Austin Peay co-offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Patrick Kugler resigned Sunday after he was arrested during a human trafficking investigation, the university said in a statement. Kugler, a former Michigan offensive lineman, was charged with one count of trafficking for sexual servitude.
His arrest came as part of an undercover operation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation that focused on identifying individuals seeking to engage in commercial sex acts with minors, according to a TBI announcement. Officers placed decoy advertisements on known websites known to be linked to commercial sex. The sting netted six arrests.
Kugler's bond was set at $5,000. In Tennessee, trafficking for sexual servitude is considered a Class B felony. It's defined by state as when a person "knowingly subjects or maintains another in sexual servitude or knowingly recruits, entices, harbors, transports, provides or obtains by any means another person for the purpose of sexual servitude."
Kugler played for Michigan 2013 to 2017 under coaches Brady Hoke and Jim Harbaugh. He earned All-Big Ten honors as a fifth-year senior in 2017. He was in his first season at Austin Peay working under new head coach Jeff Faris.
Prior to his arrival at Austin Peay, Kugler was an offensive analyst at San Diego State and the offensive line coach at Maine. He also served as a graduate assistant for Auburn, San Diego State and Michigan and was Howard's offensive line coach for a season.
Kugler's father, Sean Kugler, is the former head coach at UTEP and a longtime NFL and college assistant.