He just has to win
Chris Dufresne
Los Angeles Times
Nick Saban said he was not going to be the next coach at Alabama, and then he was. The great ones don't have to be believable — they just have to win.
So what if Meyer double-talked and backtracked his way out of Florida? The only stat Gator fans should care about is two BCS titles in six years.
Meyer has a right to do whatever he wants, and we have the right to think he's 10 percent genius and 90 percent disingenuous.
But this yarn makes sense. Ohio State is a great job. Meyer is from Ohio. He is a former Buckeye grad assistant. He will win big there. It is a dream job. Will he be the last coach to say one thing and do another? Dream on.
He's ready to coach again
Teddy Greenstein
Chicago Tribune
The tweet came from a fellow sportswriter: "Urban Meyer announces retirement from family 'in order to spend more time with my job.'"
But we should give leeway to an athlete or coach. We're not in their shoes, and it's hard to know when to quit. Just ask Brett Favre, Bill Snyder, Michael Jordan or, uh, Brett Favre.
When Meyer left Florida, he cited health reasons and the desire to watch his kids compete in sports. The truer reason was burnout, but coaches don't like to use that word. It makes them appear weak, and it can follow them throughout a career (see: Vermeil, Dick).
So I do believe Meyer is ready to coach again. Or at least I believe that he believes it.
World changed, so did he
Dave Hyde
Sun Sentinel
Here's a scenario: Two years ago you say you'd never move back to your hometown. But in two years so much changes. Your job. Your outlook. Your family dynamics. And suddenly there's an opportunity that wasn't foreseen. Are you a liar if you move?
Or did you just change your mind in light of the changing world?
Urban Meyer is allowed to change his mind from things said a year or two years ago. This isn't Nick Saban saying he wouldn't be the coach at Alabama one week and taking that job the next.
This is Stan Van Gundy quitting the Heat, saying he'd had enough, and months later taking the Magic job.
Meyer gave Florida his best. Florida fans should wish him their best.
He's not to be trusted
Mike Bianchi
Orlando Sentinel
Who will ever forget Urban Meyer's introduction as the new head coach at Florida seven years ago when he said he had reached "the top of the mountain" in college coaching?
Guess it must have been foggy that day and Meyer couldn't see there was another peak in the distance — one even higher than the one he had reached in Gainesville:
O-Lie-O State.
The Buckeyes have replaced one coach who couldn't tell the truth with another.
Meyer took a job with ESPN almost immediately after he left UF and now it's becoming more clear what his health issues were: BareCupboard-itis. NoTebow-itis. NickSaban-itis.