Urban Meyer Releases Statement Explaining Suspension, Investigation

A little more than a week after receiving a three-game suspension following an investigation into his response to allegations of domestic violence against assistant coach Zach Smith, Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Urban Meyer took to social media to clarify the situation.

Meyer issued a statement on Twitter on Friday to address the matter:

Meyer was suspended for the first three games of the 2018 season Aug. 23 after the university's investigation determined the coach and athletic director Gene Smith "went too far" in helping Smith.

The 54-year-old coach spoke on the matter during last week's press conference (around 15:30 mark):

Meyer showed his remorse to Buckeye Nation during the press conference while acknowledging he is "ultimately responsible for the situtation," but he received criticism for not apologizing to Courtney Smith, Zach Smith's ex-wife who made the complaints against her then-husband.

He did so a couple of days later via Twitter, though:

Zach Smith was fired last month after a domestic violence civil protection was filed against him by his ex-wife. During 2018 Big Ten media days, Meyer denied knowledge of Courtney Smith's 2015 report to police that Zach Smith threw her against a wall at her home and took their son without her permission.

However, Stadium's Brett McMurphy reported Meyer was aware of the allegations, leading to the Buckeyes head coach initially being placed on administrative leave.

Ohio State published a report detailing the findings of the independent investigation. It determined Smith had shown "a pattern of troubling behavior" but had not been disciplined prior to his termination. 

Meyer's response comes just days after Smith defended his former boss in a series of Twitter posts about his firing and the allegations against him.

Ohio State will open its season against Oregon State without Meyer on Saturday at noon ET.