An 18-year-old has been arrested and charged with assault for allegedly hitting BYU’s cheerleading coach in the head with a water bottle at the end of the Cougars’ controversial 22-21 win over Utah on Saturday night.
Willian Gardner, who is not a student at Utah, was arrested by university police and booked into jail Tuesday on a Class A misdemeanor assault charge, according to KSL.com.
Police believe that Gardner’s water bottle struck Jocelyn Allan, which caused her to lose consciousness, according to her Instagram post following the game.
“At the conclusion of tonight’s BYU/Utah game, a Utah fan in the table seats in the south end zone threw a water bottle and hit me directly in the head,” Allan wrote on her private account per the Deseret News. “I lost consciousness but thankfully was lowered to the ground by one of my cheerleaders. Police are going over video footage to identify the seats that it came from (we have a pretty good idea). If you saw the incident, or have any info on the family who owns that particular box, please contact me. Thank you!”
Fans threw objects onto the field after BYU kicked a field goal with three seconds left for the win. The Cougars’ game-winning drive came after a fourth-down sack of quarterback Jake Retzlaff was negated by a defensive holding penalty.
A video obtained by the Deseret News and posted to YouTube shows an object thrown from the stands and striking a woman in the head as she stands next to BYU’s cheerleaders on the sideline.
Utah had the chance for a miracle kickoff return after BYU’s go-ahead field goal, but the multiple-lateral return ended near midfield and the play wouldn’t have counted anyway. Utah’s sideline was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct and athletic director Mark Harlan made his displeasure known with the officiating crew.
After the game, Harlan said the game was “absolutely stolen from us.”
Those comments got him a $40,000 fine and a public reprimand from the Big 12 on Sunday. Not long after the fine was issued, Harlan issued a statement that he accepted his punishment.
The victory kept BYU’s undefeated season alive as the Cougars are 9-0 and atop the Big 12 with three games to go in the regular season. Utah, meanwhile, is 4-5 after beginning the season as the favorite to win the conference.
