Late Wednesday evening, Ohio State released the full report from the committee investigating the Zach Smith controversy.
The 23-page report focused on the answers to three questions.
A. In the hiring, retaining, supervising and firing of former Assistant Coach Zach Smith, did Head Coach Urban Meyer (“Coach Meyer”) violate any Ohio State University (“OSU”) policies or rules, Title IX, NCAA rules, Big Ten Rules, Ohio State Ethics laws, any other state or federal laws, or his contractual obligations to OSU in connection with Zach Smith’s alleged commission of domestic violence against his former wife, including any obligations to report the alleged domestic violence?
B. When Head Coach Urban Meyer spoke at Big Ten Media Days on July 24, 2018 about the firing of Zach Smith on July 23, 2018, did he misrepresent his knowledge of a law enforcement investigation of Zach Smith in 2015 for possible domestic violence and, if so, did he do so intentionally?
C. What was the role of Athletic Director Gene Smith (“AD Smith”) in the above events and did he engage in conduct violative of any laws, rules, policies, or his contractual obligations to OSU in connection with those events?
As a result of the investigation, OSU suspended Meyer for the first three games of the season, and suspended Gene Smith from August 31 until September 16.
You can read the full report below.
TheOzone will have a detailed breakdown of the report online Thursday.
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What really irritates me is that ESPN is nothing but a bunch of really bad HYPOCRITS. They run down and criticize Coach Meyer and the OSU program, but elevate that sex fiend Tiger Woods as the greatest example of a sportsman even when this bozo, could think of a name something worse, had sex with many, I mean many other women, some while married to that beautiful and faithful Scandinavian woman. And recently she said she was still in love with him. Don’t understand that, but then maybe that’s the way of Scandinavian women So this is what ESPN does. To me Woods is a big jerk and disappointment as a human being as in sports as well. Yet the sports world, especially ESPN and the National Sports Coverage and the Golf Network want to show this jerk at every move, except for one, that being they have yet to show him going to the bathroom. Don’t be surprised if that doesn’t happen before long. There’s no way that sex fiend is on the same respected level as Jack Nicklaus and hundreds of well behaved and respected Golfers and that goes for even Coach Meyer. The recent charges against Coach Meyer are probably due him for not being on tip of it, but the action that is the cause of it all was not of his doing. It was his assistant coach. So anybody that tells me Tiger Woods is a great human being, forget it. In my opinion, he is a low level human being and a sex pervert. I hope ESPN reads this as well as the GOLF CHANNEL. In fact, I’ve been wondering when the Golf Channel was going to change their name to the Tiger Woods channel. Also, all the major networks who cover sports, specifically golf, do exactly the same elevation toward Woods by showing his every move that is totally unnecessary. More coverage should be given to the good guy golfers rather than this many times marriage cheater in my mind. If I had a daughter, I would never allow her to come within 100 miles of this sex fiend. Say what you want, but Coach Meyer is 10 times the individual than Tiger Woods!!
No one in the media will support Urban Meyer on local, national tv or radio because they don’t want to lose their job. They even said this won’t go away even when he is allowed to coach in the fourth game of the season. I would tell the reporters to ask only questions pertaining to football after every game. Any other questions about the whole Zach Smith situation will not be answered.
The Ohio bubble is a nice place to live, but you aren’t going to get a free pass from the rest of the world. This is just embarrassing. The decision not to suspend these Smith and Meyer is pretty much the same result as the decision not to suspend Tressel. How did that work out? So you’re saying covering up a few tattoos is in some way less serious an offenset as covering up possible domestic abuse?
https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/ohio-state-prioritized-football-over-integrity-in-rendering-its-verdict-on-urban-meyer/
At this point tOSU is being tried in the court of public option. As soon as it becomes clear that the result of this report is lost contributions and revenues, Ohio State will wash their hands of them, just like they did Tressel. Hopefully it’s only a matter of time.
Norman, you lost me with covering up domestic abuse. Police found no evidence of wife beating, Urban and Smith were not found guilty, but could do better. Justice is based on truth, not on the public mob and the media that is bent to a certain agenda. To me, what is embarrassing is that PC is now being put on display and being rejected by those who know the truth. Have a good day, this will blow over, when the media finds another brighter issue.
Kirk Herb. said it best, all in the CFB world need to realize that a police report and denials from the accused is not enough. A coach needs to dig and explore deeper. The coach is responsible for everyone’s behavior and the environment he creates for the well being of all. I expect Urban to be first and foremost a CFB coach who wins, who displays honorable behavior and models what is best. Urban is not a detetective, he can’t read minds, he is the not the 2nd coming of the Messiah, and he is not the morality police. Urban is ‘guilty’ because he works at a public U. that for the most part is forced to pay homage to PC dogma, and he got entangled into a messy marriage and a politically correct hot issue in which all men are basically assumed guilty. Time to move on, and behind Urban and this football team and OSU 100%.
This very report/investigation did “dig deeper” and they found the same thing that a university-led investigations they say Meyer should have conducted in 2015 would have found: nothing. . . no evidence of domestic violence. Because without the police and without sworn compulsion to tell the truth, what can really be done?
I agree. . .time to move on.
So you didn’t read the report. Noted.
The bottom line is that loyalty to players and staff will not and cannot be a priority for any coach or AD. All allegations, whether substantiated or not, must be referred to legal and compliance. Sorry, son, I love you but you must deal with legal and compliance. A sad day for human relationships. I’m not disagreeing with the future but merely reflecting on the implications. Obviously, more work for lawyers.
