Urban Meyer: Penn State's Desire for Urban Meyer a Pipe Dream

At some point, Joe Paterno will retire. Penn State would like Urban Meyer to helm the storied program, making me laugh at the assumption. 

It's important to have dreams. We are taught from a very young age that we can be anything we want to be in life. We only need to shoot for the stars. 

Then age and reality seeps in. Someone should lob some of that reality towards Penn State who is allegedly putting the full-court press on legendary football coach Urban Meyer. 

Scout.com reports Penn State would like Urban Meyer to take over when Joe Paterno calls it quits as head coach of the Nittany Lions. 

According to the report, an unnamed source told The Sports RappUp the program, "contacted Meyer Sept. 25 and expressed major interest in pursuing him as head coach should Paterno, in fact, decide to retire” after the 2011 season."

I can't fault Penn State's thought process here. Meyer is the best coach on the open market. Meyer took the Florida Gators to two BCS titles in just six seasons, notching a 65-15 record in that time. 

The problem here is two fold. 

Joe Paterno

JoePa may not be leaving anytime soon. The report cites a source as saying that although Meyer would love the job, he would not want to force out Paterno. 

The legendary Paterno seems destined to stay at the program for a while longer. Injuries and age haven't derailed him yet. As the fire still burns, Paterno will call it a day on his own terms. And I don't see the program forcing him out at risk of mutiny by supporters. 

Urban Meyer

I also take the source's thought that Meyer would love the job with a grain of salt. This is a man that left the Florida Gators twice in his brief stint as coach. 

He took a leave of absence in 2009, making us believe he had retired. Then in 2010, he left for good, citing family and health as reasons. 

You don't take on the job at Penn State with nonchalance. This is a gig that demands the long haul, and Meyer proved a long-term gig is not in the cards. 

Meyer may very well be interested, but the demands of a high pressure job that will demand hours away from his family will factor in the end. 

I can't think of a better head coach to take over for Joe Paterno. We have history on our side to tell us otherwise. Your heart has to be in it to coach a program like Penn State. 

Urban Meyer doesn't have it in him.