Earlier this week, Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer was suspended for three games for mishandling domestic violence allegations against former wide receivers coach Zach Smith.
People from all walks of life have chimed in with their opinions on the university’s decision to suspend Meyer. That includes the national media — where the general consensus is that he should have been relieved of his duties or suffered a harsher punishment — as well as former players and current commitments, who have all voiced their support for the seventh-year head coach.
Kristina Miller, mother of five-star center pledge Harry Miller, has a unique perspective on the matter. A survivor of domestic abuse, she has been paying close attention to the investigation and every article written on the matter.
On Friday morning, Miller shared her own story and support for Meyer with Eleven Warriors.
“I don’t take domestic violence lightly.
"I’ve had a past life where I lived it. I have been the woman whose life has been threatened and the police called. I’ve been the woman who has been afraid to go home, sitting in my driveway with butterflies in my stomach, wondering what was waiting for me inside. I’ve been the woman who has watched her (now-ex-)husband’s foot come through a door as I was cowering in a tub, the furthest away I could get. I’ve been the woman who has been picked up and thrown into a wall with my back in a towel rack and head in sheetrock. I’ve been the woman whose clothes have literally been ripped off while being accused of dressing up for other men. I’ve been the woman who has had to stand by while my personal phonebook was compared to the phone bill to confirm who I was calling.
"I’ve been the woman whose boss has been threatened in an in attempts to protect me. I’ve been the woman who had a coworker listen to a threatening message left on my answering machine in case something happened to me that night. I’ve been the woman who has run out of her house at night in fear and slept on a stretcher at work. I’ve been the woman who was kicked in the ribs so hard it sailed me out of bed. I’ve been the woman who temporarily lived at an undisclosed coworker’s home so I couldn’t be found until I had a more permanent solution. I’ve been the woman who has been to a marriage counselor alone because I was the one who ‘fucked up and needed help.’ I have been this woman and so, so much more.
“I share all of this only to make my point perfectly clear: If I thought for one second that Urban Meyer would not only condone that kind of behavior, but turn a blind eye to it — as he’s been accused of doing — he most certainly would not be a dear friend and you could bet our son would not be spending the next four years of his life with him. He doesn’t and didn’t. His biggest fault was in trying to help someone who obviously had too many problems, some never proven and many unknown, a choice now I imagine he deeply regrets. I know this man well. He is perfectly human, but not malicious or unkind. If you ask anyone who truly knows him, they will tell you the same.
"Many treat information today like a buffet choosing the option that supports their views and ignoring the rest, which is exceedingly more difficult when a one-sided narrative is being driven. We all need more thought and less mindless hoarding. Research. Think without bias, otherwise you’re nothing more than a puppet. Most importantly, if you are a woman, get help, form a plan and leave.”
Harry Miller committed to Ohio State back in early June. They've repeatedly cited Meyer's faith and the opportunities his program provides to student-athletes both on and off the field as a big reason why he picked the Buckeyes over schools such as Clemson, home-state Georgia, Notre Dame and Stanford.
If you are or someone you know is being abused, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-HELP (7233) or visit thehotline.org for help.
