At Colorado State, a young Urban Meyer established a reputation for intensity and attention to detail

When Sonny Lubick began coaching astatine Colorado State successful 1993, helium decided to prosecute astir of his ain staff. But the Rams’ incumbent wideout manager — a promising young adjunct aboriginal successful his vocation — was 1 of 3 coaches Lubick kept on.

That coach? Urban Meyer.

Long earlier helium won 3 nationalist championships and took implicit this twelvemonth arsenic caller caput manager of the Jaguars, the Broncos’ hostile Sunday successful Jacksonville, Meyer was an aspiring manager successful Fort Collins aft 2 years arsenic an adjunct astatine Illinois State.  Even successful those aboriginal days, Lubick saw a manager who exhibited the aforesaid traits he’s known by today: Unbridled strength and fervent attraction to detail.

“He was each concern successful the interview,” Lubick said. “Right disconnected the bat, helium wanted a occupation precise badly. He wasn’t hopeless by immoderate means, but helium conscionable had 1 babe who was astir to beryllium 2 years old. And (his wife) Shelley was pregnant, too, truthful I deliberation that played into his tendency (to enactment successful Fort Collins) a small bit.

“I hired him and helium was overmuch much than I could person ever expected. He did precisely what I wanted him to do, and helium worked his guys hard, sometimes excessively hard maybe. But helium wanted to bash everything, perfectly everything that would assistance the squad win.”

Photo courtesy of CSU Athletics

Former CSU caput shot manager Earle Bruce, left, and adjunct manager Urban Meyer basal on the sidelines astatine Hughes Stadium successful Fort Collins successful the aboriginal 1990s.

Meyer coached astatine CSU from 1990 done 1995, archetypal nether Earle Bruce and past nether Lubick. During that time, CSU went from irrelevance to a WAC power, winning aggregate league titles and appearing successful the program’s archetypal vessel games.

As erstwhile CSU wideout Eric Olson explains, “fiery would astir apt not beryllium doing it justice” to picture Meyer’s coaching style.

“How everyone reacted to his strength was up to each individual,” said Olson, who played for Meyer from 1990-94. “In presumption of however helium challenged me, it got the astir retired of me, but it decidedly wasn’t for everybody…. He truly utilized his science degree. It wasn’t truthful overmuch yelling, but conscionable precise aggravated successful the words helium used, precise challenging successful knowing which buttons to property for definite people. He wasn’t carnal astatine each with anyone, conscionable precise mental. He expected america to beryllium the toughest receiving corps successful the country, and we were.”

That six-year stint successful Fort Collins allowed Meyer to turn professionally, and allowed his young household to person a agelong of stableness that’s uncommon for young assistants connected the move.

Meyer was 1 of respective assistants from Lubick’s unit who went connected to greater assemblage and pro gigs. That database includes John Benton (Jets’ violative enactment and tally crippled coordinator), Brian Scheinder (formerly the peculiar teams manager for the Seahawks) and Steve Fairchild (former NFL violative coordinator and CSU caput coach).

Fairchild, the Rams’ quarterbacks manager during Meyer’s tenure there, noted that “initially erstwhile I got to cognize him, I could archer helium was arsenic bully of a receiver manager oregon presumption manager arsenic I had worked with.” Fairchild and Meyer lived connected the aforesaid thoroughfare successful Fort Collins, and their families became close.

“I had nary uncertainty helium was going to spell connected to person a large career,” Fairchild said. “I’m putting words successful everybody’s mouth, but I deliberation each of america (ex-Rams assistants from Lubick’s tenure) each look backmost connected our vocation and say, ‘Hey, that was a beauteous bully clip close there.’ We learned a lot, won a lot.”

By the clip Meyer near CSU to instrumentality the aforesaid occupation with Notre Dame successful 1996, his illustration successful the assemblage shot satellite was rising quickly. Five years later, helium got his archetypal caput coaching occupation astatine Bowling Green, wherever helium stayed for 2 years. Then it was connected to Utah, wherever helium went 22-2 with 2 vessel wins, including the Fiesta Bowl, making him the astir sought-after manager successful the federation and starring him to Florida.

“He got successful the close place, and his vocation conscionable took off,” Lubick said.

In 13 seasons betwixt Florida and Ohio State, Meyer won 3 nationalist titles — 2 with backmost Tim Tebow and the Gators successful 2006 and 2008, and 1 with Ohio State successful 2014. He resigned astatine Ohio State aft the 2018 season.

Now, it’s a question of whether Meyer made the close prime successful jumping from assemblage to the NFL. Broncos manager Vic Fangio believes Meyer tin adapt, saying “he should beryllium great.” Lubick agreed, pointing to Meyer taking the occupation mostly due to the fact that Jacksonville had the No. 1 wide draught prime and was capable to prime generational backmost Trevor Lawrence.

“Every clip he’s had a bully quarterback, his squad has excelled,” Lubick said. “Alex Smith astatine Utah, Tim Tebow astatine Florida, respective (good ones) astatine Ohio State. He’s got a bully set-up to turn with Lawrence and physique thing there.”

Tom Pennington, Getty Images

Head manager Urban Meyer of the Jacksonville Jaguars looks connected arsenic the Jacksonville Jaguars instrumentality connected the Dallas Cowboys during the 2nd 4th of a NFL preseason shot crippled astatine AT&T Stadium connected Aug. 29, 2021 successful Arlington, Texas.

On the different broadside of the forecast, preliminary returns bespeak Meyer mightiness beryllium retired of his constituent successful the NFL.

The Jaguars sustained a lopsided nonaccomplishment to the Texans successful Week 1, and there’s already a study retired of Jacksonville that Meyer’s brash, “unhinged” coaching attack is causing discord and hurting the wide morale wrong the organization. (The Jaguars declined to marque Meyer disposable to Denver media up of Sunday’s crippled astatine TIAA Bank Field.)

Broncos antiaircraft extremity Dre’Mont Jones, who played for Meyer astatine Ohio State from 2016-18, isn’t amazed by that report. While Jones was cautious talking astir Meyer this week, helium didn’t clasp backmost earlier this summertime during an quality connected teammate Shelby Harris’ podcast “Shel-Shocked.”

Jones said Meyer showed him “zero respect” during the lineman’s clip with the Buckeyes, and described a self-absorbed manager who crossed the enactment with the motivational tactics helium utilized with players. Just arsenic Lubick noted that helium had to speech to a young Meyer astir “how helium doesn’t person to bushed these (players) down truthful much,” and conscionable similar the calculated verbal attacks Olson described, Jones said helium was taxable to those aforesaid tactics astatine Ohio State.

“He’d ridicule you, canine you — (shoot), he’d bash it successful beforehand of the squad truthful atrocious he’d marque you privation to quit,” Jones said connected Shel-Shocked connected June 10. “It was a batch of (messed) up stuff. I mean, I got respect for Urban, but I don’t (deal) with him.”

Jones said Thursday that Meyer volition person to “shake things up” successful his attack to coaching successful the NFL if helium wants the Jaguars, 1-15 past year, to morph into a contender.

“A batch of his (motivational and coaching) doctrine is college-based, and you can’t bash that with 30-plus-year-old men oregon adjacent 25-plus-year-old men who person been astir the league,” Jones said.