Meyer thought he was ‘doing the right thing’
Coach’s interview airs on heels of 40-28 win vs. TCU.
The Buckeyes head coach, who has returned to his job, answers pointed questions from ESPN about the Zach Smith scandal.
Ohio State ended Urban Meyer’s suspension by beating TCU in Arlington, Texas, on Saturday night. Meyer began his return by doing an interview with ESPN that began airing Sunday morning.
In the edited seven-minute clip, Meyer was asked several pointed questions by interviewer Tom Rinaldi about how he handled allegations assistant coach Zach Smith abused his then-wife, Courtney.
Meyer admitted not telling OSU director of athletics Gene Smith that Zach Smith (no relation) had been accused of abusing Court- ney in 2009 when he worked for Meyer at Florida was a mistake. (Charges were filed but ultimately dropped.)
The head coach said he could not recall why he did not tell Gene Smith but that he did his own background check with Zach Smith’s subsequent employers.
“It came back very high marks,” Meyer said.
Meyer admitted in hindsight that was a bad decision.
However, he explained keeping Zach Smith on his staff despite allegations he abused Courtney in 2015 (a police investigation did not yield charges) by saying, “My intent was to try to help all involved. The only way that I knew how at the time, and I had two choices: fire a man and really put a family in upheaval financially, etc., or try to stabilize someone so you can go up and be a good father.”
At the conclusion of part one of the interview, Rinaldi asked Meyer, “Who protected Courtney Smith?” in the wake of her allegations.
“That’s a tough question,” Meyer replied after a long pause. “Now that all the information is out, now that I’ve learned more, if I fire him at the time, sever that relationship that I see with these two young kids ... that’s the way I’ve always thought. How do you help stabilize something? At the time, I thought I was doing the right thing.”
An independent investigation commissioned by the university ultimately found no effort by Meyer to cover up the 2015 allegation, which Gene Smith and the OSU compliance department were aware of.
However, the investigation also turned up several instances of bad behavior by Zach Smith, and Meyer was suspended for six weeks without pay and three games for mismanaging his employment.
(Gene Smith also was suspended for two weeks without pay.)
The team’s 3-0 start during Meyer’s absence turned out to be essentially an affirmation of the job Meyer has done on and off the field since being hired in late 2011.
While consistently bringing in top five recruiting classes, Meyer has stressed the importance of leadership within each position group to make sure that potential is maximized.
He also consistently reminds players their response to adversity can determine the outcome of a situation even when things are going wrong.
The Buckeyes needed that resolve after falling behind by eight points against No. 15 TCU on Saturday night, and acting coach Ryan Day credited Meyer when it was over.
“We’re just so excited to get Coach back next week,” Day said. “And obviously the culture that he’s built here is amazing and the foundation that he’s built here. And that’s what got us through these first three games and through preseason.
“The players that have been recruited here and coaches that are here have kept this thing going.”
Day, who returns to quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator upon Meyer’s return, said he was humbled by the opportunity to have the helm as long as he did.
“Even being here today and seeing all the Ohio State people who are here that traveled to Dallas for this game was amazing,” Day said. “Walking out, I looked around, (and) I couldn’t believe all the people traveled. Again, just honored to be part of it.”