Urban Meyer accused of physical incident during practice by former player, per report
By Keith Farner
Published:
Urban Meyer has faced a slew of issues in his first season in Jacksonville, and the latest is an accusation by a former player that Meyer kicked him.
Josh Lambo was Jacksonville’s kicker in the preseason and struggled with a couple of missed kicks. But during the week leading up to the final exhibition game, Lambo stretched with teammates at practice during the week before the final exhibition game against the Cowboys in August, according to an account by the Tampa Bay Times.
“I’m in a lunge position. Left leg forward, right leg back,” Lambo said. “… Urban Meyer, while I’m in that stretch position, comes up to me and says, ‘Hey Dips–t, make your f–king kicks!’ And kicks me in the leg.”
Meyer, who doesn’t call Jaguars specialists by their names, uses profanities to call them, but that part didn’t bother Lambo.
Lambo spoke for the first time publicly about what he said happened to him in an interview with the Tampa Bay Times.
“It certainly wasn’t as hard as he could’ve done it, but it certainly wasn’t a love tap,” Lambo said. “Truthfully, I’d register it as a five (out of 10). Which in the workplace, I don’t care if it’s football or not, the boss can’t strike an employee. And for a second, I couldn’t believe it actually happened. Pardon my vulgarity, I said, ‘Don’t you ever f–king kick me again!’ And his response was, ‘I’m the head ball coach, I’ll kick you whenever the f–k I want.’”
Meyer denied that the incident happened the way Lambo described it.
“Josh’s characterization of me and this incident is completely inaccurate, and there are eyewitnesses to refute his account,” Meyer said. “(General manager) Trent (Baalke) and I met with him on multiple occasions to encourage his performance, and this was never brought up. I was fully supportive of Josh during his time with the team and wish him nothing but the best.”
A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.
