Urban Meyer has been fired after less than one season as head coach of the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars, club owner Shad Khan announced late Wednesday.
Meyer went 2-11 in his lone season with the Jaguars, which was marked by numerous off-field controversies. Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell has been installed as interim head coach for the remainder of the season.
“After deliberation over many weeks and a thorough analysis of the entirety of Urban’s tenure with our team, I am bitterly disappointed to arrive at the conclusion that an immediate change is imperative for everyone,” Khan said. “I informed Urban of the change this evening. As I stated in October, regaining our trust and respect was essential. Regrettably, it did not happen.
“Trent Baalke continues as our general manager and will work with Darrell to ensure that our team will be inspired and competitive while representing Jacksonville proudly over our final four games of the season. In the spirit of closure and recharging our players, staff and fan base, I will not comment further until some point following the conclusion of the NFL season.”
The 57-year-old Meyer was one of the most successful college coaches of his generation, posting a 187-32 record with three national championships in stops at Bowling Green, Utah, Florida and Ohio State. However, he seemed like a poor fit for the professional game, almost from the beginning.
In October, Meyer did not accompany the team home following a Thursday night loss in Cincinnati, instead opting to remain behind in Ohio for what he said was to visit relatives in Columbus. Instead, he was caught on video in the bar area of a steakhouse bearing his name interacting in close proximity with women who were not his wife.
Over the weekend, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero published an explosive report detailing tensions within the Jacksonville organization. Meyer was said to have openly berated assistant coaches, staff members and players, and benched players for seemingly capricious reasons.
Then Wednesday came a report by the Tampa Bay Times in which former Jaguars kicker Josh Lambo alleged Meyer had kicked him during a preseason practice. Meyer also reportedly used derogatory and vulgar terms to refer to kickers and other specialists.
On the field, the Jaguars were among the worst teams in recent NFL history, ranking near the bottom of the league in most offensive and defensive categories. Jacksonville spent the No. 1 pick in April’s NFL draft on former Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence, regarded as a generational talent who appeared to be stagnating within Meyer’s organization.
Meyer resigned from Ohio State following the 2018 season, spending two years as a college football studio analyst for Fox Sports before being hired by the Jaguars. His name has come up in connection with various college football openings this season — including the one at USC — but he has repeatedly denied interest in returning to the college game.