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Show Tuesday, November 29, 2011 DAILY UTAH CHRONICLE 7 FOOTBALL WOMEN'S BASKETBALL Meyer returns to Ohio State Coach begins to confront foul problem Bubba Brown STAFF WRITER : 11 FILE PHOTO/ The Daily Utah Chronicle Former Utah head coach Urban Meyer gets doused with water after Utah defeated BYU to finish a perfect 2004 regular season. Meyer, who was the Utes' head coach from 2003-2004, will become the next head football coach at Ohio State. After a year-long absence, Urban Meyer is back in the college football coaching ranks. Ohio State unveiled Meyer as the Buckeyes' head football coach in a press conference Monday afternoon, after rumors swirled that the coach was headed to the school. Former Utah head coach Meyer completed his master's degree in sports administration and began his coaching career at Ohio State, according to a press release issued by the school. "I am honored and humbled by the opportunity to return to Ohio State," Meyer said. "This university and the state of Ohio have enormous meaning to me. My duty is to ensure that Ohio State's football program reflects and enhances the academic mission of the institution. I am part of it, I believe in it, and I will live it." The move comes at a volatile time for the Buckeye football program. NCAA sanctions for the program are likely after news broke of violations earlier this year, eventually forcing the resignation of former head coach Jim Tressel in May. Meyer's hiring comes just less than a year after he stepped down as Florida's head coach, citing personal health issues and a desire to spend more time with his family as determining factors in what turned out to be a temporary retirement. In late 2009, a year before officially vacating the top coaching job in Florida, Meyer made waves by briefly stepping down before backpedaling a day later and instead merely taking a leave of absence before going on to coach his final season with the Gators. Meyer heads to Ohio State with an impressive resume. He won two national titles during his six-year tenure with the Gators, during which he compiled a 65-15 record. The team took a step backward in Meyer's final season, however, after Heismanwinning quarterback Tim Tebow's graduation. That team finished with an 8-5 record, the worst mark of Meyer's Io-year coaching career. Before Florida, Meyer was the head coach at Utah, and is credited with helping turn the program into a national contender. In 2003, his first year with the Utes, he led the team to a 10-2 record and a Mountain West championship, and was named The Sporting News National Coach of the Year. The following year, the Utes went undefeated and became the first school from a non-Bowl Championship Series conference to play in a BCS bowl. In 2009, Meyer was named college football's Coach of the Decade by both The Sporting News and Sports Illustrated. bubba@ chronicle.utah.edu Parker Lee STAFF WRITER Seventeen minutes. That is all the playing time the reigning Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year Michelle Plouffe got before fouling out of the game, which Utah lost to South Alabama on Saturday. Women's basketball point guard, Janita Badon, who leads the team in assists, fouled out in just i6 minutes of that game. Head coach Anthony Levrets said the major focus in practice this week will be minimizing fouls. He said they can't wait until conference play to fix the problem, but it has to be remedied immediately. "If you put someone on the free-throw line, it doesn't do you any good to play great defense," Levrets said. "We have to address it, and we have to fix it. It is important to get it fixed tomorrow." Forward Taryn Wicijowski said they have to get better in that area to be successful. She said that was what the weekend tournament taught them more than anything else. "Most importantly, we learned that we cannot foul people," Wicijowski said. "We have to be able to control how aggressive we are playing, and we have to play a lot smarter. We have to be smart because we need our starters in at the end of the game." Levrets said fouling was an issue last year with Plouffe and the previous year with Wicijowski. "It is an adjustment for them because international basketball right now is incredibly physical, and so much more stuff is let go," Levrets said. "Coming back and adjusting to officiating on this side of the pond is going to be something new for them every year." Through five games this season, committing fewer fouls has meant getting wins. In their two wins, the Utes were called for fewer fouls than their opponents. In all three losses, Utah has been whistled for more fouls than the other team. They have committed 58 fouls in those losses, but have only been fouled 36 times. Levrets said they do not have enough depth to be without their top players for extended periods of time. He said the coaching staff might have to change its approach in practice so that it is not handcuffing itself in games. "We have to take some measures," Levrets said. "I don't run our kids very often, I don't believe in that, but have to have some sort of consequence in practice to get us to stop fouling. I may have to resort to some new methods to drive the point home." Levrets said the fouling problem was addressed before the season and it needs continued attention. The Utes are back home now after a fourgame road trip. Six of their next seven games are at the Huntsman Center, with the one road game being at BYU, so they won't leave the state again until January. Levrets said this is a good time for them to improve and get things worked out. He said his players are intelligent and will learn from their fouling mistakes. "They are very smart people," Levrets said. "They are high IQ, bright young women. At some point in time, they are going to get it figured out. You will see a huge improvement in this team over the next month." p.lee@chronicle.utah.edu keeping up with U alumni TM ALEX SMITH Quarterback, San Francisco 49ers (Played at Utah 2002-2004) The 49ers lost just their second game of the year to the Ravens. San Francisco failed to find the end zone and Smith passed for 140 yards and an interception. STEVE SMITH Wide Receiver Carolina Panthers (Played at Utah 1999-2000) Smith surpassed 1,000 yards receiving and Carolina handed hapless Indianapolis its eleventh loss of the year. Smith caught three balls for 68 yards in the 27-19 win. to The Chronicle dailyutahchronicle.com Celebrate by downloading the Rid Zone Trivia iPhone and iPad app for FREE. THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAH CAMPUS STORE |