Ohio State opts for suspension instead of firing Urban Meyer

After an independent investigation and lengthy deliberations, Ohio State has decided to retain head football coach Urban Meyer.

The biggest question in college football for the past month was whether Urban Meyer would keep his job as head coach at Ohio State University.

Meyer has been on administrative leave since Aug. 1. On that date, an interview with Courtney Smith, wife of former assistant Zach Smith, aired in which she assert that Meyers and others on his staff knew as early as 2015 that her husband had been abusing her. Zach Smith had been fired by Meyer on Jul. 23 after allegations of his past abuse were first publicly reported.

The decision was made after school administrators and the Board of Trustees spent more than 11 hours on Wednesday discussing Meyer’s fate. That decision — a three-game suspension.

A close reading of the press release seems to reveal that the investigation found Meyer and his staff did not go out of their way to hide what the new of Smith’s conduct, but they also didn’t deal with it. Even if that’s the case an argument could be made the Meyer is incredibly lucky to have kept his job.

A three-game suspension will have Meyer off the field for the Buckeyes games against Oregon State, Rutgers and TCU. Oregon State and Rutgers are unranked opponents but TCU is ranked No. 16 and that game could have significant implications for the Buckeyes’ hopes of making the College Football Playoff. Ohio State enters the season ranked No. 5. The team has won at least 11 games in each of the six seasons Meyer has been at the helm, including three bowl wins and a National Championship.

Next: 25 biggest villains in college football history

Meyer will be suspended without pay until Sep. 2. At that point he can rejoin the team for everything except the three games. Athletic Director Gene Smith was also suspended without pay, until Sept. 16, for his role in this mess.