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Who is Urban Meyer?
A football enthusiast or anyone involved with football will recognize the name Urban Frank Meyer III. Urban Meyer is a retired American collegiate basketball player and coach. He is like Tim Tebow and Cardale Jones and has won an NCAA championship.
He is currently employed at Ohio State University as the Assistant Athletic Director.
Aside from that, he is a weekly analyst for Fox Sports on a pre-game show called Big Noon Kickoff.
Meyer, a former football player who went on to become a coach and pundit, is someone you can’t stop talking about.
So, in this post, we’ll learn all about his bittersweet path.
Urban Meyer | Childhood
Meyer was born on July 10, 1964, in Toledo, Ohio, to Bud Meyer and Gisela Meyer.
He was, however, raised in Ashtabula, Ohio.
In 1982, he completed his high school studies at Ashtabula’s Saint John High School.
Meyer was drafted as a shortstop by the Atlanta Braves in the 1982 Major League Baseball Draft.
Furthermore, he played two seasons in the Braves organization playing minor league baseball.
He went on to attend the University of Cincinnati, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology in 1986.
He attended the University of Cincinnati as a defensive player and was a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity.
He also holds a master’s degree in sports administration from Ohio State University (1988).
Urban Meyer | Coaching in the Beginning
Meyer spent a season as a defensive back coach at Saint Xavier High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, after starting as a defensive back and fill-in for the University of Cincinnati.
The internship was overseen by Steve Rasso, the head coach of St. Xavier. College.
Urban’s first official academic coaching post was as a graduate assistant coach for tight ends under head coach Earle Bruce at Ohio State.
Similarly, he spent the following 13 years as an assistant coach, two at Illinois State, six at Colorado State, and five at Notre Dame.
Many talented people were coached by him. Among them was Colorado State WR Greg Primus, who had 3,096 yards and 17 touchdowns in three years.
During his stint at Notre Dame, he coached WR Bobby Brown, who had 1,521 yards and 12 touchdowns.
He also tutored WR David Givens, who was eventually drafted by the New England Patriots. It was in the year 2000.
Urban Meyer | Coaching Profession
Meyer earned his first opportunity as a Head Coach at Bowling Green in 2001.
Bowling Green won eight games in his debut season and nine games the following season.
After that, he advanced his career by joining Utah in 2003. Meyer’s team finished in the top 25 that year.
He guided the Utah Utes to victory in the Bowl Championship Series, defeating Pittsburgh in the Fiesta Bowl.
After his success tales went viral, he was approached by both the University of Florida and the University of Notre Dame for the role of head coach.
But he ultimately chose Floride. Meyer’s first team won 9-3 and finished 16th in the final poll, but his big success came when Florida won the battle for Tim Tebow.
Meyer earned the inaugural national championship in 2006 when his Gators defeated Ohio State in the BCS national championship game.
Meyer and his team had a big year in the BCS era in 2008.
The Gators triumphed 24-14, giving Meyer his second national championship.
Following that, the Gators defeated the Cincinnati Bearcats in the 2010 Sugar Bowl.
He announced his temporary retirement on December 26 after suffering from regular chest pains, headaches caused by gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), and an arachnoid cyst.
ESPN Analyst and Ohio State Buckeyes
Meyer joined ESPN as an analyst/commentator in 2011.
Later, he agreed to a six-year contract with Ohio State at $4 million per year, plus an additional $2.4 million in “retention fees.”
The Buckeyes defeated Michigan 12-0, but they will not be able to compete for the conference title under Urban’s leadership.
Meyer won his third national championship in his debut year in the college football playoffs in 2014.
He was only the third coach in FBS history to win the championship at two different campuses.
Season 2018, Scandals, and Suspension
In 2018, the head coach faced a number of conspiracies and scandals.
First, he was accused of failing to speak out about allegations of sexual assault and domestic violence against assistant coach Zach Smith.
Smith’s ex-wife, Courtney Smith, accused him of such wrongdoings.
Furthermore, she stated that many people connected to the assistant coach were aware of her husband’s 2015 domestic abuse allegation.
Nonetheless, nobody seemed to care.
Many sources say that Urban was aware of the issue, despite his denials.
They further stated that because the coach’s sole attention was on winning, he ignored the situation.
Later, he issued a statement on Twitter, saying, “My purpose was not to say anything wrong or misleading.”
However, I was not fully prepared to speak with the media about these sensitive personnel concerns, and I regret for how I handled those inquiries.”
In addition, while he was the head coach in Florida, 31 of his players were arrested.
Some were charged with misdemeanor battery, criminal domestic assault, felony theft, domestic battery, and other offenses.
Nonetheless, the athletes received few repercussions for their behavior.
Meyers also recruited and coached convicted killer Aaron Hernandez.
On August 22, he was suspended for the Buckeyes’ first three games of the season.
He was unable to play in the games against Oregon State, Rutgers, and TCU.
To summarize. He finished the season with a 12-1 record, winning the Big Ten conference and earning a spot in the 2019 Rose Bowl.
Meyer announced his resignation from coaching on December 4, 2018, following the team’s Rose Bowl game.
NFL Profession
Meyers was offered the opportunity to coach the NFL team Jacksonville Jaguars after a tremendous career as the head coach of incredible collegiate teams. On January 14, 2021, he signed with the Jaguars.
