What Urban Meyer said about his coaching future when asked at Knoxville QB Club appearance
Urban Meyer is not interested in returning to coach football, the three-time national champion coach said Monday.
"No desire," the 59-year-old Meyer said at the Knoxville Quarterback Club.
Meyer, who has not coached since 2021 and has not coached in college since 2018, is working as an analyst for FOX Sports. His name still surfaced in regards to college job openings, including the Notre Dame opening in 2021 and, more recently, the Michigan State opening.
The question that prompted Meyer's answer did not specify a particular job opening. Meyer has been rumored as a possible candidate for the Michigan State vacancy following Mel Tucker's firing amid allegations of sexual misconduct.
"I am good," Meyer said. "I never really took a day off. People, when I say that, they scratch their head. I am like I never took a day off. I had some health stuff go on. I became addicted to sleeping pills. I was just a maniac worker. ... So no. No desire.”
Meyer's FOX Sports colleague Bruce Feldman stated on Oct. 4 on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that Meyer had no interest in the MSU opening and there was "zero truth" to Meyer being a candidate in East Lansing.
Meyer, who won two national titles at Florida and one at Ohio State, has not coached since he was fired following a partial season with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2021. He had taken two years off after retiring as the Ohio State coach following the 2018 season before he was hired by Jacksonville.
Meyer said in the first year following his ouster in Jacksonville that he would wake up and "want to go coach a team." That desire no longer exists. He craves the freedom to travel with his wife, Shelley, and see their four grandchildren.
The nature of "talent acquisition" both in building a coaching staff and recruiting a roster via high school and the portal are among the reasons Meyer said he would not get back into coaching.
“It has never been harder I am telling you right now," Meyer said. "Every coach, every player has an agent. Think about that. Remember those days? Maybe a coordinator every once in a while had an agent. There is nothing wrong with agents. They’re great.
"But when I am the head coach having to deal with a high school player that (says) meet with my agent first. I am going I want to meet with your family because you are talking about recruiting and other stuff.”
Meyer, who had a 187-32 record in 17 college football seasons, outlined many challenges he sees in the college game today. He touched on the brutal travel involved with conference expansion and navigating the transfer portal. He referenced the fact that third-string quarterbacks are rare in the game because of the portal, then told the story of how third-stringer Cardale Jones became the Ohio State starter due to injuries and won a national title.
Michigan State athletics director Alan Haller fired Tucker for cause on Sept. 27, a decision that left roughly $80 million on Tucker's 10-year, $95-million contract signed in Nov. 2021.
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Haller initially suspended Tucker on Sept. 10 after a USA TODAY story detailed alleged sexual misconduct during an April 2022 phone call with Brenda Tracy, a prominent sexual assault victims rights advocate and rape survivor. Harlon Barnett, a former MSU defensive back and longtime assistant coach, took over as the interim head coach.
MSU has lost four straight games since Tucker's suspension and dismissal.
Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Urban Meyer on future: No desire to coach football again
