College football analyst Urban Meyer appeared on Colin Cowherd's "The Herd" podcast on Nov. 7 and shut down rumors circulating of him connecting with Penn State regarding its open head coach position.
"I certainly did not meet with Penn State about the job," Meyer said. "Yeah, my phone started blowing up last week, and I got a lot of respect for Penn State, but I have no interest in coaching again. So, no, of course not."
Meyer also implied that no amount of money could get him back into coaching when Cowherd asked him if he would take $15 million per year to coach if a school offered.
"I certainly did not meet with Penn State about the job…I have no interest in coaching again" - Urban Meyer pic.twitter.com/R0LlQqMU5B
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 7, 2025
Urban Meyer says he was not in contact with Penn State and has no interest in taking the head coach job
Rumors erupted when CBS Sports Radio personality Zach Gelb reported that Meyer had direct conversations with the university regarding the position. However, due to NIL policies, the Nittany Lions turned Meyer down. Meyer has no experiencing coaching under NIL regulations with the 2018 season closing out his tenure and 17-year legacy.
Meyer appeared on "The Triple Option" podcast where he claimed the story was completely made up. Gelb doubled down on his original report, saying he stands by it and that Meyer's comments didn't accurately reflect what was reported in the first place.
On the podcast, Meyer said he did not meet with Pennsylvania Senator Dave McCormick about the job in Happy Valley, something Gelb never indicated in the initial report. Meyer admitted he did meet with the senator, but for separate reasons — something that sparked even more curiosity about the coaching rumors.
In response to Meyer's denial, Gelb urged the former coach to take a lie detector test to prove Gelb's report was false.
When Penn State's job opened, Meyer made a comment, saying the Nittany Lions would not have fired former head coach James Franklin midseason if they didn't have a plan already in place.
He said a top-10 or a top-five job is a completely different situation than a middle-of-the-pack or bottom tier program. On top of Penn State being a high-end program, Franklin had a winning record and multiple bowl appearances. His ceiling with the Nittany Lions was absurdly high for a midseason fire, even if it were to happen eventually after the 2025 season ended. Meyer said Penn State had to have had a known replacement to target, or even a sure hire, to fire Franklin halfway through.