The Jacksonville Jaguars fired head coach Urban Meyer, according to a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter. He finishes his tenure with the franchise with a record of 2-11 and spent not even a full season with the franchise. Meyer signed a five-year deal with the franchise last year, and did not last through his first, tumultuous season in the NFL.
“After deliberation over many weeks and a thorough analysis of the entirety of Urban’s tenure with our team, I am bitterly disappointed to arrive at the conclusion that an immediate change is imperative for everyone,” said owner Shad Khan. “In the spirit of disclosure and recharging our players, staff and fan base, I will not comment further until some point following the conclusion of the NFL season.”
A legendary coach in college football history, Meyer came out of retirement to take the Jacksonville job and coach former Clemson star quarterback Trevor Lawrence. But before his time with the Jaguars even began, Meyer was in hot water for hiring former Iowa strength and conditioning coach Chris Doyle, who was accused of making racial remarks that led to his separation from Iowa. One day after Doyle was hired by Meyer, he resigned over the public pushback.
After an 0-4 start to the 2021 season, Meyer came under hot water once again for a viral video at a bar in Ohio. Meyer stayed in the state after his team lost to the Cincinnati Bengals while the rest of the team flew home. Meyer was caught on video and in pictures with a woman who appeared to be dancing on him. The woman was not his wife, Shelley, who tweeted that she was babysitting while Meyer was out, which she said was her choice.
After the pictures and videos went viral, Meyer apologized for his actions at his weekly press conference. Meyer said that his actions were, “stupid,” and he was upset that he had become, “a distraction,” for his team.
“I just apologized to the team and the staff for being a distraction, it’s stupid,” Meyer said. “I explained everything that happened. It was stupid. I should not have myself in that kind of position.”
Multiple reports surfaced within the week after the viral video, indicating that the team was both frustrated with Meyer and appeared to be losing respect for him as the head coach. Jaguars owner Shad Khan then released a statement on the issue, saying that Meyer had to earn the team’s trust and respect back.
“I have addressed this matter with Urban,” the statement read. “Specifics of our conversation will be held in confidence. What I will say is his conduct last weekend was inexcusable. I appreciate Urban’s remorse, which I believe is sincere. Now, he must regain our trust and respect. That will require a personal commitment from Urban to everyone who supports, represents or plays for our team. I am confident he will deliver.”
In early December, Meyer had more off-the-field drama surround the team, as reports leaked that Meyer belittled his assistant coaches, calling them losers and making them defend their coaching resumes. It also surfaced that Meyer had angered his players with his actions. After the Jaguars lost to the Tennessee Titans on Dec. 12, Meyer called it, “nonsense,” that the reports of the team’s struggles were leaking to the media.
Just when it seemed like things could not get much worse for Meyer in Jacksonville, they did. On Dec. 15, news leaked that Meyer kicked his kicker, Josh Lambo, during the preseason. Lambo accused Meyer of kicking him during the stretches and telling him to make his kicks.
“I’m in the lunge position. Left leg forward, right leg back,” Lambo said, per the Tampa Bay Times. “Urban Meyer, while I’m in the stretch position, comes up to me and says ‘Hey Dipsh, make your f**** kicks!’ And kicks me in the leg.”
Lambo told the newspaper the kick wasn’t a “love tap” and he threatened Meyer to never kick him again.
In addition to his off-field controversies, Meyer also made questionable moves for the team on the field. In the NFL Draft, Meyer took former Clemson star running back Travis Etienne, despite having James Robinson on the roster as an emerging star. He also signed Tim Tebow — his former college quarterback — to play tight end, despite being out of the NFL since 2015.
Meyer did get his first win of the season and his tenure in the NFL on Oct. 17. The Jaguars traveled to London to face the Miami Dolphins, where kicker Matt Wright came up clutch twice late. Wright hit a 54-yard field goal with 3:40 to play to tie the game at 20-20, and then nailed a 53-yard attempt as time expired, giving the Jaguars the win. Jacksonville snagged its second win of the season against the Buffalo Bills in early November with a 9-6 win.
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Before his initial retirement, Meyer had served as the head coach of Bowling Green, Utah, Florida and Ohio State. He won three national championships, seven conference championships and multiple Coach of the Year honors at various levels.