Urban Meyer Ohio State: Buckeyes Must Make Former Coach Offer He Can't Refuse

It's hard to imagine that Urban Meyer really needs money. Sure, any contract offer for him would be huge, but Meyer has made a lot of money in his career as a coach. 

So, if Meyer doesn't need money and isn't looking for a return to coaching, it's hard to imagine that anything would bring him back.

According to Matt Brooks of the Washington Post, Meyer said that the Ohio State job hasn't been offered to him.

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If something happens with Ohio State, I’ll have a decision to make...But there has been no interview. There has been no offer to make a decision about.

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Doug Lesmerises of The Cleveland Plain Dealer speculated that Urban Meyer will not be in the broadcast booth at ESPN for Saturday's Ohio State vs. Michigan game because of the interest between Ohio State and Meyer.

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It could be that putting Meyer in the booth would just be too intriguing, or too awkward. There is mutual interest between Ohio State and Meyer about coaching the Buckeyes in 2012. 

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First things first. While Luke Fickell is just an interim coach, it hasn't been announced that he won't return to Ohio State. It may seem obvious but if the Buckeyes really are going to land Meyer, or any big name coach, they need to make that official. 

Meyer is the best coach out there right now. With two national championships, he's probably the best coach in the country. A nice bonus is that he's not currently coaching, so there isn't a concern about loyalty to a current job. 

But is this realistic?

Well, financially, the contract he's offered would need to be significantly bigger than any coaches' in the country right now. 

But money alone won't do it. He would also need more power than any coach in college has, which is not insignificant. 

Basically, Meyer doesn't need to go to Ohio State. On the other hand, the Buckeyes need Meyer. Their 2011 season is certainly not good enough for the standard that Ohio State has set over the last several decades.

If Ohio State is serious about getting Meyer, then they simply need to shatter the previous financial and power standards that any head coach in America has ever had. 

For the sake of their football program, they really don't have much of a choice. The Big Ten is only going to improve in the coming seasons. 

It's not that Ohio State won't be relevant if they don't get Meyer, but if they still want to be annual national championship contenders, Meyer is a must.