Drew Thurman (7:55 am)
Twitter blew up yesterday thanks to Bill Greene tweeting that Urban Meyer and Ohio State had reached an agreement. Eleven Warriors got this ball rolling, and now with Greene's latest details and others jumping on board, it's pretty clear this is more than just smoke. Obviously, things could still fall apart, but it appears an announcement could be made next week.
News this big will create a few vastly different responses. For most Buckeye fans this news will be met with excitement and complete idealism. With how things have gone over the last year and the fact that Urban has two national championships under his belt, that reaction seems perfectly understandable. There will be a small sect of fans who are still completely loyal to Tressel, hate Meyer after the '06 beat down, and will take much longer to accept him. Finally, there will be rival fans who will point to things like Urban's player arrest record or how he left things at Florida, and will provide plenty of negativity and hatred towards the whole thing.
So setting aside the bias that each of those perspectives offer, how should we really feel about Urban? Maybe even more importantly, what should expect from him? Let's take a look.
Twitter blew up yesterday thanks to Bill Greene tweeting that Urban Meyer and Ohio State had reached an agreement. Eleven Warriors got this ball rolling, and now with Greene's latest details and others jumping on board, it's pretty clear this is more than just smoke. Obviously, things could still fall apart, but it appears an announcement could be made next week.
News this big will create a few vastly different responses. For most Buckeye fans this news will be met with excitement and complete idealism. With how things have gone over the last year and the fact that Urban has two national championships under his belt, that reaction seems perfectly understandable. There will be a small sect of fans who are still completely loyal to Tressel, hate Meyer after the '06 beat down, and will take much longer to accept him. Finally, there will be rival fans who will point to things like Urban's player arrest record or how he left things at Florida, and will provide plenty of negativity and hatred towards the whole thing.
So setting aside the bias that each of those perspectives offer, how should we really feel about Urban? Maybe even more importantly, what should expect from him? Let's take a look.
THE SITUATION
I'm not sure there is a bigger name in the college football ranks than Urban Meyer. After the success he has had throughout the last decade, you place him in almost any situation he's going to draw fans and recruits in. Ohio State isn't just any normal place though, it's one of the top three or four programs in the country. That combination of Urban's woo and Ohio State's appeal has the ability to be lethal. Think Nick Saban and Alabama. Think Roy Williams and North Carolina. Think John Calipari and Kentucky.
The two factors that will play a part in Urban's success, at least early on, is the team he will inherit and the state of the B1G Conference. As to the team he could be taking over, it's not exactly like he has a rebuilding effort on his hands. While next year's team is currently looking thin on the offensive line and has question marks at wide receiver and linebacker, by and large this team is young and talented. The defense isn't losing anyone that really hurts and the offensive backfield is loaded with Braxton Miller and a stable of running backs. The conference, on the other hand, is in a time of major transition. While Michigan State and Wisconsin are currently on top, they're far from being powerhouses. Michigan is trending upwards, but some of that has been due to the downfall of Ohio State and Jim Tressel. Penn State is in the midst of a mess, and Nebraska and Iowa aren't even close to the Buckeyes in terms of talent. Urban would be walking into a very good situation.
THE COACH
Now it's easy to speculate what kind of head coach Urban is going to be based on his past. The problem is that we have no idea how Meyer's health or new found balance between family and work could play a factor moving forward. If the rumors are true, the formation of his staff (and the focus on it) could be an indication that his staff will play as much a part in the leadership of the team as ever before. If guys like Luke Fickell, Greg Studwara and Jon Tentua do end up making up part of his staff, fans will definitely see a new era after watching Jim Tressel's staff slowly go down hill with much of the leadership going through him.
We do know that Urban Meyer is a leader of young men, which we as Buckeye fans are used to seeing after watching Tressel for a decade. If we know anything from watching him in the past, it is that he is not afraid to build very close relationships with his players and support. We also know he isn't afraid to defend his players either. With that said, you better believe Meyer would be about supporting the traditions and legacy of Ohio State, even though he is a player-first kind of coach.
