Urban decay? Sporting News examines a ‘broken’ Florida
The former Florida head ball coach has been taken to task by Matt Hayes. (AP photo)
The Georgia Bulldogs haven’t had the sunniest of offseasons — and there’s still a whole summer to go! — but Matt Hayes of Sporting News offers a bit of reading guaranteed to warm the Red & Black heart. It’s about Urban Meyer and Florida, and if you happen to hate the Gators this will serve as the feel-good story of the spring.
It commences with a killer anecdotal lead (or lede, as we say in the trade): The Urban Crier, who’s now coaching Ohio State, tells the family of recruit Stephon Diggs he wouldn’t let his son go to Florida because of “character issues in the locker room.”
Writes Hayes: “[Those] character issues … we now know were fueled by a culture Meyer created.”
And then Hayes has at it, detailing — mostly via unnamed sources, we should note — just how the Urbanator created a two-tier system in Gainesville: Either you were a star and a member of his “Circle of Trust,” or you weren’t. (Meyer to Hayes: “I’ve never heard of Circle of Trust before in my life.”)
Hayes reports that Meyer pushed aside an injured player to clear scholarship room and that Florida covered up one-game suspensions for failed drug tests by having stars — Percy Harvin and that Georgia fan favorite Brandon Spikes among them — feign injury. The charming Harvin, Hayes recounts, once threw receivers coach Billy Gonzales to the ground. (Meyer to Hayes: “Something did happen and something was handled. I don’t think it’s fair to Percy Harvin or Billy Gonzales to talk about it.”)
Enough with the teasers. (I’m sorry. Here’s just one more: A former player calls Meyer a “great coach” but “a bad person.”) Just go read the story. It’s a dandy.
By Mark Bradley
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306 comments Add your comment
bitter coach Grantham
April 10th, 2012
10:24 pm
kingkiddy—————–rock-em sock-em bamma nation killer
————————what happened to yo girl—a person so dumb—————hahahahah
bitter coach Grantham
April 10th, 2012
10:25 pm
ohio st is in a world of trouble with cryer in charge——————–dawgs rule the SEC
King Gator
April 10th, 2012
10:34 pm
Say what you will about Meyer, but he delivered the BCS &SEC titles. UGA fans stop on by next time you’re in town and see what a full trophy case looks like. Go Gators!
Ckgator
April 10th, 2012
10:42 pm
Pure silliness. Must be “Crappy Journalism” week.
>”~,,~~~,,~~/
gladum3
April 10th, 2012
10:46 pm
is gone! Never,Never liked the guy & I’m a Gator. Yep, 2MNC’s were nice but I did not like the HC.Guy was a pos as a person,no doubt. It may take Champ a little time doing it the clean/hard way, But he will get the Gators back!
Chuck UGA
April 10th, 2012
11:29 pm
Meyer will not get Ohio State a legitimate win versus an SEC program while he is there. They are still winless all-time versus the SEC in the post-season (either 0-13 or 0-14) when you factor the forfeiture of their upset of the better Arkansas team two seasons ago in the Sugar Bowl. Meyer will NEVER beat another SEC team unless they schedule Kentucky or Vandy in a home & home which is unlikely.
Chuck UGA
April 10th, 2012
11:33 pm
LakeDawg, you are one big moron. Ever heard of a guy named Marco Rubio? Probably going to be the first Hispanic President of the United States within the next 12 years. You know, the Tea Party guy from FLORIDA!
Chuck UGA
April 10th, 2012
11:36 pm
Excuse me, that response was meant more for Tampa Gator. Figures he would be an Obama supporter.
Notso Fast
April 11th, 2012
5:17 am
Blast away and have fun. Then take a close look at what has happened in Athens over the last several years. Ain’t football fun? None of the teams are clean…no not one.
Weather Channel Expert
April 11th, 2012
7:21 am
1 two three and five – that gater Irvin Meyers be takin no JIVE
Sloan
April 11th, 2012
7:52 am
It floors me how so many of you UGA haters can write that Mark Richt is morally bankrupt, sleazy or a scumbag. He is none of those things and has proven that he is, if nothing else, a man of integrity and strong Christian values.
