Urban Meyer endured an awkwardly acrimonious divorce from Florida that ended with the two-time national champion's second and final resignation back in December 2010.
While he undoubtedly had schools (and perhaps NFL teams) ready to throw rubies at his feet to coach their amateur football teams, Meyer instead chose to spend the 2011 season as an ESPN college football analyst, a role at which he excelled.
Meyer's friend, former Oregon coach Chip Kelly, recently flamed out after one year coaching the San Francisco 49ers. Kelly announced in late May he would spend the 2017 football season analyzing NFL and college games for ESPN.
He reached out to Meyer and ESPN analyst Jon Gruden for advice, and the two were of the same mind: A year in the studio would deepen Kelly's understanding of the game.
From Kelly's appearance on NFL insider Adam Schefter's podcast, via coachingsearch.com:
“You get a chance because you’re not preparing for a set opponent each week, to look at the game from a different perspective and with a different set of eyes. They felt like it really benefitted them,” Kelly said on Adam Schefter’s podcast. “I’ve always been involved in this game since I can remember, and you’re always preparing each week to play somebody. Now, to just study trends, where the game is going, I’m excited about that challenge.”
Easy to see why Meyer would say that. Beyond the X's and O's, he got behind-the-scenes access throughout the Big Ten and saw a vacated throne at a nationally prominent school with Michigan mired in historic turmoil and sanctions looming over Penn State.
If Meyer hadn't taken that route, he would've been locked up by another school before Ohio State put Jim Tressel out to pasture.
H/T: @coachingsearch
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