Ohio State wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator Zach Smith was fired on Monday, three days after he was the subject of a civil protection order filed by his ex-wife Courtney Smith. According to Brett McMurphy, the protection order and a subsequent criminal trespassing charge were filed after the former Buckeyes assistant dropped their son off at his ex-wife's house, and not a pre-determined public place -- a violation of another criminal trespass charge. Multiple domestic violence and battery charges in Smith's past led to the need for Zach Smith to meet Courtney Smith in public. McMurphy reports that Smith has two domestic violence incidents on his record that led to the couple's split in 2016. In 2009 while a member of Urban Meyer's staff at Florida, Zach Smith was arrested for aggravated battery of Courtney Smith, who was 8-10 weeks pregnant, on the couple's one-year wedding anniversary. No charges were filed in that incident. In October 2015 while on Meyer's staff at Ohio State, Zach Smith was arrested for felonious assault and domestic violence against Courtney Smith. The 2015 case remains open. Ohio State announced Monday that no replacement for Smith has been named, and any coaching staff adjustments will be announced at a later date. Smith -- a 2007 graduate of Florida -- spent 11 total seasons on Meyer's staff at Florida and Ohio State. He served as the wide receivers coach since Meyer's arrival in Columbus in 2012, and added the title of recruiting coordinator before the 2015 season. From 2005-09 at Florida, Smith served as a graduate assistant and quality control assistant. Meyer is slated to speak to the media Tuesday morning at Big Ten Media Days.<doc-sep>CHICAGO — Ohio State coach Urban Meyer made the right decision firing receivers coach Zach Smith on Monday, but it's the timing of that separation that will direct more scrutiny at the coach, the program and the school as those details are sorted out. Meyer's explanation for firing Smith — who on Friday had a protective order filed against him — left some open-ended questions for the coach to answer, especially considering he was on Meyer's staff at Florida from 2005-09 and Ohio State since 2012. "I do understand that it's The Ohio State University and it's bigger than all of us," Meyer said at Big Ten Media Days on Tuesday. "So you have to do what's right by them. The timing? It wasn't just my decision. It was a group people who I rely on." MORE: SN's 2018 Big Ten predictions Meyer's answer left the situation up to the courts of law and public opinion, which leaves the program open to more criticism given the nature of the disturbing allegations against Smith. Meyer confirmed a 2009 incident between Zach Smith and his ex-wife Courtney Smith in which the latter called the police on her husband when he was an intern at Florida. He was arrested after Courtney Smith filed a domestic violence complaint against him, though she declined to press charges. Meyer said he and his wife Shelley tried to help the couple at the time. "It came to me what happened, we advised them in counseling and moved forward," Meyer said. "There were no charges, and what was reported was not what was told to me afterwards." You can either believe Meyer had good intentions and handled the situation properly at the time, or chalk up his decision as another mark against him dating back to his Florida tenure, remembered both for national championships and several notable player behavior issues. Comparatively, Meyer has kept the behavioral problems to a minimum at Ohio State. But these allegations don't involve a player; they involve a grown man, a professional in charge of guiding student-athletes. It's a situation that has drawn criticism from Annie Apple — mother of former Ohio State cornerback Eli Apple — on Twitter. At Ohio State, our sons were held to high conduct rules & zero tolerance when it came to violence against women and rightfully so. I'm personally disappointed that Coach Zach Smith was not held to those same standards. Love my Buckeyes, but this is bigger than football. https://t.co/gpgfJWfARK — Annie Apple (@SurvivinAmerica) July 24, 2018 Complicating matters is the fact Smith is the grandson of Earle Bruce, the former Ohio State football coach and mentor to Meyer who died on April 20. That said, the 2009 arrest isn't the only incident involving Smith. MORE: Trace McSorley faces doubters yet again Meyer denied a report by national writer Brett McMurphy that alleged another incident took place between Smith and his wife in 2015. According to multiple outlets, there is no report on the incident. The Columbus Dispatch reports Powell (Ohio) police chief Gary Vest said, to his knowledge, no charges were ever filed. "Someone texted me that last night. I said, '2015?' That was only a couple years ago," Meyer said. "I told people to go find out for me. I'm not sure where that comes up." Cleveland.com reports Courtney Smith also filed a protective order against Zach Smith following an incident in May in which he was charged with criminal trespass. Smith has pleaded not guilty to that charge, with a pre-trial hearing set in August. Meyer did not elaborate on whether that incident is why Smith's contract was terminated on Monday. "It's a personal matter," Meyer said. "It's a decision that was made for the best interest of our team. But I'm not going to get into the details of that. That's not fair." MORE: Ranking Big Ten coaches in 2018 Every coach would say that in this situation — even Meyer, who has held a "zero tolerance" policy concerning violence against women. It's also important to note Smith hasn't been found guilty of anything. The legal proceedings still need to play out. "Our job as leaders is you have to make decisions that are for the best of the program," Meyer said. That answer alone won't end this story. Meyer decided to hire Smith to Ohio State despite the 2009 incident, and the pattern of allegations have continued against him in Columbus. Smith won't have to answer for that at Ohio State anymore. Meyer will, and the timing is the part that will get him the most criticism. Given how clean and successful the program has been — Ohio State is 73-8 the last six seasons under Meyer and is the heavy favorite to win the Big Ten again — this is another unwanted connection to those Florida days. Meyer didn't make a decision on the timing, but he still made the right decision to part ways with Smith. He might not be bigger than the university, but he's definitely the biggest figure at the university. His answers on Smith still leave more questions, however, and that leaves the program in the court of public opinion. The timing for that will never be right.<doc-sep>
Ohio State has announced the dismissal of wide receivers coach Zach Smith — grandson of former Buckeyes coach Earl Bruce — after he had a domestic violence civil protection order filed against him on Friday. The protection order — as originally reported by Brett McMurphy — was filed by Smith's ex-wife, Courtney Smith, 33, in the Delaware (Ohio) Municipal Court. It prohibits Zach Smith from getting within 500 feet of Courtney Smith for five years, unless reversed in an Aug. 3 hearing. According to McMurphy, the court ruled that "(Courtney Smith) is in immediate and present danger of domestic violence and for good cause the following temporary orders are necessary to protect the persons named (Courtney Smith and her children Cameron, 8, and Quinn, 6) in this order from domestic violence.” Ohio State's athletic department released a statement, saying, "Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer has announced the termination of wide receiver’s (sic) coach Zach Smith. Coaching staff adjustments will be announced at a later date." Zach Smith was also charged with misdemeanor criminal trespassing on Wednesday when he dropped off their son at his ex-wife's house, instead of at a pre-arranged, public place. That violated an earlier warning from December 2017. This week's protective order and arrest are the latest in a history of domestic violence allegations against Zach Smith, who has been a part of Urban Meyer's staff for 11 years, both at Florida (2005-09) and Ohio State (2012-17). The first allegation arose in June 2009, when Zach Smith, then at Florida, was arrested on charges of aggravated battery against a then-pregnant Courtney Smith. According to a Gainesville (Fla.) Police Incident report, Courtney Smith, then 24, alleged Zach Smith had picked her up by the T-shirt and slammed her into the wall. That altercation, according to the police report, was a result of Courtney Smith accusing her husband of infidelity after he brought a female co-worker to their home. Police on the scene found Zach Smith to be the aggressor. He denied those allegations and Courtney Smith declined to press charges. McMurphy reports Zach Smith was also arrested in October 2015 by Powell (Ohio) police on felony counts of domestic violence and assault against his wife, a case which reportedly remains unresolved. Multiple outlets have found no report of said incident. Zach and Courtney Smith were divorced in September 2016.