Urban Meyer, the football coach who led Ohio State to the 2014 national championship, is on paid administrative leave in the wake of reports he may have known of domestic-violence allegations against an assistant coach but continued to employ him on the Buckeyes’ staff.
“The university is conducting an investigation into these allegations,” a statement from Ohio State read. “We are focused on supporting our players and on getting to the truth as expeditiously as possible.”
Ohio State fired wide receivers coach Zach Smith on July 23, days after an Ohio judge issued a protection order that forbids Smith from getting within 500 feet against his ex-wife. A report Wednesday by college football reporter Brett McMurphy alleged that Meyer’s wife, Shelley, knew about Smith’s abuse at least as far back as 2015.
Shelley and Urban Meyer have been married for more than three decades. Shelley Meyer is an instructor of clinical practice at Ohio State’s College of Nursing, according to the university’s website.
An expanded version of this report appears on WSJ.com.
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