On the field is where Meyer could bring the biggest change to Ohio State's scenery, and to the B1G for that matter. First and foremost, he brings with him a very distinct style of offensive game planning. The Buckeyes have had far more talent than the rest of the conference for a decade now and have done little to maximize that advantage over that time period on offense. Meyer's spread option offense, though, is going to force B1G defenses to be spread out and defend sideline to sideline, something that most aren't equipped to do at all. While Meyer is sure to work on recruiting more team speed for the spread option, something that he criticized in his analysis of OSU from the booth at the Akron game, he already has some incredible weapons for utilizing it.
Now before I act like he is invincible, I do want to bring things back down. Meyer did seem to struggle more when Dan Mullen and Tim Tebow were not around at Florida. Some of that was due to his health and a lack of desire to continue coaching at that point, but he and his staff didn't seem near as efficient in scheming for the weapons on the roster. The guy obviously has a great track record even before Tebow and brings with him some valuable coaching experience from the SEC, but it is something for Buckeye fans to put in perspective. Tressel flat out dominated the B1G for a decade thanks to recruiting and a conservative style of football that produced consistent results. If Meyer becomes the head coach it will be interesting to see if he can achieve that level of consistency.
THE RECRUITING TRAIL
As I just mentioned, one of the things that put Ohio State on the top over the last decade was recruiting. Tressel not only put up a strong border around Ohio, but was able to pluck solid kids from around the Midwest as well as Florida. While this year has been a down year in comparison to some of the recent classes, Fickell and the staff have done an incredible job of still bringing in top tier Ohio talent. That's not good news for the rest of the B1G. The Buckeyes have arguably the second best class in the conference in 2012 despite possible sanctions and the uncertainty of the head coaching position. The program has basically recruited itself.
With Meyer in the mix you bring a big time name with that program, as I already mentioned above, and it could be an incredible combination. Especially if he somehow retains Fickell, I'm not sure who would be able to recruit with the Buckeyes in the B1G. The staff had already been out recruiting the conference in Georgia and Florida, and Urban Meyer and staff will bring even stronger connections to those areas. In the Midwest I think the excitement of playing for a two time National Champion at Ohio State will be too good to pass up. A great example is Adolphus Washington's commitment. Urban Meyer hasn't even been hired and he's already talking about playing for the guy.
Even in 2012 his name could completely swing that class around. Outside of Michael Thomas, all the commitments are Ohio natives. They're Buckeyes through and through. Urban jumps on board, though, and you better believe some Top 100 kids are going to start looking hard at coming to Columbus.
So there you have it. Urban Meyer is walking into a good situation and could be the difference in the Buckeyes seeing the light at the end of the tunnel or not. While he's not Tressel, and I'm sure at times will bother us in his own way, he is definitely a can't miss guy. Let's hope the speculation is true and that we get him for more than 5-6 years like the Gators. If he does, he'll go down in Buckeye lore!
I'm not sure there is a bigger name in the college football ranks than Urban Meyer. After the success he has had throughout the last decade, you place him in almost any situation he's going to draw fans and recruits in. Ohio State isn't just any normal place though, it's one of the top three or four programs in the country. That combination of Urban's woo and Ohio State's appeal has the ability to be lethal. Think Nick Saban and Alabama. Think Roy Williams and North Carolina. Think John Calipari and Kentucky.
The two factors that will play a part in Urban's success, at least early on, is the team he will inherit and the state of the B1G Conference. As to the team he could be taking over, it's not exactly like he has a rebuilding effort on his hands. While next year's team is currently looking thin on the offensive line and has question marks at wide receiver and linebacker, by and large this team is young and talented. The defense isn't losing anyone that really hurts and the offensive backfield is loaded with Braxton Miller and a stable of running backs. The conference, on the other hand, is in a time of major transition. While Michigan State and Wisconsin are currently on top, they're far from being powerhouses. Michigan is trending upwards, but some of that has been due to the downfall of Ohio State and Jim Tressel. Penn State is in the midst of a mess, and Nebraska and Iowa aren't even close to the Buckeyes in terms of talent. Urban would be walking into a very good situation.
