According to Ian Rapoport, the Jaguars have finalized a deal to make Urban Meyer their next head coach.
The Jaguars have already announced the move.
Statement from Jaguars owner Shad Khan:
“This is a great day for Jacksonville and Jaguars fans everywhere. Urban Meyer is who we want and need, a leader, winner and champion who demands excellence and produces results. While Urban already enjoys a legacy in the game of football that few will ever match, his passion for the opportunity in front of him here in Jacksonville is powerful and unmistakable. I am proud to name Urban Meyer the new head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars.”
Statement from Meyer:
“Jacksonville has an enthusiastic fan base, and the fans deserve a winning team. With upcoming opportunities in the NFL Draft, and strong support from ownership, the Jaguars are well-positioned to become competitive. I’ve analyzed this decision from every angle—the time is right in Jacksonville, and the time is right for me to return to coaching. I’m excited about the future of this organization and our long term prospect for success.”
Jacksonville zeroed in on Meyer from a pretty early point, and the two sides have been in discussions for a while. Things heated up with a meeting on Wednesday and came to a head today.
While the longtime college head coach and current TV analyst also received some interest from the Chargers, the Jaguars were always the leading contender to land Meyer
Meyer, 56, got his start in coaching in 1986 as a graduate assistant at Ohio State. He worked as an assistant coach at Illinois State, Colorado State and Notre Dame before getting his first head coaching position at Bowling Green in 2001.
Meyer moved on to become the head coach at Utah in 2003. In 2005, he was hired as the head coach at Florida before retiring due to health reasons in 2010. Meyer came out of retirement to take the lead job at Ohio State in 2012 and was in that position until 2018 before retiring again citing health reasons.
It’s worth mentioning while Meyer has been hospitalized for chest pains and migraines, both of his health-related retirements have followed off-the-field controversies, including how he handled a domestic violence accusation for one of his assistant coaches at Ohio State.
As a head coach, Meyer has a career college coaching record of 187-32 and has won three national titles at two different schools.
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