Ohio State puts Urban Meyer on administrative leave amid probe of claims against fired assistant

The announcement came hours after the ex-wife of Zach Smith said that she told Meyer’s wife, Shelley, in 2015 about the abuse she said the fired wide receivers coach inflicted on her.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Urban Meyer has been placed on paid administrative leave as Ohio State investigates the Ohio State football coach’s response to the domestic abuse allegations regarding fired wide receivers coach Zach Smith.

“The university is conducting an investigation into these allegations,” said the statement from OSU released at 6:05 p.m. Wednesday.

Offensive coordinator Ryan Day will serve as acting head coach during the investigation.

“(Athletic director) Gene (Smith) and I agree that being on leave during this inquiry will facilitate its completion,” Meyer said in the OSU statement. “This allows the team to conduct training camp with minimal distraction. I eagerly look forward to the resolution of this matter.”

The announcement came hours after the ex-wife of Zach Smith said that she told Meyer’s wife, Shelley, in 2015 about the abuse she said the fired wide receivers coach inflicted on her. Courtney Smith said she believed that Urban Meyer knew of the abuse, though she acknowledged she did not know for sure.

Meyer, 54, has a 73-8 record at Ohio State, including the inaugural 2014 College Football Playoff championship. He has not had more than two losses in any season.

His overall coaching record, which also includes stops at Bowling Green, Utah, Florida, is 177-31, including two national titles at Florida.

Day has never served as head coach. He was promoted from co-coordinator to sharing offensive coordinator duties this year after he rejected a job offer from the Tennessee Titans.

Bill Rabinowitz and Dean Narciso are reporters for The Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch.