Former Ohio State assistant football coach Zach Smith expects to meet with investigators working on behalf of the university early next week, Smith’s attorney confirmed Saturday.
Smith was fired from his position as the Buckeyes’ wide receivers coach in late July after details of domestic abuse allegations made against him years earlier came to light in a report from college football reporter Brett McMurphy. Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer said the day after firing Smith that he had no knowledge about a domestic assault allegation against his former assistant that was made in 2015. Meyer later backtracked from that statement, and Smith confirmed that Meyer did know police were investigating allegations against him during the fall of 2015.
Ohio State has placed Meyer on paid administrative leave pending the results of an investigation into how he and others at the university handled allegations made by Smith’s ex-wife.
Smith’s attorney, Brad Koffel, said his client plans to answer whatever questions the group of investigators wants to ask.
“We’re not trying to run from the truth, but we’re not the only ones with warts on us,” Koffel said.
Smith said a week ago that he believed Meyer followed all protocol properly when dealing with the 2015 incident. Smith said he understood why Ohio State had to fire him, but “it would be a crime” if Meyer lost his job as a result of the ongoing investigation.
Ohio State has appointed a special working group spearheaded by Mary Jo White — who has previously led high-profile inquiries involving several NFL teams — to determine if anyone at the university acted inappropriately while dealing with the 2015 incident. The group started interviewing Ohio State employees last week and said it expects to complete its review by Aug. 19.