In November 2011, Urban Meyer took on the head coach position at Ohio State University, per ESPN. While with the Buckeyes, Meyer led the team to a National Championship win over the Oregon Ducks in the 2014 season, but his success would be cut short by a scandal cover-up that was revealed in 2018. In 2015, Courtney Smith, wife of OSU assistant coach Zach Smith, and Meyer’s wife, Shelley Meyer, exchanged text messages in which Smith described her husband’s spousal abuse and pushed Shelley to tell Meyer, as reported by AP News. At some point after this exchange, Meyer was aware of Smith’s behavior, but handled the situation internally rather than report it, which he was required to do under Title IX.
According to NPR, Meyer was suspended for three games in the 2018 season shortly after he fired Smith on July 23, 2018. Smith’s firing came as reports of a domestic violence civil protection order by his then-wife Courtney, were brought to Meyer’s attention. Though firing Smith was the right call, an investigation launched by Ohio State University found that Meyer knew about the abuse since at least 2015 and “failed to take sufficient management action” against Smith afterward, per Courier Journal.
With a season and reputation damaged by yet another scandal, Meyer announced his retirement from college football in a similar fashion to his departure from the University of Florida on December 4, 2018, once again citing his health as the main reason, as reported by CNN.
If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.
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