Badgers ILB Jordan Turner addresses 'unacceptable' summer decisions
MADISON — Jordan Turner knew difficult questions were coming as he approached a group of reporters inside the McClain Center on Thursday.
The Wisconsin inside linebacker addressed for the first time his decisions that led to a suspension this summer. He did so candidly, calling the situation he put himself in "unacceptable" and "embarrassing."
Turner, a redshirt junior and one of the Badgers' leading tacklers last season, made headlines in June for a pair of traffic incidents.
First, he was stopped and ticketed for driving 117 miles per hour (nearly 50 mph over the speed limit) on I39/90 in Rock County. Weeks later, he was cited for operating a vehicle while intoxicated.
"I let my teammates down. I let my coaches down. I let my family down. I let myself down," Turner said.
UW athletics director Chris McIntosh announced Turner's suspension on June 30. He was reinstated on July 10 after a committee of university staff reviewed the violations. New Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell said at Big Ten Media Days that Turner did not face any additional punishment from the team upon his return.
Turner said he addressed his teammates and coaches after his reinstatement.
"Coming back, I talked to them," Turner, who's expected to be a starter again this season, said. "I sat them down and was like, 'I am sorry for what I did. I let you all down and everything. I will do whatever I can to earn your trust back and show how committed I am to this team.' I have put my head down and have worked every single day to show that I am there for them."
Defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach Mike Tressel said Turner has effectively done that by "closing his mouth and working."
"He has," Tressel said. "He's never hung his head no matter what the situation is. He closes his mouth and words. We know he's a good football player. His teammates love him. Credit to him. He's just shut his mouth and worked."
That approach — and the support he said he received from his teammates — has allowed Turner to turn the page after a rocky summer.
"They stood by me," Turner said of his teammates. "They have helped me pick my head up. I was really down about myself. It was embarrassing. They told me they were with me through whatever. They have my back.
"That has made me want to go even harder for them. They are my boys and they still have my back when I am down. The only thing I knew I could give back to them was to keep working every single day.”
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