Urban Meyer’s Coaching Track Record
Team | Overall | Conference |
Bowling Green | 17–6 | 11–5 |
Utah | 22–2 | 13–1 |
Florida | 65–15 | 36–12 |
Ohio State | 83–9 | 54–4 |
Wife, kids, and personal life of Urban Meyer
Urban Meyer has been a coach for many years and has excelled in his career.
During his time as a student at Cincinnati, he met the love of his life, Shelley Mather.
She was a freshman nursing student at Sigma Chi’s Derby Days philanthropic event at the time.
On July 8, 1989, the couple married. Similarly, they have three children.
They have two daughters, Nicole Meyer and Gisela Meyer, as well as a son, Nathan Meyer.
Nickie, his daughter, also played Division I volleyball for Georgia Tech and Gigi for Florida Gulf Coast. They currently reside in Dublin, Ohio.
As of now, no rumors of their divorce have been spread.
And, maybe, they will be able to live happily ever after.
Philanthropist Urban Meyer
Along with being a terrific coach, Urban Meyer has proven to be a compassionate soul.
In partnership with Bily Donovan, the University of Florida’s head basketball coach, he helped generate a $50 million fund to support the Florida Opportunity Scholars Program.
This occurred on October 8, 2008.
This program is intended to assist newcomers in meeting their financial needs and engaging in self-improvement activities.
President Bernie Machen established the Florida Opportunity Scholars Program in 2006 to provide greater academic chances for first-year students.
Meyer and Utah football head coach Kyle Whittingham was also among the first to contribute to the Elder Joseph B.
Wirthlin Family Scholarship. As a result, the Utah football program will benefit from an endowed scholarship.
According to a recent poll, Urban Meyer has also donated $30,000 to the Tim Tebow Foundation to fight human trafficking.
The information may be found on his Instagram profile via the link in his bio.
Urban Meyer | Health Concerns
Warrior for Mental Health
Meyer, who is currently employed in Ohio, has long been vocal about mental health issues.
He talked about his struggles with depression and anxiety.
He was consumed with his work, resulting in sleep deprivation and a 40-pound weight drop.
Meyer eventually turned to sleep medications to get away from it all.
Meyer had a harsh personality, according to his wife, Shelley, a mental nurse.
He had assumed that people should deal with their difficulties on their own.
Meyer believed that every great coach should have a compulsive, obsessive, high-end, achieving personality.
However, he saw it as a blessing rather than a disease.
“It was just a tremendous pile of strain, stress, lack of control, and not accepting what he couldn’t control,” Shelley adds.
He refused to recognize that he could not control everything.
But, as they say, “time heals all wounds,” so we must be patient and have faith in God.
More than that, we believe in ourselves.
It’s just that we are well aware of the importance of embracing happiness in our life.
However, when it comes to troubles, we are not so eager to embrace them.
And I’m guessing Meyer had that capability.
Of course, by that point, everything had fallen into place.
The full narrative about Meyer’s fight with depression and anxiety may be found here.
Managing a Cyst
Meyer opened up about his health problem when the symptoms became visible in public.
Meyer first dropped down to his knees during the second half of a game against the Indiana Pacers.
Throughout his work, he has had to deal with cysts on a daily basis.
It appears laudable that he has minimized his agony, including his most recent brain surgery in 2014.
However, according to his doctor, Andrew Thomas, this causes severe headaches and can be dangerous in the long run.
Meyer’s illness necessitates a second surgery, but he has been avoiding it by using drugs.
Meyer’s medical situation is as difficult as the arachnoid cyst.
But his reaction to his health problem is carefree.
He wants to stick to his coaching routines.
He has been obstinate and dogmatic in his dedication to the Ohio States.
All that matters is his passion for his work and determination to lead the team to another Big Ten Championship.
Urban Meyer’s Salary And Net Worth
Meyer’s net worth has always increased despite his mental and physical challenges.
Urban Meyer is a great coach who is happy with everything.
Meyer’s professional title as Assistant Athletic Director at Ohio State University, as well as TV roles at ESPN and FOX, have all contributed significantly to his financial account.
Furthermore, he expects to be paid about $12 million by the Jaguars.
Furthermore, according to Yahoo Sports, Urban Meyer’s son Nate Meyer is attempting to follow in his father’s footsteps.
Nate has transitioned from being a baseball player to training to be a football coach.
He has also changed his major from commerce to psychology, as his father did at UC.
In terms of property, he owns a magnificent house in Muirfield, Ohio, which is valued at $1.45 million.
He formerly had a $1.7 million mansion in Gainesville.
His lavish Murifiled estate contains seven bedrooms, four full baths and four half baths, an in-ground pool, four fireplaces, a front, and rear yard, and a billiard room.
Aside from that, he runs the Urban Meyers Pint House restaurant in Dublin, Ohio.
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Urban Meyer | Online Presence
Urban Meyer may be found on Instagram and Twitter.
He has a large number of followers on his Twitter accounts, but not on his Instagram accounts.
Meyer has a highly supportive and passionate fanbase, and he wants to keep them engaged with both on- and off-the-field posts.
@CoachUrbanMeyer on Twitter has 1.9 million followers.
@urbanmeyercoach on Instagram has 79.2 thousand followers.