Fred, very, very wise words. Please don’t misinterpret my post to ignore that reality. The media has never shared your message so quickly, eloquently and succinctly as you just did. Too bad, many more couldn’t hear those words. Believe Kirk H. message was more about a warning to CFB coaches in the future, ‘heads up guys,’ and a way to tight walk between “Urban’s really not guilty, however, I need to stay in line with PC dogma that men are mostly guilty and society doesn’t care about the abuse of women, which are both blatantly false.
He lied in a public setting bringing dishonor to the university. That rates a suspension.
He admitted allowing his loyalty to Bruce to cloud his judgement. That rates a suspension.
He failed to properly report the incident. That is a violation of his contract:
“immediately report to the [Athletic] Director and to the Department’s Office of Compliance Services in writing if any person or entity, including without limitation, representatives of Ohio State’s athletic interests, has violated or is likely to violate or may potentially have violated any [applicable] laws,”
That rates a suspension.
If OSU gives the money from the suspensions to the Battered Women’s Shelter or a likewise group. In this manner it would help address a lot of of the allegations that OSU has a callous and arbitrary view of domestic violence. Also it would help the abused and be the RIGHT thing to do for OSU instead of just saving funds!
“The honor and mission of the university is vastly more important than any sport.”
Exactly. As an OSU fan and a college prof I see sports (and other activities) as adjuncts to the primary mission of any university. There has been tension between academics and big time sports for many years (See Murray Sperber, “Beer & Circus: How Big-Time College Sports is Crippling Undergraduate Education” (Henry Holt & Co. 2000).
Do you remember when Faculty Senate voted to deny Woody a Rose Bowl berth. I do. Universities reflect the values of society and sports have taken on great importance. On the other hand OSU fans are unaware of OSU Nobel laureates and most other academic and research advancements of prof and graduates. OSU Nobel laureates:
Paul Flory, 1974, Chemistry (PhD, Ohio State, 1934)
William A. Fowler, 1983, Physics (BS, Ohio State, 1933)
Kenneth G. Wilson, 1982, Physics (faculty, 1988-2002)
Of course a NC brings in more donor bucks than a Nobel prize.
Get off your academic high horse.
You academics get a pass too when there are millions of dollars at stake.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/08/science/cancer-carlo-croce.html
One story on your page and I have to click at the bottom to get to more stories? I’m going to start boycotting this site.
That has been changed. It was a server issue that has now been fixed.
I don’t know. Meyer made a number of errors, and at what point do you say the errors add up to an effort not to handle this properly. He lied to the public, this is indisputable. He may have lied, or at least had a bad memory, when he stated to investigators that Ms Smith recanted the 2009 allegation that led to Zach Smith’s arrest. Hell, even Zach Smith doesn’t remember this. How many times did Meyer threaten Smith with firing for repeated incidents? I think it was at least four, and all of them were different incidents? At what point does this become willful disregard for doing the right thing? And the whole deleting the messages on his phone smells of coverup. I give him credit that despite AD Smith’s willingness to give Smith another chance (WTF), Meyer did fire Zach Smith.
In the end, I think firing may have been too much of a reaction, but 3 games seems too light. But Gene Smith needs to be sacked. I think most of us can agree on that.
As to those who are whining that none of this should have happened, I would remind you that we are not some SEC football team masquerading as a university, but we are THE Ohio State UNIVERSITY that happens to field a (great) football team. The honor and mission of the university is vastly more important than any sport.
I disagree. I mean look at the hypocrisy. The report says Meyer/AD Smith should have started a university-based investigation even in the absence of police charges. Well. . . .this report, did not or at least could not determine whether any domestic violence occurred. So how can they expect anything different from a non-law enforcement investigation back in 2015?
And so what do we really have here? Is there even a victim?
Zack Smith deserved to be fired for a culmination of reasons, however this report did nothing to show that Domestic Violence was one of them.
There has been enough journalistic work done to bring doubt to Courtney Smith’s claims.
I hope my boss would be willing to protect me from unjustified media scrutiny. With that being said, I can’t constantly act like a jerk either. However, the outcry pushed by the alleged entanglement with domestic violence should not be quenched with further injustice against the head coach.
Well said MrBuckeye. I can’t find it in my heart to be ok with employers firing people and crawling up their backside with a microscope because of allegations. I can’t really blame Gene Smith and Urban Meyer for waiting on the results of an OFFICIAL POLICE INVESTIGATION to reach its final conclusion before making a decision about what to do. Why would anyone in their right mind think an employer would need to anything above and beyond an OFFICIAL POLICE INVESTIGATION? I just wish Urban wouldn’t have hired that bum in the first place, which is something he actually DID have complete control over. None of this mess ever would have happened in the first place had he not let a person of low character infiltrate the program in the first place.
Buckeynutt, very wise words, however, Urban saw this a chance to perhaps mold and help someone with some difficulty. The reality is that this is more a troubled marriage, then any thing else. Believe he was B1G recruiter of the year 2 out of 5 years.
Kurt:
I agree with you. I have no problem giving someone a second chance. I even believe Urban deserves one, which is why I’m glad he didn’t get fired. Having said that, I think the university would be wise to watch Urban from here on out, and watch him close. Exactly what Urban should have been doing to Zach Smith, and he should have tough love dumped his ass the first time he blew his second chance. I think even Urban would agree with that statement based on what he said last night. I’m a fan of Urban, I hope he makes the most of his second chance, I’m pulling for him 100%!