A “Save Urban Meyer’’ online petition has garnered more than 26,000 signatures from people supporting the embattled Ohio State football coach. The site shows the petition was started Thursday by Blake Firestone, who said he is a fan of Ohio State. The goal - originally 25,000 - now is 35,000 signatures. “Urban Meyer is on the hot seat and can be wrongly fired from Ohio State,’’ reads the petition. “... It is up to us Buckeye Nation to help him not just for him but for THE Ohio State University and the great state of Ohio!’’ Meyer was put on paid administrative leave Wednesday amid allegations he was aware of multiple alleged instances of domestic abuse involving one of his former assistant coaches. More:Urban Meyer fans think Ohio State coach is a victim of the times Firestone directed the petition to Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith with Meyer under siege. “Hopefully Gene Smith can see this and realize that Buckeye Nation will not tolerate for this,’’ he wrote. But Firestone indicated the petitioners may need a new point of contact with Smith drawing scrutiny after recent developments. Meyer has said he was untruthful with the media July 24 when he denied knowing about allegations in 2015 and that he followed proper reporting protocols and procedures. That likely meant reporting the matter to Smith. Zach Smith, the ousted assistant football coach, has said Gene Smith knew about the allegations. Meanwhile, support for Meyer also seems to be building for a rally scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday outside Ohio State’s football stadium. Jeff Hamms, a self-described avid Ohio State fan who is organizing the event, has used Facebook to spread the word. “Bring your signs, paint your face, do whatever you’ve got to do,’’ Hamms said Sunday in a video. “We want to be heard. We want our coach back.” Follow Peter on Twitter @joshlpeter11<doc-sep>Ohio State football coach Urban Meyer was placed on administrative leave last week as the school investigates what Meyer knew about former wide receivers coach Zach Smith allegedly abusing his ex-wife, Courtney Smith. With Meyer’s coaching career in jeopardy, a Ohio State fan started a Change.org petition in hopes of persuading the university to reinstate the coach. The petition called “Save Urban Meyer” has amassed nearly 25,000 signatures as of Sunday. The fan who started the petition wrote of Meyer: Urban Meyer is on the hot seat and can be wrongfully fired from Ohio State it is up to us Buckeye Nation to help him not just for him but for THE Ohio State University and the great state of Ohio! The petition was designated to Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith. Meyer admitted in a statement that he was inaccurate in his remarks to reporters at Big Ten media day. He said at the time that he was unaware of a 2015 incident involving Smith. Meyer was placed on leave Wednesday after reports from Brett McMurphy contradicted Meyer’s remarks at media day.<doc-sep>There are some college football fans who want to see Ohio State coach Urban Meyer fired. But not everybody feels that way. An online petition on Change.org had gathered more than 25,000 signatures as of Sunday evening to support Meyer, who is currently on administrative leave. A report came out last week that Meyer lied about not knowing one of his former assistants had been accused of domestic violence against his ex-wife numerous times. The description on the petition reads: “Urban Meyer is on the hot seat and can be wrongfully fired from Ohio State it is up to us Buckeye Nation to help him not just for him but for THE Ohio State University and the great state of Ohio!” Meyer has been the coach at Ohio State since 2012. It was reported that the domestic violence allegations against former Buckeyes wide receivers coach Zach Smith occurred during 2015. Meyer and Smith have both released statements since the report came out, with both defending themselves. Smith denied abusing his ex-wife, while Meyer continued to say he was unaware of the allegations, which was also what he said when asked about the situation at Big Ten Media Days. If the report is true, then it wouldn’t be surprising to see Meyer get fired. However, there are clearly some Buckeyes fans who may not believe the report and want to support their team’s coach, as evidenced by the large number of signatures on the online petition.<doc-sep>
Annie Rice/Associated Press Some Ohio State fans have taken it into their own hands to try to save the job of head football coach Urban Meyer. Caitlyn Holroyd of theScore noted a "Save Urban Meyer" petition launched on Change.org had more than 25,000 signatures as of Sunday. Blake Firestone started the petition in an effort to prevent Meyer's firing after he was placed on paid administrative leave while an investigation determines what he knew and how he handled domestic violence allegations against former assistant Zach Smith. What's more, Jackie Orozco of ABC 6 in Columbus reported a fan named Jeff Hamms is organizing a rally on Ohio State's campus in support of Meyer. The petition says "Urban Meyer is on the hot seat and can be wrongfully fired from Ohio State it is up to us Buckeye Nation to help him not just for him but for THE Ohio State University and the great state of Ohio!" As for the rally, Hamms called for "a peacefully rally" as a response to "so much negative press with Coach Meyer." Ohio State fired Smith in the aftermath of a report from Brett McMurphy. In a later report, Courtney Smith, the ex-wife of Zach Smith, presented McMurphy with evidence of physical abuse and revealed she told Meyer's wife, Shelley Meyer, and the wives of other assistants about Smith's abuse. Video Play Button Videos you might like Meyer denied knowledge of the domestic violence allegations from 2015 while speaking at Big Ten media days in Chicago. However, he later released a statement Friday, saying, "I have always followed proper reporting protocols and procedures when I have learned of an incident involving a student-athlete, coach or member of our staff by elevating the issues to the proper channels. And, I did so regarding the Zach Smith incident in 2015. I take that responsibility very seriously and any suggestion to the contrary is simply false." He also said he wasn't prepared to handle the questions regarding the allegations at Big Ten media days in the statement. Ohio State has named Ryan Day the interim head coach while the investigation is conducted.