I will not argue with you that his personal character is not reflected in many of the young men that he has recruited to play football for him at UGA. And while I could rationalize that paradox by stating that he is under the same pressure to win as any other SEC football coach, I won’t get into that here. But to continue to paint Coach Richt with the same adjectives reserved for coaches like Petrino, Tressel, etc. is ridiculous.
gladum3
April 11th, 2012
8:19 am
Hate to say it, But most of this stuff is true about UM3! Percy also just flat cold-cocked a guy inside a strip mall in Gainesville once too, Just for the heck of it. Spikes did a few things not listed, it was bad, really bad. Good one Weather Channel Expert!!!! Needed that
We Gators will be fine, it will just take a little time. For now, looks like Bama,LSU, and UGA will be the Top teams to beat for a few years.
ADMan
April 11th, 2012
8:44 am
Big Crimson 75…what a pompous ass you are. I’ll bet you really live up to your name too…let’s see 315 pounds of over weght lard sitting by your trailer every day eating fried chicken and kissing your photo of Saban every three to four hours and telling everyone you see that e new sheriff is in town…LOLLOLLOL….your too funny…a real cartoon figure!LOLLOLLOL
Columbus Dawg
April 11th, 2012
9:05 am
Who is this Bama booster “influencing” Atlanta are players to sign with Bama? Harvey?
Ray Goof
April 11th, 2012
9:06 am
“Ray, were they the flagship university from 1932-1990? Because that’s the period Florida laid a big goose egg, championship wise. Almost 60 years, although the did have one conference title stripped for cheating and a few other good years they weren’t eligible for the title. If any school with so much going for it could fall off the football map, it’s UF.”
Ed – do you think that Fla produced the level of high school football talent in the 30’s – 70’s that it does today? Do you think that UF had the athletic budget or the facilities that it has now during the 30’s – 70’s? Do you think a head coach would’ve taken the UF job over the Notre Dame job during those years? Of course not. So your reference to those years is not very relevant to today or the future, is it? Let me put it this way – if I’d told you during Herschel’s time in Athens that UF, FSU and Miami would combine to win 10 national championships in the following 30 years, you would’ve laughed out loud. But it happened – because demographics were shifting in Fla’s favor. Sorry to break the news to you, but the factors that lead to UF’s rise aren’t going to change.
kingdaddy
April 11th, 2012
9:27 am
I put absolutly 0 that zero credibility in anything U. Crier has to say. The University of Flordia is light-years ahead of Ohio State. Let me put it in perspective, you see what just happened to Arkantucky with the low-life they knew was scum, but still hired? Well, that is excatly what will happen at Ohio St. eventually. He’s a real good football coach, but a reprehensible, slime-ball with only bad character. CWM will only get better and has better character. ” What doesn’t kill ya, makes you stronger.”…
Columbus Dawg
April 11th, 2012
9:28 am
It may be fashionable for rivals of Georgia who have won a mnc to make fun of Richt’s coaching, but to say he is a sleaze simply shows the stupidity of the blogger stating this. Mark Richt has had to deal with his share of problem children in his time at UGA, but he has handled most situations correctly. Richt has had many arrests for marijuana and alcohol abuses, and some battery offenses, dismissed one player for it, and if Ogletree is not careful going forward, he will be also. Meyer has had felony arrests that were not dealt with, Rainey being one that got off very lightly for his offense. No comparison.
kingdaddy
April 11th, 2012
9:38 am
AD Man
I know I won’t change you’re mind about BC75, but he’s not a bad guy or troll. Yes he is an Alabama fan, but he almost always makes a valid point. It may not make me happy and I may not agree, but through the long running battles I have had with Trolls on the blog, he has become an important point-counter-point on this blog. If we all thought alike, there would be no reason to blog. There are trolls on here that I wish you would attack though…
StingerSplash
April 11th, 2012
9:47 am
Didn’t Matt Hayes cover the Gators or college football for one of the Florida papers, either Orlando or Jacksonville, at one point? I could be mistaken, but I don’t think so.
kingdaddy
April 11th, 2012
9:47 am
M.B.
I had several mild post not last night but when I double checked this morning they were there. I just had another mild post not show up and wonder if its my side or your side. Can you help splain it to me. Trying not to offend…
kingdaddy
April 11th, 2012
9:50 am
Dissappearing post not happening on any other sites, just your Mark…
PD
April 11th, 2012
9:58 am
What actual facts are in the story are only 50% true, and the only negative accusations are either meaningless “un-named sources” which these days are usually the writer’s imagination, and of course one former player who admittedly holds an angry grudge against the man. With all the wild accusations and character assassinations out on Urban Meyer, please wake me when there is a single one that has a shred of proof or logic/reason to lend some credibility. Programs that are completely corroded like the article states, do not dominate the nation for 4 years and win 2 national titles in 3 seasons.
