CHICAGO — The last time Urban Meyer entered a season leading the No.1 team in the country, it nearly cost him his life.

Fresh off Florida’s 2008 national championship season – its second title in three years – Meyer was starting to feel the toll of success and heightened expectations. The Gators were overwhelming favorites in 2009, but the stress got to Meyer.

Urban Meyer has felt the stress of success, stepping away from Florida after winning two national titles in three seasons as coach. He insists he’s better prepared now to lead Ohio State in its title defense. The Associated Press

He lost 37 pounds that season and twice suffered health scares that eventually led him to briefly step away from the program. He would return to coach one more season but the damage was done. He was, in his words, “mentally broken.”

Six years later, a different Urban Meyer sets to embark on a similar challenge leading an Ohio State team that won last season’s national championship. This time, Meyer said he’s up for the test.

“If you remember back to ’09 – and I have – we won 22 straight games, we went undefeated in the Southeastern Conference and it was a miserable year, according to people, including myself,” Meyer said. “That’s my fault. If we win every game this year, I can assure you, it’s not going to be miserable.”

Meyer doesn’t call it “defending” a national championship. He sees it as a new year with new challenges.

Much like his 2009 Gators, the Buckeyes return a tremendous amount of talent – 14 starters – including the Big Ten’s top quarterback and defensive lineman from last season.

It’s easy to see why Ohio State is expected to be a double-digit favorite in every game. But that’s not to say there won’t be challenges.

First, Ohio State faces the problem of complacency.

“You really don’t see any glaring weaknesses,” Big Ten Network analyst Howard Griffith. “I think what will be interesting, and it will be more of the meeting-room aspect of things, is how do these guys handle being the front-runners?

“They’re going to be expected to win every game and not by just a point. I think the mental aspect for young people is being able to stay hungry and being able to stay consistent. That’s where Urban’s biggest challenge will be.”

And it appears Meyer already has imparted some of that to his players.

“He’s had a chance to win back-to-back and he knows that it’s hard, so he’s been grinding us, constantly telling us to stay focused and stay on the grind,” defensive lineman Aldophus Washington said.

Meyer admits that he and his coaching staff watch for signs his players are letting up.

“The indicators you look for first are academics. In academics we had the highest graduation rate in the history of Ohio State football,” Meyer said. “Second thing is the weight room. I have the best strength coach in America. … And then the social element, that’s obviously the one that you keep one eye open.

“All we can do is watch the indicators, watch it closely, and then dive into it with a sledgehammer if we start to see something that’s disrupting the team.”

It’s a major hurdle but the players seem prepared.

“You have no choice but to embrace it if you want to get back,” Washington said. “You think of all the hard times that we had last year, and we had people counting us out for games that we would win. Just think about those times, and that can get us through any situation.”

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