On Urban

Some thoughts...

Photo: Patrick Barron

So Urban Meyer just announced his retirement from Ohio State.

Good news, Michigan fans?

Well, in seven years in Columbus, Urban lost 9 games. And none of them were to us. So yeah, from a strict rivalry standpoint, Ohio State losing a hall of fame caliber coach is good news. How the the rivalry plays out from here is yet to be decided.

Urban Meyer was a good coach at Bowling Green...a very good coach at Utah...a great coach at Florida...and at Ohio State, his success was unprecedented. In terms of wins and losses, not just against Michigan, his 82-9 record is an incredible achievement.

But his lasting legacy may not reflect that. While Urban may appear to be calling his own shot with this latest high profile departure, he leaves Ohio State amid many questions about not only his health, but also the lingering Zach Smith scandal which followed him into and throughout his final season in Columbus.

Urban is 54 years old and seemingly in the prime of his incredibly successful career. He currently earns $7.6M in base salary per year. In terms of job security, outside of Nick Saban in Alabama, there may not be a more comfortable coaches chair all of CFB than Urban's in Columbus. That's a lot to walk away from. Especially for a son of Ohio living out his self-proclaimed dream job.

I won't speculate about Urban's health issues other than to just say we know he's dealt with this condition for many years. But all of the sudden, following a scandalous off-season which resulted in his suspension for the opening 3 games of the season, a season in-which he looked overwhelmed,  anguished and in visible pain on the sidelines, especially in games which Ohio State is struggling...

...now he's just...done?

Maybe he's content with his career and ready to hang up the headset? Or maybe his health issues are far worse than we know? If that's the case then, well, that's the case.

What seems far more likely, to me at least, is that something got broken back in August at Ohio State that can't go back together again. We heard rumors of Urban and AD Gene Smith no longer speaking to each other. We heard Ohio State insiders back in September saying that this would be his last year in Columbus.

Something happened that ultimately pushed Urban out. We may never know the whole truth. But from my point of view, I'd be shocked if this is it for Urban Meyer and coaching.