Buckeye
April 11th, 2012
10:01 am
Six words for dogs:
TIME OUT!
TIME OUT!
TIME OUT!
Buckeye
April 11th, 2012
10:03 am
You dogs are just like Obama. You cannot run on your record so you resort to smearing the evil competition. Pathetic.
Buckeye
April 11th, 2012
10:03 am
Bobby Petrino:
SEC! SEC! SEC!
BG
April 11th, 2012
10:14 am
Urban Meyer is a cheater!!!
Gator Fan
April 11th, 2012
10:24 am
Buckeye – Urban Meyer is the Jon Gruden of college football. He can jump start a program, but he can’t sustain success over a period of time. Yes, Will Muschamp has a rebuilding job to do, but Meyer did leave two national championship trophies in Gainesville. If Meyer doesn’t win it all in Columbus, then all you’ll be left with is the mess of cleaning up after he decides to quit again (and he will, once the going gets tough at OSU). A major rebuild without the championships would not be a good trade off.
Buckeye
April 11th, 2012
10:56 am
Gator Fan,
Actually, I predicted Ohio State woul not offer Urban and a job and even if offered, Urban would not accept. Personally I am not sold on Urban but he has generated a buzz and new-found optimism after our dismal 2011 season. Time will tell. I’d love to see an OSU/UF matchup at some point with Urban on the sidelines.
The good news – I guess – is he has two full seasons install his system and a starting sophmore QB before we’d see the SEC (perhaps) in a Bowl Game. All Urban can do year one is beat Michigan.
Buckeye
April 11th, 2012
10:57 am
Poll question:
The bigger scumbag?
Jim Tressel
Bobby Petrino
Atlanta Gator
April 11th, 2012
11:12 am
“Even the guy who came in and changed the losing and cheating culture – Spurrier – is not himself a classy person, but a whining crybaby who gloats when he wins and makes excuses when he loses.”
Spurrier may rub salt in the wounds of certain rivals, but I have never heard him make an “excuse” for one of his team’s losses. Almost always, Spurrier will suggest that every loss was primarily a coaching failure. If that’s making excuses, it’s an odd sort of excuse, don’t you think?
Gator Fan
April 11th, 2012
11:20 am
Buckeye – given the historical stability that OSU has had at head coach, I was surprised that they went with Urban. But I suppose that it really was just the result of a series of odd events that made it all happen. I’d love to see UF play an Urban-coached OSU team, although nothing seems strange to me after all these years of Spurrier coaching against his alma mater.
Atlanta Gator
April 11th, 2012
11:26 am
Several people have questioned Matt Hayes’ professional background and work history. Hayes wrote for The Florida Times-Union during the 1990s, and has been a sports writer for The Sporting News since at least 2002.
Atlanta Gator
April 11th, 2012
11:37 am
“[N]othing seems strange to me after all these years of Spurrier coaching against his alma mater.”
Still seems strange to me. Notwithstanding that Spurrier is an unequaled competitor, and has done a damn good job with the talent he has had at South Carolina, the Evil Genius’ continuing loyalty to his alma mater is unquestioned. Of course, he would never tank a game, and the Gators and Gamecocks are “rivals” of a sort, but SOS still takes a great deal of pleasure in seeing the Gators do well—-at least when they’re not playing his current team.
Spurrier is, was, and always will be the No. 1 Gator, and we older Gators fans would like him returned to us in good condition when he’s done coaching in Columbia. I doubt he will ever again coach anywhere other than South Carolina, but he will always be a Gator, for better or worse. During his time as a Florida undergraduate, he and Ray Graves gave the Gators football program its first real taste of national prominence since 1928. Any Gator alumnus who ever forgets that needs to be gently reminded.
pfitz2
April 11th, 2012
11:39 am
@Gator Fan
Meyer was assistant under Coach Earle Bruce who he calls one of his mentors. Bruce gave the eulogy at Meyer’s fathers funeral a few months ago. He has always had a picture of Woody Hayes in this offices. He was born and raised in Ohio and has said that the HC of tOSU was the one job that Shelly Meyer had not veto power over and the only job that he would have come out of retirement for.He was an absolute no-brainer to succeed Tressel. As for coaching stability, JT was the coach for 10 years, Cooper for 12, Bruce 9 and Woody for 27.
