Urban Meyer: The Myth Of A Great In-Game Coach

Is Urban Meyer a great coach? Following a poor coaching effort last year against Michigan State, “The Game” may have exposed him.

Was Saturday another nail in the coffin that holds the “Urban Meyer is a great in-game coach” narrative? His team won, but the eye test says yes.

Meyer enjoyed a historic rise with brief and incredibly successful stops in Bowling Green and Utah before going to Florida. He won 10 games his first season helming the Utes and went undefeated in 2004, including a BCS victory.

As a Gator he won multiple national titles, including the 2007 Fiesta Bowl, a game I got to attend. In a stadium that was three-quarters scarlet and gray, OSU’s Ted Ginn returned the opening kick and the expected rout was on. Or not. Meyer’s Gators ended up running away with a 41-14 win.

Meyer took over the Buckeyes on probation and managed to finish undefeated his first season.

Two years later took a young Buckeyes team with a third-string quarterback to the College Football Playoff championship game. Few gave him a chance to beat Connor Cook and the defending Rose Bowl champions in East Lansing. He did. He won the Big Ten title game that year by over 50 points against Wisconsin. He fell Nick Saban in the title game. It was a run as impressive as it was unexpected.

The Spartans had their revenge last year by going into Columbus and beating Meyer with Tyler O’Connell at quarterback. MSU had an anemic offense without injured starter Cook, but OSU was even worse.

The weather was dreadful, and Meyer played it ultra-conservative against a wounded opponent. Meyer was criticized for the game from Buckeyes fans and players. Ezekiel Elliot famously announced he was done and going to the NFL.

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That same questionable strategy was employed yesterday in “The Game.” Ohio State’s first 14 points came from an interception returned for a touchdown and field position inside the red zone from another interception. Through three quarters OSU managed only 160 yards of offense.

Ohio State’s spread offense, something that has given Michigan fits dating back to the Jim Tressel era, did not fool the Wolverines for most of the game. Barrett was uncomfortable and missed easy throws.

He was high with most tosses, resulting in an interception in the third quarter. Barrett looked human against Michigan for the first time in his career as sack after sack broke him. Nobody was fooled.

The only risk Meyer took was possibly the dumbest risk ever chanced by a head coach in the Ohio State-Michigan series. Down by just three in the second half, Big Blue was rolling following the previously mentioned interception. Michigan fumbled at the OSU 1-yard line. Barrett was still bottled up but Ohio State was weathering the storm.

Meyer decided to try a fake punt from inside his own 20. It failed and Michigan went up 10.

Risks should be taken with play-calling, not with special teams. One does not make up for the other.

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It is a sign that Meyer’s gilt genius is chipping away under the Big Ten storm.

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