Former Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer has spoken about his struggles during his brief stint at the helm of the Florida team.
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“This is the worst experience I’ve had in my career,” he said Monday during his appearance on the “Don’t @ Me With Dan Dakich” podcast.
“I went through a depressive phase where I looked at the ceiling and I said to myself: “are we doing everything we can? I really believed that we had a team capable of winning games. I think we just haven’t done a good job.”
Meyer was hired by the Jaguars in January 2021 after enjoying considerable college success with Ohio State and the University of Florida. However, he was only in charge for 13 games of the 2021 season, having been fired on December 16. Under his leadership, the Jacksonville club maintained a 2-11 record.
The Jags ended their campaign with a bad 3-14 record and missed the playoffs for the fourth straight season.
Several scandals
Although Meyer’s reign in Jacksonville was short, it was not easy.
In July, the 57-year-old coach was fined $100,000 for violating Goodell Tour rules regarding workouts. Three months later, after a loss at home, Meyer remained in the Columbus area and found himself in the midst of controversy. Meyer spent an evening at a restaurant he owns and videos of him lasciviously dancing with a woman – who is not his wife – have surfaced online.
Jaguars owner Shahid Khan later said his coach had engaged in “inexcusable” behavior and needed to “earn back his trust and respect”.
In December, kicker Josh Lambo delivered the final blow to Meyer by accusing him of kicking his leg during a drill held in August. The day after his accusations, the coach was fired.
Meyer, however, took advantage of the platform offered to him to deny having abused the former Jaguars kicker.
“I certainly didn’t do that. […] I may have kicked him…but kicking someone? Frankly!”
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