THE COACH
Now it's easy to speculate what kind of head coach Urban is going to be based on his past. The problem is that we have no idea how Meyer's health or new found balance between family and work could play a factor moving forward. If the rumors are true, the formation of his staff (and the focus on it) could be an indication that his staff will play as much a part in the leadership of the team as ever before. If guys like Luke Fickell, Greg Studwara and Jon Tentua do end up making up part of his staff, fans will definitely see a new era after watching Jim Tressel's staff slowly go down hill with much of the leadership going through him.
We do know that Urban Meyer is a leader of young men, which we as Buckeye fans are used to seeing after watching Tressel for a decade. If we know anything from watching him in the past, it is that he is not afraid to build very close relationships with his players and support. We also know he isn't afraid to defend his players either. With that said, you better believe Meyer would be about supporting the traditions and legacy of Ohio State, even though he is a player-first kind of coach.
On the field is where Meyer could bring the biggest change to Ohio State's scenery, and to the B1G for that matter. First and foremost, he brings with him a very distinct style of offensive game planning. The Buckeyes have had far more talent than the rest of the conference for a decade now and have done little to maximize that advantage over that time period on offense. Meyer's spread option offense, though, is going to force B1G defenses to be spread out and defend sideline to sideline, something that most aren't equipped to do at all. While Meyer is sure to work on recruiting more team speed for the spread option, something that he criticized in his analysis of OSU from the booth at the Akron game, he already has some incredible weapons for utilizing it.
Now before I act like he is invincible, I do want to bring things back down. Meyer did seem to struggle more when Dan Mullen and Tim Tebow were not around at Florida. Some of that was due to his health and a lack of desire to continue coaching at that point, but he and his staff didn't seem near as efficient in scheming for the weapons on the roster. The guy obviously has a great track record even before Tebow and brings with him some valuable coaching experience from the SEC, but it is something for Buckeye fans to put in perspective. Tressel flat out dominated the B1G for a decade thanks to recruiting and a conservative style of football that produced consistent results. If Meyer becomes the head coach it will be interesting to see if he can achieve that level of consistency.
THE RECRUITING TRAIL
As I just mentioned, one of the things that put Ohio State on the top over the last decade was recruiting. Tressel not only put up a strong border around Ohio, but was able to pluck solid kids from around the Midwest as well as Florida. While this year has been a down year in comparison to some of the recent classes, Fickell and the staff have done an incredible job of still bringing in top tier Ohio talent. That's not good news for the rest of the B1G. The Buckeyes have arguably the second best class in the conference in 2012 despite possible sanctions and the uncertainty of the head coaching position. The program has basically recruited itself.
With Meyer in the mix you bring a big time name with that program, as I already mentioned above, and it could be an incredible combination. Especially if he somehow retains Fickell, I'm not sure who would be able to recruit with the Buckeyes in the B1G. The staff had already been out recruiting the conference in Georgia and Florida, and Urban Meyer and staff will bring even stronger connections to those areas. In the Midwest I think the excitement of playing for a two time National Champion at Ohio State will be too good to pass up. A great example is Adolphus Washington's commitment. Urban Meyer hasn't even been hired and he's already talking about playing for the guy.
Even in 2012 his name could completely swing that class around. Outside of Michael Thomas, all the commitments are Ohio natives. They're Buckeyes through and through. Urban jumps on board, though, and you better believe some Top 100 kids are going to start looking hard at coming to Columbus.
So there you have it. Urban Meyer is walking into a good situation and could be the difference in the Buckeyes seeing the light at the end of the tunnel or not. While he's not Tressel, and I'm sure at times will bother us in his own way, he is definitely a can't miss guy. Let's hope the speculation is true and that we get him for more than 5-6 years like the Gators. If he does, he'll go down in Buckeye lore!
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