career-high 10 tackles in the team's regular season finale against Arizona State. Hood played in the first few drives, before the fight occurred. ESPN showed the fisticuffs on the broadcast; within hours, video of the fight went viral.
“It was embarrassing,” Rodriguez said. “But I didn’t see it, so I can’t comment on it.”
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