Atlanta Gator
April 11th, 2012
11:47 am
“Not everyone that reads the AJC lives in Georgia and votes for Newt!!! We in Florida already know very well…….what the TEA PARTY brings to the table….and it not good for anyone making less than a mil per year, teaches our children, protects our streets from criminals, puts out fires in neighborhoods…..or just cares about the middle class.”
TampaGator, you would do well not to inject partisan politics into a sports blog. You may be embarrassed to discover that a strong majority of your fellow University of Florida alumni do not share your political views. Better to keep your political views to yourself, and focus on college football, the actual subject at hand.
maharajiean shorts
April 11th, 2012
11:48 am
@ Buckeye: Hey we can do that too?
Sandusky!! Sandusky!! Saundusky!!
Yeah, I’ll take our pot smokers over your pedophiles any day cuz….and our record against you too. Go back to Ohio with your ugly women, Yankee.
KingGator
April 11th, 2012
11:49 am
Two National Championships under his watch, but yes, glad he’s gone!!
jj
April 11th, 2012
11:50 am
And Muschump will be the sacrificial lamb. Too bad he’s a lifelong Gator fan, cause this is gonna hurt.
pfitz2
April 11th, 2012
11:58 am
@maharajiean shorts
Sandusky is Penn State, not Ohio State.
Gator Fan
April 11th, 2012
12:00 pm
@ pfitz2 – I’m very familiar with Urban’s history and his connections to OSU. I understand why he wanted the job; I’m not so sure he was (or should have been) a no-brainer from the university’s perspective. You pointed out the tenure of the past 4 OSU head coaches. Urban has been a college head coach for 10 years and he’s on his fourth head coaching job. When doing a word association, stability does not go with Urban. One other note, don’t put too much stock in things that Urban says. He changes his mind faster than a teenage girl. He’s said many times that Notre Dame is his dream job. You can’t believe most of what he says. Not knocking the guy – that’s just reality. He doesn’t think before he speaks.
Gator Fan
April 11th, 2012
12:05 pm
@ JJ – how is Muschamp a sacrificial lamb? This isn’t a Zook situation. Foley wanted Muschamp as head coach and he’s staked a chunk of his reputation on Muschamp succeeding. Like any coach, he may not get it done. But Muschamp certainly is going to get a chance to prove himself either way.
Atlanta Gator
April 11th, 2012
12:13 pm
“Let’s see: Flagship university in the state with the best high school talent with the third largest athletic budget in the country. Yep. I’ll bet that UF is just going to drop off the college football map, never to be heard from again.”
Even with last year’s 7-5 football season, the Gators are the winningest college football program in the country since 1990. That speaks volumes. During that same time period, no other college football team has won more national championships (3), either. Only Alabama and Nebraska have equaled the number of national championships over the same time period. That’s pretty darn impressive.
Just up the Street
April 11th, 2012
12:36 pm
Urban is a piece of fecal matter that should be flushed down the toilet.
Sporting News on Herban Meyer « Loser with Socks
April 11th, 2012
12:51 pm
[...] Urban decay? The Sporting News examines a ‘broken’ Florida | Mark Bradley [...]
Oskar Meyer Whiners
April 11th, 2012
12:54 pm
Meyer is a snake….just like Petrino and Saban!
DawgByte
April 11th, 2012
1:05 pm
All this does is put things into perspective. Things in Athens are never as bad as they appear when compared to other programs. The second thing this story does is reinforce how much Florida sucks!
Just up the Street
April 11th, 2012
2:21 pm
Enter your comments here
ckgator
April 11th, 2012
2:39 pm
If by “its a dandy” you mean “written by a guy (Hayes) who ctiticized Meyer even he was winning National Champoinships,” then you are right – its a dandy.
The biggest non-issue / non-story in years.
Reality gator
April 11th, 2012
3:58 pm
While you puppies gloat, go to Gainesville and look at the trophy case, 3 titles in 15 years and dont forget back to back BB championship in 10 years.
Now when was the last time UGA won a title, I dont believe cell phones were invented and cable tv was brand new, ”””””’
Snoop Dawg
April 11th, 2012
4:03 pm
If the Gators were so rotten, then what does that say about the Dawgs? The Gators cleaned their clocks every year and whipped up on them like they were little brothers.
It’s no secret in the coaching ranks that the UGA program is a joke. How many of UGA’s assistant coaches have been hired away for promotions during Richt’s tenure that Richt actually hired? Er uh, that would be ZERO. In eleven years. The DEAN of SEC coaches? What a joke.