Florida coach Urban Meyer, who announced Saturday night that he would step down after coaching the Gators in the Sugar Bowl on New Year's Day, will instead take an indefinite leave of absence following the bowl game, he said on Sunday.
Meyer will coach in the Allstate Sugar Bowl against Cincinnati, as previously announced, but that offensive coordinator Steve Adazzio will take over the Gators and will coach until Meyer is ready to return.
Meyer said he got around his players at a short practice on campus and realized he wasn't ready to call it quits.
Urban Meyer: By the Numbers
Coach School Record Win pct.
Urban Meyer Florida 95-18 .841
Pete Carroll USC 96-19 .835
Bob Stoops Oklahoma 116-29 .800
Mark Richt Georgia 89-27 .767
Gary Patterson TCU 85-27 .759
Meyer, who led the Gators to BCS national championships in 2006 and 2008, addressed media members in New Orleans on Sunday. Meyer is 56-10 with Florida, including 32-8 in the SEC and a school-record 22-game winning streak that was snapped by the Crimson Tide in the conference title game on Dec. 5.
"I have given my heart and soul to coaching college football and mentoring young men for the last 24-plus years and I have dedicated most of my waking moments the last five years to the Gator football program," Meyer said in a statement Saturday. "I have ignored my health for years, but recent developments have forced me to reevaluate my priorities of faith and family."
After the Southeastern Conference championship game three weeks ago, Meyer spent several hours in a Gainesville, Fla., hospital because of chest pains.
Florida is one of the most desirable coaching jobs in the country and if athletic director Jeremy Foley had to go searching for a permanent replacement, he likely would have found numerous interested candidates.
Last month, Sports Illustrated chronicled Meyer's coaching career and reported that he suffered from persistent headaches caused by a cyst that becomes inflamed by stress, rage and excitement.
Meyer told the magazine that since the diagnosis in the early 2000s he has tried to stay composed during games.
A tireless recruiter and creative motivator, Meyer came to Florida from Utah in fall 2004 amid speculation he would end up at Notre Dame.
Meyer brought most of his staff with him -- some of whom worked with him at Bowling Green (2001-02) and Utah (2003-04). Together, they restored the program to national prominence two years later with the school's second national championship.
The Gators upset Ohio State 41-14 in Glendale, Ariz.; they won another one last January by beating Oklahoma 24-14 in Miami.
With just about his entire team returning this fall, Meyer spent all season coaching under intense pressure and sky-high expectations. He said he welcomed it all as the defending national champions tried to become just the second team in the last 14 years to repeat.
But the season was far from smooth. Florida dealt with distraction after distraction, prompting Meyer to call it "the year of stuff."
Meyer is married with three children -- the oldest recently started college at Georgia Tech -- and has said repeatedly he planned to leave coaching to spend more time with his family.
Information from ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach, ESPN senior NFL analyst Chris Mortensen and The Associated Press was used in this report.
interim coach duties never work out well
Meyer will coach in the Allstate Sugar Bowl against Cincinnati, as previously announced, but that offensive coordinator Steve Adazzio will take over the Gators and will coach until Meyer is ready to return.
Meyer said he got around his players at a short practice on campus and realized he wasn't ready to call it quits.
Urban Meyer: By the Numbers
Coach School Record Win pct.
Urban Meyer Florida 95-18 .841
Pete Carroll USC 96-19 .835
Bob Stoops Oklahoma 116-29 .800
Mark Richt Georgia 89-27 .767
Gary Patterson TCU 85-27 .759
Meyer, who led the Gators to BCS national championships in 2006 and 2008, addressed media members in New Orleans on Sunday. Meyer is 56-10 with Florida, including 32-8 in the SEC and a school-record 22-game winning streak that was snapped by the Crimson Tide in the conference title game on Dec. 5.
"I have given my heart and soul to coaching college football and mentoring young men for the last 24-plus years and I have dedicated most of my waking moments the last five years to the Gator football program," Meyer said in a statement Saturday. "I have ignored my health for years, but recent developments have forced me to reevaluate my priorities of faith and family."
After the Southeastern Conference championship game three weeks ago, Meyer spent several hours in a Gainesville, Fla., hospital because of chest pains.
Florida is one of the most desirable coaching jobs in the country and if athletic director Jeremy Foley had to go searching for a permanent replacement, he likely would have found numerous interested candidates.
Last month, Sports Illustrated chronicled Meyer's coaching career and reported that he suffered from persistent headaches caused by a cyst that becomes inflamed by stress, rage and excitement.
Meyer told the magazine that since the diagnosis in the early 2000s he has tried to stay composed during games.
A tireless recruiter and creative motivator, Meyer came to Florida from Utah in fall 2004 amid speculation he would end up at Notre Dame.
Meyer brought most of his staff with him -- some of whom worked with him at Bowling Green (2001-02) and Utah (2003-04). Together, they restored the program to national prominence two years later with the school's second national championship.
The Gators upset Ohio State 41-14 in Glendale, Ariz.; they won another one last January by beating Oklahoma 24-14 in Miami.
With just about his entire team returning this fall, Meyer spent all season coaching under intense pressure and sky-high expectations. He said he welcomed it all as the defending national champions tried to become just the second team in the last 14 years to repeat.
But the season was far from smooth. Florida dealt with distraction after distraction, prompting Meyer to call it "the year of stuff."
Meyer is married with three children -- the oldest recently started college at Georgia Tech -- and has said repeatedly he planned to leave coaching to spend more time with his family.
Information from ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach, ESPN senior NFL analyst Chris Mortensen and The Associated Press was used in this report.
interim coach duties never work out well
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