Report: Ex-Urban Meyer assistant took White House nudes, spent thousands on sex toys
The Urban Meyer scandal involving former assistant coach Zach Smith and his history with domestic violence appears to have taken another turn.
Reporter Brett McMurphy published a story on WatchStadium.com on Friday evening that states he has documents and receipts proving Smith spent more than “$2,200 in sex toys, male apparel and photography equipment and had the items delivered to him at Ohio State’s Woody Hayes Athletic Center in 2015.”
In addition, McMurphy also included texts from Smith’s now ex-wife, Courtney, that claim her ex-husband “took multiple photos of his penis inside the Ohio State coaches’ offices and inside the White House when the Buckeyes visited in 2015” during the team’s national championship victory visit.
She also claims he took pictures of himself in the coaches’ offices at Ohio State as he performed several sexual acts with an Ohio State staffer who does not currently work with the football team.
The report states that Zach Smith’s attorney, Brad Koffel, was unaware of his client’s purchases or any of the new developments in McMurphy’s story.
Meyer is currently on paid administrative leave as the university investigates how much the Buckeyes’ head coach knew about Smith’s behavior.
Smith has been a part of several domestic violence incidents involving his now-ex-wife Courtney. McMurphy broke the news on his Facebook page several weeks ago.
Last Saturday, Jeff Snook, a longtime sportswriter and Ohio State graduate, revealed that McMurphy got a tip from Texas head coach Tom Herman. Herman previously served as an assistant coach at Ohio State under Meyer and alongside Smith.
And here is how McMurphy responded to Snook’s claims.
Herman also issued a statement on the report.
Snook published a Facebook post Thursday that featured quotes from Zach Smith’s mother, Lynn Bruce, and Courtney Smith’s mother, Tina Carano. The two paint a very different picture of the situation, specifically when it comes to Courtney Smith’s version of past events as well as her motivations for coming forward.
During his team’s fall camp press conference, here’s how Herman responded to questions about the situation at Ohio State.
“I left the program after the 2014 season, and the things that occurred, to my knowledge, happened in late 2015,” Herman told reporters. “I really don’t think it would be fair, or appropriate to be honest with you, for me to comment about a situation at another program that happened while I wasn’t there.”
Ohio State President Michael Drake said the university’s investigation will be “finished when it’s finished.”
Here is a full breakdown of how Ohio State plans to conduct the investigation into Meyer and his handling of the situation.
Offensive coordinator Ryan Day was named as the team’s acting head coach while Meyer is on leave.
Earlier this month, McMurphy released extensive text conversations and interviews with Courtney Smith. Several of her anecdotes allege that a few of Meyer’s assistant coaches, as well as his wife, Shelley, knew about Zach Smith’s history of domestic abuse.
Courtney Smith’s conversations with Meyer’s wife also point to Meyer being aware of the 2015 domestic violence incident. This, despite the fact that the Ohio State coach denied knowing anything about it at Big Ten Media Days last week.
The news has prompted swift criticisms from a number of media members, including CBS Sports college football reporter Barrett Sallee, who tweeted this:
In an interview with WatchStadium.com, Courtney Smith talked about what she believed the Ohio State head coach knew regarding the situation.
At Big Ten Media Days, Meyer announced that Zach Smith had been fired. That proclamation came three days after McMurphy reported that Courtney Smith filed a domestic violence protection order against her ex-husband..
In 2009, when he was a University of Florida assistant, Zach Smith was arrested for aggravated battery on a pregnant victim (Courtney), according to a Gainesville Police Department report (she later dropped the charges).
Police reports obtained by Cleveland.com revealed that the Powell Police Department was called to Courtney Smith’s home on Oct. 25, 2015. She told law enforcement that she had “been a victim of sustained physical abuse by [Zach Smith].”
“I got a text last night that something happened in 2015, and there was nothing,” Meyer told reporters at Big Ten Media Days. “I don’t know who creates a story like that.”
Zach Smith was part of Meyer’s staff at Florida from 2005-09 and at Ohio State from 2012-17.
This story was originally published August 17, 2018 at 6:53 PM.