After a bizarre report of Urban Meyer’s unfamiliarity with star Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald emerged Monday, reporter Tim May of Letterman Row made sure to double-check Ohio State coach Ryan Day knew of the three-time Defensive Player of the Year.
Unsurprisingly, he passed the test.
During a press conference after Ohio State spring practice Tuesday, May jokingly asked Day whether he’d heard of Donald, after it was reported that his predecessor at the Big Ten program did not. The Buckeyes coach answered yes with a slight smile but did not wade any deeper into the conversation in a room full of reporters.
The details of Meyer’s strange lack of knowledge with Donald came out in a scathing report from The Athletic on Monday, which detailed the “toxic” workplace environment that the 57-year-old coach fostered while in Jacksonville.
Among the various examples of shocking behavior reported by Jayson Jenks and Mike Sando was that Meyer was unfamiliar with multiple star players around the league, including the Rams’ defensive lineman.
“Meyer said he conducted a six-month deep dive on the NFL that included interviews with his former Florida and Ohio State players, as well as a study of the salary cap. But multiple sources said Meyer was unfamiliar with star players around the league, including 49ers receiver Deebo Samuel, Seahawks safety Jamal Adams and Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald, a three-time NFL defensive player of the year.
“‘Who’s this 99 guy on the Rams?’ Meyer asked one staffer during the season, according to a source. ‘I’m hearing he might be a problem for us,’” Jenks and Sando wrote.
Meyer was fired as the Jaguars’ coach in December after a 2–11 start to the season, and Jacksonville hired former Eagles coach Doug Pederson to replace him earlier this spring.
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