SIAP: Meyer denies reports of "tension" within staff and between him and AD Smith
FWIW, Meyer was less emphatic in his denials about tension within the staff than he was about tension between him and Smith. Staff tensions have more of a short-term impact because Meyer can always fire the assistants who aren't on the same page. But tension with the AD is more of a long-term problem. Interesting, to say the least.
Meyer's denial of the report: http://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/25063601/ohio-state-buckeyes-coach-urban-meyer-denies-tension-ad-gene-smithOctober 23rd, 2018 at 6:23 PM ^
If it is true that urban and gene Smith do not get along and Urban ends up leaving then there is no way that Smith survives this. The people in Columbus will be so mad and will pin it on Smith, and they may very well clean house in the athletic department. Let's hope they hire their own Dave Brandon
October 23rd, 2018 at 6:45 PM ^
And Hoke. A good guy but also a complete and utter moron.
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:19 PM ^
Why not The Dave Brandon?
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:24 PM ^
the cokes would attract even more toothless truck drivers
October 23rd, 2018 at 8:34 PM ^
Brandon is available. That Toys-R-Us gig is just a holding spot.
October 23rd, 2018 at 6:35 PM ^
Stop me if you have heard this one before...Urban Meyer is asked a question by media and he denied...........
October 23rd, 2018 at 6:37 PM ^
No tension just a tug o war. Funny how the guilty twist the truth.
Mikey BS learned well from ohio,
October 23rd, 2018 at 6:38 PM ^
Despite how they looked against Purdue there is still time for OSU to figure things out. They have a ton of talented players and Michigan has to play them at their toilet bowl stadium and we know Delaney would rather seem them win the Big Ten. Michigan will have to beat OSU and the refs.
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:34 PM ^
Just like MSU was going to beat Michigan on Saturday?
October 23rd, 2018 at 9:07 PM ^
Although I don’t disagree with you that OSU has the talent and can figure things out, Saturday night felt a little different than past OSU losses. Besides the first td pass by Purdue all the other plays just seemed easy for Purdue. Iowa seemed to almost get lucky with a lot of their plays last year. Purdue was dominant and looked like the better team on Saturday night.
October 23rd, 2018 at 6:45 PM ^
This team has some serious off-field issues. They can deny it if they want but I think it has been showing all season long against average teams. It's possible their problems go a lot deeper than a coach who has headheadaches. Attitude and leadership issues will kill an otherwise good team.
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:24 PM ^
Agreed. They're coming apart at the seams. Consider the amount of talent they have, then consider that this was the worst loss of the Urban Meyer era, the 2nd biggest win of Purdue's season (and most points so far), and it was, uh, Purdue. That doesn't happen unless there's serious discord among the team and the coaching staff.
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:45 PM ^
I think there hasn't been enough attention paid to how the Smith situation could impact at least some of the players, particularly the ones he coached.
Here's a white authority figure who they may like or at least respect behaving like a complete piece of shit with no accountability. Meanwhile, he's being paid a fortune to coach them and demand that they be accountable for their off field behavior.
Meanwhile the head coach -- who makes even more of a fortune and is the face of the team and (at least in words) demanding accountability in treatment of women -- was aware of it and did nothing. They're smart enough to see through this.
For anyone, and certainly a kid, there is going to be some cognitive dissonance and confidence/doubt/trust issues.
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:03 PM ^
If I were a scumbag multimillionaire college football coach who’s program was falling apart due to insane amounts of internal “tension” . . . This is EXACTLY what I would say.
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:10 PM ^
Yeah, he was also more emphatic about denying ever having received a text message from his wife, so....yeah.
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:11 PM ^
I think we can all agree (and even most Buckeye fans probably would too) that Urban Meyer has many more days behind him in Columbus than he does in front of him.
At Florida, he got out just before all the rot eating away at the underside of the program became obvious. They curse his name there now, even though he won two national championships in six years, because of how badly the program collapsed right after he left. I wonder if, five years from now, Urban Meyer will be regarded the same way among the Ohio State fanbase.
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:21 PM ^
I don't know. That fan base isn't very bright.
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:23 PM ^
No argument here.
Right now they're all about how poor Urban was unjustly punished for the actions of a bad apple and how all of that has effected his health and well being. I wonder if their tune will change if the bottom drops out like it did at Florida.
October 23rd, 2018 at 8:42 PM ^
We can only hope! I agree with your thoughts. Urban sold Florida out with his win at all cost mentality - he is doing the same at O$U.
I'm in the camp that says he gone after this year.
October 23rd, 2018 at 9:06 PM ^
Neither is ohio states
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:16 PM ^
Couldnt happen to a better guy. He is a classless and immoral individual and karma is biting him in the ass.
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:21 PM ^
Thing are going great! And they're only getting better.
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:33 PM ^
I usually don't believe anything from bleacher report. And I'm not sure I believe that Urban and Gene are having problems. But I do believe that this team is coming apart at the seams, and they split their pants real good in primetime this past week.
First, I don't believe that they are fully "over" the Zach Smith firing/Urban's suspension. Sure they came together and beat TCU, but the kumbaya moment is over, and reality is starting to set in. I do not purport to know what's going on behind closed doors, but it is easy to imagine that this has caused divisions among the team/coaching staff.
Finally, Bosa leaving the team is, frankly, shocking. Sure, I get it. He's hurt. He's not coming back this season. But there are plenty of well trained doctors at OSU, and a host of professionals that can be brought to bear in support of Bosa's health. I don't believe for a second that Urban would make him play hurt, or make him play in a game he doesn't want to play in (like Fournette did in the bowl game a few years ago). But at the same time OSU (at the time) was a team that had everything to play for. And, more to the point, could use his leadership for the balance of the season.
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:35 PM ^
ain't nobody go there to play skool........
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:37 PM ^
Good to see that the reports of tension are true...
October 23rd, 2018 at 7:40 PM ^
Hopefully, the next statement is from Gene saying he supports Urban. We all know what that means!
October 23rd, 2018 at 8:27 PM ^
Was he supposed to come out and say "Yep, it is true. There is friction between the coaching staff and myself and the Athletic Director"? Lol. Take this with a grain of salt.
October 23rd, 2018 at 8:49 PM ^
He must be bothered by the jersey sales.
October 23rd, 2018 at 8:57 PM ^
Maybe he forgot.
October 23rd, 2018 at 9:36 PM ^
He needs to survive long enough to be whipped once by JH...none of this retiring undefeated shit
October 23rd, 2018 at 9:48 PM ^
Here's my not so bold prediction. Meyer steps down a week or two before The Game citing health reasons thereby adding an asterisk for OSU fans to flaunt after Michigan demolishes a "broken" OSU team.