College basketball coach is fired after police discovered him passed out behind the wheel in DWI arrest
The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) has fired its head basketball coach months after an arrest on suspicion of driving while intoxicated.
On Friday afternoon, the school’s vice president for intercollegiate athletics, Dr Lisa Campos, announced that coach Austin Claunch would not return to the bench – having been suspended since October.
The two sides ‘mutually agreed to part ways effective immediately’ with Claunch saying: ‘I want to thank our players, staff, administration, and fans for the support they’ve shown me during my time at UTSA.
‘Dr. Campos and I agreed that it was best for both sides to move in a different direction. I want to thank Dr. Campos for the opportunity to coach at UTSA. I’ll always be rooting for UTSA and the young men in this program.’
The move pertains to an incident in late October at a gas station in the gulf coast city of Corpus Christi – located over two hours southeast of the UTSA campus.
According to KSAT12, police received a phone call just before 2:00am on October 27 – reporting someone stumbling inside a service station.
UTSA has fired basketball coach Austin Claunch after his October arrest for suspected DWI
Claunch had been suspended by the school since October before his removal this Friday
Claunch was struggling at UTSA, putting up a record of 17-44 across two seasons
When police responded, they found Claunch passed out in the driver’s seat of his parked Mercedes with his seatbelt on.
Officers shut off Claunch’s car and woke him up – noting the smell of alcohol on his breath and slurred speech. After refusing to take a breathalyzer or blood test in the field, he was taken to a hospital where a blood draw was done.
Claunch was then booked into the Nueces County Jail that same day and was released on bond.
‘After thoughtful discussions about the future of the program, we mutually agreed that this was the right time for a transition,’ Campos said.
‘We thank Coach Claunch for his efforts over the last two years and wish him nothing but the best in the future. We look forward to this season with Nick Bowman at the helm.’
Claunch was hired by UTSA in 2024. He was previously the head coach at Nicholls State University for five seasons – winning two Southland Conference regular season titles and being named Southland Coach of the Year – before serving as an assistant under Nate Oats at Alabama.
Claunch posted a record of 17-44 at UTSA in two seasons – including a dreadful 2025-26 campaign where he put up a record of 5-25 and only won a single conference game.
In his place, assistant coach Nick Bowman will serve as interim head coach for the rest of the season. Bowman was previously the lead assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of New Orleans (now called LSU New Orleans).
