Alabama Crimson Tide defensive coordinator Pete Golding early on Thursday morning for driving under the influence (DUI) in city of Northport in Alabama.

The Northport Police confirmed that Stephen Thomas Golding, who goes by the name ‘Pete’ was arrested at around 1am local time on Thursday. Although Golding’s bond was set at $500, he was still in the Tuscaloosa County Jail at the time of writing.

According to ESPN, Alabama Crimson Tide officials are aware of Golding’s arrest but have not released a statement yet.

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A Louisiana native, Golding was hired by Alabama Crimson Tide in 2018 as the team’s linebacker coach and as a co-defensive coordinator. However, after his partner, Tosh Lupoi, left the team in 2019, Golding became the sole defensive coordinator, helping Alabama finish in the top three of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) in total defence in three of his four seasons with the team.

Alabama Crimson Tide in 2021 also finished second in the SEC in terms of defence, allowing a mere 304.1 yards per game.

Beyond his contributions to Alabama’s performance on the pitch, Golding has also become quite the recruiter. As per 247sports, the 37-year-old, who is currently in his fifth season with the team, finished as the number three recruiter in the US in the 2022 recruiting cycle, with eight commitments.

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Prior to Golding’s arrest on Thursday, the 37-year-old received considerable praise from Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban, who told the press, “Pete’s got a great personality. I think he really works hard at it, he’s a really good coach and he has a good relationship with the players on our team.”

“And I think when players talk to the players on our team, they sort of get that feedback, and that’s all helpful in terms of players feeling comfortable here, knowing that they have a good relationship with the coach that recruited them but also with the coach that’s gonna coach them and a lot of the other people involved in the organization. So Pete does a good job of selling all those things in a positive way,” Saban added.

It remains to be seen how Crimson Tide respond to Golding’s arrest.