After nearly 12 hours of meetings on Wednesday, Ohio State University announced at a nighttime press conference that Urban Meyer will be suspended for the first three games of the Ohio State season, following an investigation into his handling of domestic abuse allegations against former assistant coach Zach Smith.
The investigation concluded that both Meyer and athletic director Gene Smith wrongly believed they did not have an obligation to report claims of domestic violence against Zach Smith in 2015, because law enforcement did not file charges. The investigation added that, although Meyer “made significant misstatements” at Big 10 Media Day regarding the 2015 incident between Zach Smith and his wife, Courtney, he was “not part of a deliberate cover-up effort to keep Zach Smith on the coaching staff in the face of evidence of domestic violence.”
“Although neither Urban Meyer nor Gene Smith condoned or covered up the alleged domestic abuse by Zach Smith, they failed to take sufficient management action relating to Zach Smith’s misconduct and retained an Assistant Coach who was not performing as an appropriate role model for OSU student-athletes,” the summary of findings said. “Meyer is suspended through September 2, 2018, and for the games on September 1, 8 and 15 without pay. Gene Smith is suspended without pay from August 31-September 16.”
Meyer will miss games against Oregon State, Rutgers and TCU. He is entering his seventh season as head coach of the Buckeyes, and currently holds a record of 73-8, with one national championship.
The full release is embedded below: