Ohio State coach Urban Meyer's relationship with former receivers coach Zach Smith has come under fire since it was revealed the latter allegedly abused his ex-wife. That news also raises several questions as to why Meyer, currently on paid administrative leave at Ohio State, would knowingly keeping an alleged domestic abuser on his staff.
Meyer's and Smith's relationship dates to 2002 when Smith, the grandson of Meyer's mentor — the late former Ohio State coach Earle Bruce — walked on to Meyer's Bowling Green squad as a player. Meyer later hired Smith to work on his coaching staffs at Florida and Ohio State.
During their time working together, Meyer was confronted with allegations Smith committed domestic violence against his now ex-wife, Courtney Smith. Zach Smith was never charged by police, but the working relationship he had with Meyer ended on July 23 just hours after national college football writer Brett McMurphy broke news that Zach Smith had a protective order placed against him. McMurphy followed up by laying out a series of domestic violence allegations against him, dating to 2009.
MORE: No winners will emerge from Meyer, OSU or Smith
It's a dizzying amount of information to keep up with — that said, Sporting News has compiled a timeline of the key events surrounding Zach Smith's firing and Meyer's suspension, as culled from reports in the (Cleveland) Plain Dealer, Columbus Dispatch, 247Sports.com, Facebook and Gainesville Sun:
June 21, 2009: Police in Gainesville, Fla., arrest Zach Smith on suspicion of aggravated battery against his wife, who was pregnant at the time. Courtney Smith said in a 2018 interview with Stadium that her husband grabbed her by the neck and pushed her against a wall during an early-morning argument. McMurphy reported police found Zach Smith to be the primary aggressor. The charge was later dropped because of insufficient evidence. Courtney Smith told Stadium that Bruce, Zach Smith's mother and the attorney representing her husband all pressured her to drop the charge.
2012: Meyer hires Zach Smith to be his wide receivers at Ohio State coach shortly after taking the head coaching job there.
June 6, 2015: Zach Smith and his wife separate.
Oct. 25-26, 2015: Courtney Smith calls police in Powell, Ohio, outside Columbus, and then visits the police department in person after another incident with her then-estranged husband. Courtney Smith alleges Zach Smith refused to return their son after a parental visit. She also claims that he had abused her on multiple occasions. No charges were filed. Courtney Smith told Stadium the incident "was the last time (Zach Smith) ever laid his hands on me." As part of the video interview, Stadium posted photographs Courtney Smith took in 2014 that appeared to show injuries to her arm and neck.
Nov. 9-12, 2015: Powell police investigate a claim by Courtney Smith of menacing by stalking by Zach Smith. No charges are filed, but Zach Smith is issued a restraining order on Nov. 10. Courtney Smith files for divorce two days later.
Dec. 19, 2017: Zach Smith is given criminal trespass warning after reportedly making "harassment/threats" at 1:30 a.m. on Dec. 17. McMurphy reported he tried to enter Courtney Smith's residence. No files were charged.
May 12, 2018: Powell police cite Zach Smith with misdemeanor criminal trespass after a dispute with his wife. The two argued over where Zach Smith should have dropped off his son. McMurphy reported Smith's driving into the driveway of his ex-wife's apartment violated the 2015 warning.
MORE: OSU can't repeat same mistake with Meyer
July 18, 2018: Zach Smith appears in Delaware County Municipal Court for a pretrial hearing related to the May trespass charge. Court records show Smith pleaded not guilty to the charge on June 5.
July 20, 2018: Courtney Smith is granted an order of protection against her ex-husband that prohibits him from getting within 500 feet of her. The protective order was filed in Delaware County after she claimed she feared for her safety.
July 23, 2018: McMurphy publishes a story on Facebook in which Courtney Smith discusses the 2009 incident. Ohio State announced later that day that Meyer had fired Zach Smith. No reason is given.
July 24, 2018: Meyer denies knowledge of the alleged 2015 incident, telling reporters at Big Ten Media Days he only learned of the allegations against Zach Smith when someone in his office told him that day.
MORE: Meyer can only blame himself for poor leadership
Aug. 1, 2018: Ohio State places Meyer on paid administrative leave and begins an investigation into the Zach Smith matter. Courtney Smith tells McMurphy she and Urban Meyer's wife, Shelley, texted about Zach Smith's alleged abuse. A subsequent release of OSU's summary of findings reveals associate athletic director Brian Voltolini discussed with Meyer the possibility of deleting texts between him and Zach Smith that are a year or older in response to McMurphy's report.
Aug. 2, 2018: Ohio State announces the formation of a six-person panel to oversee the university's investigation of Meyer.
Aug. 3, 2018: Zach Smith, in a series of interviews, denies abusing his ex-wife and says he would not be in favor of Meyer losing his job. Meyer releases a statement around the time of Smith's interview with ESPN. In it, he says he reported the 2015 allegations against Zach Smith and went through the proper channels within the university. He also says it wasn't his intention to be inaccurate or misleading during his Big Ten Media Days session.
Aug. 3, 2018: Shortly after Meyer's statement and Smith's interview, McMurphy tweets what he says is a text exchange between Courtney and Zach Smith. In it, Courtney appears to remind her ex-husband that he attempted to strangle her during a vacation trip to Mexico in March 2015 and then attacked her in April of that year. Zach Smith appears to confirm the incidents and then apologizes.
Aug. 17, 2018: Courtney Smith, via a McMurphy report, alleges ex-husband Zach Smith of taking pictures of himself receiving oral sex and having sex with a former Ohio State staff member in Ohio State coaches’ offices, as well as taking photos of his penis inside the coaches' office and again inside the White House (when the Buckeyes visited after winning the 2014 College Football Playoff national championship). Receipts from the report show Zach Smith ordered more than $2,200 worth of sex toys, male apparel and photography equipment between February 2015 and May 2015.
Aug. 22, 2018: The Ohio State Board of Trustees convenes at the Longaberger Alumni House to decide what action should be taken against Urban Meyer and Gene Smith after the university-sanctioned investigation is completed. After 12 hours of deliberation, the university announces suspensions to Meyer and athletic director Gene Smith, saying their actions relating to Zach Smith were insufficient. Ohio State releases its summary of findings.
