Orlando Sentinel columnist Mike Bianchi zinged Urban Meyer in a story about former Auburn head coach Gene Chizik.

Chizik, the defensive coordinator at UNC in 2016, walked away from football earlier this year to spend time with his family, and as Bianchi put it, he actually is doing what Urban Meyer said he was going to do. Ouch.

And Chizik has zero regrets about leaving the game he’s loved for so long.

“I absolutely love football and I have always loved it since I was 4 years old and sitting in my dad’s lap watching the old Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings,” Chizik says. “Football has been extremely good to me and my family, but up until now I had no regrets about any decision I’ve ever made in regard to my profession.

“It reached a point where I didn’t want to have any regrets in regard to my family either. This was an opportunity for me take the last 2 1/2 years of my son’s high school career and be there with him and, believe me, I’m loving every minute of every one of his games. I’m never going to get these games back; I’m never going to get these days back.”

Obviously coaches make a lot of money, and from the outside looking in, it looks like a great lifestyle. But what folks don’t see is families sacrificing time with their husbands and fathers. Coaches are married to their profession, and some probably even spend more time with their fellow coaches and players than their families. Recruiting is 24/7 now, and college football is just different than it used to be. There’s no off-season, and the high compensation puts coaches on the cutting block every single year.

Chizik echoed those sentiments to Bianchi, too.

“It’s all-consuming,” says Chizik. “It envelops your life 24/7. It doesn’t end when you go to church, it doesn’t end when you step in the door at home, it doesn’t end when you take your kids to a baseball game. It never ends. And that’s why I had to drop the anchor and get off the ship.”

Chizik went through a rough ending at Auburn, and that takes a toll on a person. But it seems like he’s finally happy and enjoying spending time with his family.

Kevin Duffey

A graduate of the University of Florida and founder of Saturday Down South, Kevin is a college football enthusiast.