Thursday, 21 November 2024

Urban Meyer

Contest: The US Athletic Hall of Fame - Coaches 2024
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Sport(s): Football
Statistics: 3 NCAA National Championships (2006, 2008 & 2014)
3 Big Ten Championships (2014, 2017 & 2018)
2 SEC Championships (2006 & 2008)
2 Mountain West Championships (2003 & 2004)
2 Mountain West Coach of the Year Awards (2003 & 2004)
1 MAC Coach of the Year (2001)
187-32 NCAA Football Record
12-3 Bowl Record
Urban Meyer's coaching career began as positional coaches with Illinois State, Colorado State, and Notre Dame before securing his first head coaching job at Bowling Green in 2001. Meyer was only with the Falcons for two years but won the MAC Coach of the Year as a rookie and won 17 games over two years.

Meyer’s next stop was the Mountain West with Utah, where his success grew with two conference titles, and Liberty Bowl (2003), and a Fiesta Bowl (2004) in an undefeated season. The Utes had never been better, but a higher-profile school came calling in Florida.

The six seasons that Meyer was the Gators' head coach was the best half-decade in school history. Meyer led them to wins in the BCS National Championship in 2006 and 2008. In the years that Florida did not finish number one, Meyer scored two wins in the Outback Bowl (2005 & 2010) and a Sugar Bowl (2009). The Gators were a sparkling 65-15 under Meyer, but a valid criticism was that his last year was his worst and that there were allegations of a toxic culture. He resigned after the 2010 season but was not away from the sidelines for long.

Meyer was announced as the new head coach of Ohio State, and they were undefeated, going 12-0. The Buckeyes were under sanctions and could not compete in a bowl, but they were still among the best in college football, a status that remained throughout his Buckeyes run.

Ohio State lost the Orange Bowl in 2013, but in his last five years, the Buckeyes never had a post-season rank below six. The Buckeyes won the National Championship in 2014 and captured the 2015 Fiesta Bowl, 2017 Cotton Bowl, and 2018 Rose Bowl.

Meyer retired after the 2018 season, but as of this writing, he is set to coach the Jacksonville Jaguars, his first foray into the NFL.

We are proud to nominate Urban Meyer for the United States Athletic Hall of Fame.

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