After Urban Meyer was caught in a compromising situation at an Ohio restaurant earlier this month, one of the first people he talked to was Tim Tebow. Not only have the two known each other for more than 15 years, but they’re also neighbors in Jacksonville, so it’s not too surprising to hear that the Jaguars coach ended up having a conversation with Tebow in the aftermath of his embarrassing incident.
During a recent interview with ESPN’s “First Take,” Tebow revealed that he offered some advice to Meyer during their conversation.
“This is a very disappointing, frustrating and honestly heartbreaking situation,” Tebow said. “My advice to him was to apologize, to admit it, to learn from it and to never, never repeat it.”
Meyer clearly took Tebow’s advice, because he ended up apologizing multiple times. After a half-hearted apology on Oct. 4, where he didn’t apologize in front of the entire team, Meyer came out two days later and said he apologized to everyone in the organization for being a distraction.
Please check the opt-in box to acknowledge that you would like to subscribe.
Thanks for signing up!
Keep an eye on your inbox.
Sorry!
There was an error processing your subscription.
“I had a very pointed conversation with [the team] owning the stupid mistake that I made,” Meyer said on Oct. 6. “A job of a coach is No. 1: the health and safety of a player; No. 2: motivating them and bringing out the greatness in them; No. 3: give them everything possible to be successful and get the heck out of the way. I apologize for this distraction.”
Although Meyer has sounded remorseful during his public interviews, it seems that he sounded even more remorseful during his conversation with Tebow.
“Coach shared with me that this was one of the hardest times of his life. He apologized, but he didn’t need to apologize to me,” Tebow said. “I know this has weighed so heavy on his heart. He is hurting. I do think, for some of the guys, he will have to earn back their trust and respect.”
Jaguars owner Shad Khan made the some point in his statement about the situation, that Meyer is going to have to earn back the team’s trust and respect.
“I appreciate Urban’s remorse, which I believe is sincere,” Khan wrote. “Now, he must regain our trust and respect. That will require a personal commitment from Urban to everyone who supports, represents or plays for our team. I am confident he will deliver.”
Tebow also pointed out that Meyer is going to have earn back the trust and respect of his family.
“This is not something that I think anybody in his family takes lightly,” Tebow said. “This is a very serious situation, a very disappointing situation, but I also know that coach isn’t taking it lightly, and he knows what a big deal this is, how disappointing it is to so many people, and I believe that he wants to make amends, which is very hard and it takes a while. That’s the thing about a reputation, it takes a lifetime to build and a moment to lose.”
Meyer and Tebow have a long history together. The 57-year-old Meyer coached Tebow for four seasons at Florida (2006-09) and during that time, not only did Tebow take home a Heisman Trophy, but the duo also won two national titles. More recently, the 34-year-old Tebow signed a contract with the Jaguars this offseason and went to training camp with the team before being released in mid-August.
