The Home Stretch: Urban Meyer Prepares For His Final Weeks At UF
Friday, December 10, 2010 | Football, Scott Carter
TAMPA – Urban Meyer's down time will come later. On the day after sending shock waves through the college football world by announcing he was resigning as Florida's head coach after the Jan. 1 Outback Bowl against Penn State, Meyer was back at work and on the go Thursday.
Meyer's workday started with a morning practice on campus and ended with a dinner of salad and steak – from Outback of course – on a private charter 8,000 feet above Central Florida on a flight back to Gainesville.
Meyer spent much of his day here attending an Outback Bowl press conference with Penn State coach Joe Paterno. In six seasons at Florida, Meyer has as many national titles as Paterno, major college football's all-time winningest coach.
But as the two sat backstage chatting quietly while a large crowd waited on the other side of the curtains for them to discuss their matchup in the Outback Bowl, Meyer hung on Paterno's every word.
“He is a great friend and he's a guy I have admired since I got into coaching because he does it right,'' Meyer said. “I spend every second I can with him when I'm in the same place as him. I've studied Coach Paterno. I take a notebook every time I'm with him.''
BACK TO WORK
There was no change of heart this time after announcing he was stepping away. Meyer woke up Thursday morning and started his day like so many others since arriving at UF. The Gators practiced in the chilly morning air in preparation for his final game.
Once practice ended and Meyer began to focus on the trip to Tampa, one of his last tasks was to find a black belt. Wearing a tan sports coat, a white dress shirt and dark slacks, Meyer scrambled to find the last piece of his wardrobe.
A staff member came to the rescue, and Meyer headed to University Air Center to meet Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley and Steve McClain, UF's associate athletic director for communications, for the 30-minute flight to Tampa.
Meyer was relaxed, content with his decision to step down to spend more time with his family and pursue other interests away from the field. On the flight to Tampa, Meyer grabbed a late lunch and mostly talked with Foley.
Once they arrived at a small executive airport near Raymond James Stadium, a limo waited outside where an Outback Bowl official joined them for the drive over to the stadium.
Back on the ground, the coach in Meyer quickly came out. He wanted to know about UF's practice site while in Tampa for the bowl game. Meyer made a call to a staff member who was in town to check out the site at the University of Tampa. After hanging up, something in the limo caught Meyer's attention: a large ring on the Outback Bowl official's hand.
It was the bowl's championship ring from a past season. Meyer was obviously impressed by the hardware, briefly examining it as the limo pulled up to the stadium.
QUESTIONS ABOUT HIS FUTURE
With Meyer's announcement on Wednesday that the Outback Bowl – his 80th game as the Gators' coach – will be his final game, a larger-than-normal group of media showed up at Thursday night's event.
Paterno arrived a few minutes earlier and was already doing television interviews when Meyer and Foley walked in. Meyer quickly took his place in front of the cameras and for the next half hour, did several rounds of TV interviews.
After he was done, it was time for a more casual session with writers. Meyer took a seat in a large leather chair and as he answered questions, he signed 40 commemorative Outback Bowl footballs being handed off by McClain during the 19-minute session with reporters.
Meyer reiterated that he was at peace with his decision to step down and said he wants to remain part of the game and UF in some capacity.
“I want to be a part of college football. I don't know [how]. I'm still working on that. I want to help,'' Meyer said. “I've been asked and requested to remain at Florida as long as they will have me. They have been very gracious. I'm here to help in any way. I've got an idea, but we have to wait until the new coach gets in here.''
Meyer's tone turned most personal when discussing his family and his wife Shelley's support of his decision to step away from coaching. One of Meyer's first plans after the Outback Bowl is to take a day to visit Florida Gulf Coast University, where his youngest daughter Gigi has committed to play volleyball next season.
Meyer hasn't seen the school. He also plans to get involved as an assistant coach on his son's baseball team and doesn't plan to miss Family Day next year at Georgia Tech, where his oldest daughter Nicki plays volleyball.
And he will be at home more to hang out with Shelley, who has kept the family intact all these years while Meyer moved up the coaching ladder and made a name for himself. How did she react to his decision to resign – again – after going through the same thing a year ago?
“She was great. She was not great last year,'' Meyer said. “That was really a tough deal last year. That had a lot to do with this year. I just hope you guys never have to go through what I had to. I've never been closer to my family. That was an eye-opener. The relationship I've got with my wife and my children, if it's 1 out of 10, it's 11.''
FACING THE CROWD
Once his media obligations were over, Meyer talked with former NFL coach Jon Gruden, now a Monday Night Football color analyst who is working the Outback Bowl for ABC, and took a round of pictures with Paterno.
Meyer looked at ease as Outback Bowl officials ushered him from stop to stop for photo ops, to shake hands with various officials, and to talk to John McVay, son of Outback Bowl President Jim McVay.
When asked why he appeared so relaxed, Meyer sounded like a man who has no doubts that he made the right decision to stop coaching.
“I'm at ease because my boss is at ease and he's got a plan and I'm doing the best I can to assist with the plan,'' Meyer said.
Meyer later made his way into the large ballroom where more than 1,000 fans waited to hear him and Paterno talk about their matchup in the 25th anniversary of the Outback Bowl. A Hillsborough County deputed escorted him through the crowd as onlookers wished him luck and thanked him for his six seasons at Florida.
Backstage Meyer settled into a chair next to one of his coaching idol, and as people swirled around them and the crowd noise grew, Meyer and Paterno entered their own world.
THE SHOW
Jim McVay started the final portion of the event by giving some opening remarks as the crowd munched away on Bloomin' Onions, steak and salad. Gruden followed, playing to the crowd perfectly.
“I'd like to thank Jim McVay and the Outback Bowl for giving me a ticket back to this stadium,'' said the former Tampa Bay Bucs coach. “Let me be the first to start the rumor of Urban Meyer to the Denver Broncos. I can say that now because I'm a broadcaster.''
The crowd roared. Meyer laughed backstage, and as Gruden walked over, the two fist-bumped each other over Gruden's well-delivered punch line. Meyer had told reporters earlier that “I am not coaching next year.''
Meyer quickly turned serious as his time on stage approached, jotting down talking points on a piece of paper he pulled from his pocket. Once on stage, Meyer thanked bowl officials and the crowd for coming out.
He spent most of his time talking about the respect he has for Paterno, who turns 84 on Dec. 21. Once finished, Meyer walked off stage and quickly headed toward the exit for the flight home.
HEADING HOME
Before leaving Raymond James Stadium, the Florida and Penn State contingents took a freight elevator down to where their cars were waiting to take them back to the airport. At one point, the elevator door got stuck, causing a brief delay.
Paterno made a quip about Florida holding him up.
And then Meyer delivered a well-timed punch line of his own, knowing that Paterno and his colleagues had a two-and-a-half-hour flight back home before them.
“Our flight is 20 minutes, how long is yours,'' Meyer said to Paterno.
“I liked you up until now,'' Paterno replied.
Laughter erupted, the elevator door finally opened, and the two sides went their separate ways until meeting again a few minutes later at the airport.
With a few minutes to spare while the pilots prepared the plane for takeoff, Meyer made phone calls and took a few pictures with a small group of passengers waiting on their flight in the terminal.
One of the men in the group shared the same sentiment Gator fans have since Meyer announced his resignation.
“I went to FSU but I want to say I really respect the job you did at Florida and all the success you had,'' the man said.
Shortly after the camera flashed, Meyer headed off to board the flight home. Waiting on him was the meal from Outback. Meyer stretched his legs out and began to enjoy his dinner. He indeed looked like a man at ease.
