Tag: Urban Meyer (Page 4 of 9)

      Florida officially cuts ties with Urban Meyer to avoid violations

      February 2, 2011 /

      The SEC and NCAA was suspicious when Urban Meyer signed a deal to become a college football analyst less than two months after he resigned from Florida. So to avoid being USC’d, the Gators officially cut ties with Meyer on Wednesday.

      From the Orlando Sentinel:

      Meyer had remained on UF’s payroll in an undefined role since resigning as coach in December. But earlier this week when he signed a deal to become a college football analyst for ESPN, it raised red flags with the SEC and NCAA. After UF contacted those organizations about the potentially problematic situation, the wheels were set in motion for Meyer to being taken off the university’s payroll.

      It would have been a dicey situation for UF and possibly against NCAA rules had Meyer, who is appearing today on ESPN’s coverage of National Signing Day, publicly discussed potential recruits as a paid employee and representative of UF.

      Former coaches join TV networks all the time, so it’s not surprising that Meyer would do the same after resigning as head coach at Florida. But one would think that UF was paying him more than ESPN, right? Not that he needs the money, but this wouldn’t be Meyer’s way of forcing Florida to cut ties with him so he would be free to sign with another school, would it?

      Nah, you’re right. He’s not that devious. No way he doesn’t resurface at Ohio State in a couple of years…

      On a semi-related note, did a bitter Gator fan write the intro for Meyer’s Wikipedia page? Check this out:

      Urban Oscar Meyer, III (born July 10, 1964) is a college football analyst for ESPN, a retired American college football coach and former bench warmer…He is best known for his exclusive, romantic relationship with quarterback Tim Tebow, as well as coaching the Florida Gators to two BCS National Championship Game victories during the 2006 and 2008 seasons…

      Former bench warmer? His exclusive, romantic relationship with quarterback Tim Tebow? Ouch.

      Hey, I’m not saying those two references aren’t statements of fact. I mean, look at that photo up above and tell me you know exactly where Meyer’s hands are (and aren’t). But one would think that someone with Meyer’s best interest at heart wouldn’t have painted him in that light.

      College Football, External Sports

      Would Chris Petersen leave Boise State to coach at Florida?

      December 10, 2010 /
      Nov 6, 2010; Boise, ID, USA; Boise State Broncos coach Chris Petersen during the game against the Hawaii Rainbows at Bronco Stadium. Boise State defeated Hawaii 42-7. Photo via Newscom

      If this were Bobby Petrino, it would take him all of four minutes to clean out his office at Arkansas and be on the first plane to Gainesville.

      But Bobby Petrino Chris Petersen is not. To Petersen, loyalty still means something, which is one of the reasons he may stay right where he’s at in Boise.

      Since Urban Meyer stepped down at Florida, Petersen’s name has been brought up in connection with the Gators’ open head coaching job. And why not? He’s compiled a 60-5 record at Boise State and has turned the program into a yearly national title contender (even though the BCS would never allow the Broncos to actual contend for a championship). He should be the type of coach that Florida wants to replace Meyer. He has a great work ethic, his players love him and perhaps no coach in college football gets the most out of his recruits as Petersen does at Boise State.

      But would he even want to leave Idaho? The assumption is that every head coach wants to land a bigger and better job, but the SEC is a different animal. If he took the Florida job, Petersen would have to recruit in the SEC (something he’s never done) and coach SEC-caliber talent (another thing he hasn’t had to contend with at Boise). Former Bronco coaches Dirk Koetter and Dan Hawkins also struggled when they left Idaho, so that’s something to consider as well.

      That said, it would be insane to think that Petersen couldn’t recruit in the nation’s best conference or that he couldn’t handle blue chip prospects. But maybe he doesn’t want to either. He has long stated how happy he is coaching at Boise and seeing as how he’s not Petrino, I tend to believe him.

      Petersen has a good thing going at Boise and it’ll be interesting to see if his name grows synonymous with the Florida job over these next couple of months. For right now though, it seems likely that he’ll stay put.

      College Football, External Sports

      Urban Meyer stepping down at Florida – will he reunite with Tim Tebow in Denver?

      December 8, 2010 /
      NEW ORLEANS - JANUARY 01: Quarterback Tim Tebow #15 hugs head coach Urban Meyer of the Florida Gators after scoring a touchdown against the Cincinnati Bearcats during the Allstate Sugar Bowl at the Louisana Superdome on January 1, 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

      It hasn’t quite been a year since Urban Meyer first said that he was stepping down as head coach of the Florida Gators. Right after Christmas last year, he cited health problems as the reason he would resign but then he changed his mind a day later.

      Apparently he’s changed his mind again.

