PASADENA, Calif. — Urban Meyer says he decided to end his remarkable coaching career at Ohio State partly because of the stress inherent in this high-intensity job.
After his Buckeyes blew most of a 25-point lead in the fourth quarter and had to recover a last-minute onside kick to win the Rose Bowl, anybody could understand why this 54-year-old coach can’t wait to retire.
But the stress is over. Meyer is going out at the top of his profession.
And for the first time, he is a Rose Bowl champion.
Dwayne Haskins passed for 251 yards and three touchdowns, and Meyer headed into retirement with a 28-23 victory after the fifth-ranked Buckeyes held off No. 9 Washington’s thrilling comeback in the 105th Rose Bowl on Tuesday.
After the confetti flew in the north end zone, the Buckeyes gathered around Meyer for one last celebration of their coach. He is walking away after going 83-9 at Ohio State with one national championship, three Big Ten titles and this Rose Bowl win, the Buckeyes’ eighth overall.
“I’m a very blessed man,” Meyer said. “I’m blessed because of my family, (but) this team, this year, I love this group as much as any I’ve ever had.”
Parris Campbell, Johnnie Dixon and Rashod Berry caught TD passes in the first half for the Buckeyes (13-1), who took a 28-3 lead into the fourth and seemed to be cruising to a blowout.
But star running back Myles Gaskin threw a touchdown pass and rushed for two more scores for the Huskies (10-4), scoring from 2 yards out with 42 seconds left.
The Huskies got no closer, however: The Buckeyes intercepted Jake Browning’s pass on the 2-point conversion attempt and then recovered Washington’s onside kick.
Meyer cited his health last month in his decision to step down. A cyst in Meyer’s brain causes severe headaches that are even worse for a man who says he gets not just nervous, but “deathly ill” before big games.
Although Meyer’s final season began with an embarrassing three-game suspension over his mismanagement of domestic abuse accusations against former assistant Zach Smith, he propelled the Buckeyes to another dominant regular season despite missing out on the College Football Playoff.
This game could be Haskins’ farewell as well, if the sophomore goes pro. The Heisman Trophy finalist threw his 50th TD pass while picking away at the vaunted Washington secondary minus injured Taylor Rapp, the second-team All-American safety.
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