ESPN article on Urban's Gators

[williston_gator]

@ClowESPN: Jeremy Fowler goes inside the "Circle of Trust," and looks at the rise and fall of the Gators under Urban Meyer. https://espn.go.com/college-footbal...rnandez-percy-harvin-rise-fall-florida-gators Wow.

 

[chferg]

Amazing...

Just incredible. There really isn't much to say after reading that.

 

[Gator Fever]

I doubt he would have been allowed to but can you imagine if Meyer was able to hand the job off to Addazio at the end of the 09 season. The one good thing that might have been is he wouldn't have got a whole 4 years like Muschamp to keep running us into the ground.

 

[ufgator812]

Yep.

Sent from my LG-V410 using Tapatalk

 

[ATXGator]

I think Meyer learned from his time at Florida and has put that knowledge into place at Ohio State. I think Meyer knew that he broke Florida and he didn't have the energy or desire to fix the problem he created. Meyer quit on the team and the program... I don't think anybody really doubts that at this point. I don't think anybody buys into the "time with family" thing. There are some who buy into the medical thing, I am not one of them. I also don't know of anybody who doesn't still relish the 2 championships and success we had during his years.

I also don't think it is fair to blame Florida's problems today on Meyer. While I think Muschamp had a tough cleanup job to do, he failed to recruit key positions in numbers and while he improved the culture from a "problem child" standpoint... I am not sure he ever fixed the entitlement issue. We saw last week that our players think if they beat New Mexico State they are entitled to just show up.

 

[Captain Sasquatch]

It was a miracle we went undefeated in 2009. (Well, until Atlanta)

 

[gatormandan]

Thank you Urban for some very fun years and 2 NCs....

 

[WobbleGator]

 

[ATXGator]

Another article by Fowler talks about how Meyer is still there if Cam was mentally ready... I think we all agree with that...

https://espn.go.com/college-footbal...ida-gators-teammates-wondering-lost-potential

 

[TheDouglas78]

Not that surprising... the fall of the empire started in 2009. I'm pretty sure we all knew that.

 

[Gulfstream]

Meh. Just more confirmation as to what was being whispered in some circles.

 

[biggator6]

Pretty comprehensive... damning, but comprehensive

 

[TheDouglas78]

Meh. Just more confirmation as to what was being whispered in some circles.

I would say more than whispered, just people turned a blind eye to it because of the greatiness. I think it is similar to the situation in Dallas Cowboys in the early 1990's. A team brimming with talent, but questionable characters. It was going to come crashing down, and once you loose the strong head influence (ie Meyer burning out and Strong leaving compared to Jimmy Johnson leaving) then wheels were going to come off.

 

[maheo30]

This article is kind compared to stories that local writers have reported.

 

[Alagator]

Just as I suspected. It's all Meyer's fault!

 

[NavetG8r]

Meyer was amazing at recognizing that killer instinct in players. Only the cream of the crop made it on his recruiting list.

 

[TheDouglas78]

Meyer was amazing at recognizing that killer instinct in players. Only the cream of the crop made it on his recruiting list.

He definitely had that killer instinct.

 

[GatorBart]

I saw that on ESPNs page and really had no interest in reading it. Still don't. Moving on.

 

[bradgator2]

I'm surprised his affair wasn't mentioned.

 

[alcoholica]

I'm surprised his affair wasn't mentioned.

that "rumor" still doesn't get the airplay it deserves in the context of him leaving. Players knew it, so you know it's not a secret. I really don't know any of the details other than he "allegedly" cheated on his wife with a younger women and his wife found out.

The other thing not really spoken of is that he basically had the OSU job before he left. So here's the timeline.

April 2010 - Tressel is aware of potential NCAA violations
12/7/2010 - Justice Dept notifies OSU that is had several pieces of OSU memorabilia in the tattoo parlor
12/8/2010 - Meyer announces retirement from UF
3/8/2011 - OSU suspends Tressel for 2 games
5/30/2011 - Jim Tressel resigns from OSU

I know from a very reliable source that Meyer and OSU verbally agreed to terms within the week following Tressel's resignation. So it's not difficult to connect the dots. Tressel finds out that something is going on. At some point he tells the University. When OSU is contacted by Justice, they realize they can't keep a lid on it. Three months later, Tressel is suspended. Nearly three months later he resigns and verbal agreement reached with Urban.

Some assumptions must be made.
1) At some point between Urban's 1st retirement and 2nd retirement, he is in contact with OSU
2) At some point prior to 12/7/2010, OSU has put together a plan and already knows Tressel's resignation is a legitimate possibility

It really isn't a tough call for Urban. He's burned out and wants out. The time table is perfect. He formally accepts the job just shy of a year from his 2nd retirement. He looks like an a-hole to UF fans, but no one else really cares. He likely had influence over the interim coach decision. If Tressel didn't resign, Urban still got out of UF, recharged his battery, and had a good job. He would be the most sought after college football coach until he decided what job to take.

I think Urban knew that the Tressel resignation was more likely to happen than not, and if it didn't happen he would still be out from UF.