Perhaps The Jacksonville Jaguars Should Have Listened To Jim Harbaugh When It Comes To Urban Meyer
If you're a sports fan and you hear the name 'Urban Meyer', your initial thoughts are likely one of two things.
The first thing you might think of is the fact that Meyer is hands down one of the all-time greatest head coaches in college football history. Among all Power Five coaches with at least 100 wins, Meyer ranks third in winning percentage all-time at .853 - just behind two former Notre Dame head coaches Knute Rockne (.881) and Frank Leahy (.864).
With three national championships to his name, Meyer's name is cemented alongside some of the greatest to ever do it. In fact, only six head coaches have captured more national championships than Urban Meyer in college football history. Oh, and an impressive 7-0 record against the Michigan Wolverines as head coach at Ohio State isn't all that bad either.
The second thing you might think of is the word "controversy." While his success on the football field is undeniable, Meyer's entire college coaching tenure has been full of controversy.
During Meyer's tenure at the University of Florida from 2005-2010, a whopping 31 players would end up being arrested for various violations under his watch.
In 2018, Meyer was suspended for the first three games of the college football season after failing to report allegations of abuse by then assistant coach Zach Smith. To make matters worse, Meyer blatantly lied about the entire situation at Big Ten Media Days - further adding to the controversy.
Four games into his tenure with Jacksonville, Meyer (0-4) is creating more controversy for himself and those around him. With rumors already swirling about an unhappy locker room, Meyer was spotted at random bar in Ohio with a random woman not named 'Shelley' wilding out. I'll spare you the play-by-play, the video making its rounds on the internet speaks for itself.
Unfortunately for the Jags, they're getting all of the controversy without any of the success from Meyer - leading many to speculate that ownership is already looking for a way to cut ties. If only they had listened to Jim Harbaugh back in 2019, all of this could have been avoided for the good folks in Jacksonville.
Appearing on Tim Kawakami's The TK Show podcast from The Athletic back in 2019, Harbaugh was asked about Meyer's retirement. The man in the Block M hat didn't hold back.
"Urban Meyer's had a winning record," Harbaugh said. "A really phenomenal record everywhere he's been. But also, controversy follows everywhere he's been."
Touché, Mr. Harbaugh. Touché.