      According to a report by AOL Fanhouse’s Brett McMurphy, Meyer will step down on Wednesday. McMurphy tweets that there will be a press conference this evening (rumor has it that it’ll be at 6:00PM ET) to announce the decision.

      Considering his short leave of absence in between the ’09 season and the 2010 season (as well as the down year Florida just experienced), I guess this news isn’t all that shocking. He didn’t appear to bring the same excitement and passion to the sidelines as he did in previous years when Tim Tebow was his quarterback. He’ll leave Florida after compiling a 64-15 overall record, which includes two national championships.

      Speaking of Tebow, what are the chances Meyer joins his former pupil in Denver? It’s probably just coincidence that the Broncos fired Josh McDaniels just days before Meyer quit at Florida, but all the pieces fit. He loves Tebow. Tebow loves him. The Broncos need a head coach and oh, what’a know – Meyer needs a job now.

      Another thing to consider is that the Broncos are in a tough spot. Not every coach wants to work with a massive project like Tebow and McDaniels left them as a team without an identity. Meyer could remedy both of those situations but who knows if he’ll even want to coach again in the near future. There’s a strong possibility that he needs time off (for health reasons and otherwise) and hasn’t even considered joining the NFL ranks.

      I’m sure within the next couple of hours the Broncos will deny wanting anything to do with Meyer and Meyer will do the same. “The Broncos? Yuck – I hate that team,” Meyer will say. But how many times has a college head coach lied about his future plans? Bobby Petrino just lied to someone, somewhere two and a half seconds ago.

      A Meyer-Tebow reunion in Denver seems a little to perfect right now but nothing should be ruled out.

      College Football, External Sports, NFL

      It doesn’t get any better than Saban vs. Meyer (and several other great games)

      October 2, 2010 /
      ATLANTA - DECEMBER 06: Head coach Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide congratulates head coach Urban Meyer of the Florida Gators after the Gators 31-20 win in the SEC Championship on December 6, 2008 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

      Say what you want about Nick Saban and Urban Meyer (and believe me, there’s plenty to say about both of them), but they are very likely the two best coaches in college football right now.

      The duo has combined for four national titles since 2003, and it wouldn’t be that far fetched to say they’ll combine to win another four in the next eight seasons. Alabama and Florida are at the top of the college football heap, and will continue to be there as long as these two men are at the top.

      Apparently, they could have been together, but Saban big-timed Meyer and didn’t return his call in 1990. In Saban’s defense, 1990 was before caller ID (right?) and maybe his wife lost the phone number, or took it down wrong. Or maybe Saban is a big-timer (this is probably more likely). Either way, Urban seems to have forgiven him. Probably because he’s done well enough for himself since then.

      Their teams play each other today, in what’s probably the game of the day when you consider everything (records, rankings, history, etc.). Click ahead to see who wins that one and more. Continue reading »

      College Football, External Sports

      Game 1 of the post-Tebow era in Florida goes, um, not so well

      September 4, 2010 /
      NEW ORLEANS - JANUARY 01: Tim Tebow #15 of the Florida Gators hugs his head coach Urban Meyer after scoring a touchdown against the Cincinnati Bearcats during the Allstate Sugar Bowl at the Louisana Superdome on January 1, 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

      Urban Meyer probably has this photo framed in his house. He’s probably going to sit in front of it tonight and weep.

      The 34-12 score in Florida’s opening win against Miami (OH) doesn’t necessarily send up any red flags, but anyone who watched it knows that there could be some serious trouble in Gainesville this fall. The Gators managed 235 yards of total offense against a MAC team that had one win last year. One. In the MAC.

      And that doesn’t even begin to tell the story. The Gators’ offensive numbers were helped tremendously by a 72-yard run from Jeff Demps early in the fourth quarter. It was the kind of play Florida fans expect from the countless number of exceptional athletes the team puts on the field each Saturday. It was also nearly half of the team’s offense. The Gators gained 177 yards in the fourth quarter. I’m not a math major, but I think that means they only had 58 yards in the first three quarters.

      To be fair to new starting quarterback John Brantley, it wasn’t all his fault the offense sputtered (he was 17-for-25 for 113 yards and two touchdowns). The Gators generally looked out of sync, and suffered from a severe case of fumbilitis. They coughed up the ball six times, giving away three of them. You think Nick Saban is going to have his boys tackling the ball when Alabama and Florida meet?

      Sure, it was the first game and I’m assuming the Gators weren’t exactly that fired up to take on the RedHawks. And Meyer was probably only working with about a quarter of the offense. But based on sheer athleticism, you think Florida would have made up for that.

      The defense was stout, as you would expect it to be, and forced four interceptions while holding Miami to 211 yards of offense. But if the offense plays anywhere near this bad against a good team over the next 11 games, I don’t know if the defense can hold up.

      College Football, External Sports

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