Ohio State is bringing in outside help to investigate how Urban Meyer handled former Buckeyes assistant Zach Smith’s alleged domestic abuse.

The school placed Meyer on paid administrative leave Wednesday after a report by Brett McMurphy showed that Courtney Smith, ex-wife of Zach Smith, texted Meyer’s wife Shelley about domestic abuse. In late July, Meyer used Big Ten Media Days to publicly dispute an earlier McMurphy report which stated that there had been a domestic incident involving the Smiths in 2015.

Thursday evening the school released a statement saying a “special, independent board” has been former to investigate the matter.

The Ohio State University Board of Trustees today formed a special, independent board working group related to the investigation involving Urban Meyer that was announced on Wednesday.

This group includes current trustees Alex Fischer, Janet Porter and Alex Shumate. Also on the panel are former Ohio House Speaker Jo Ann Davidson, former acting U.S. Deputy Attorney General Craig Morford and former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio Carter Stewart.

The special working group will direct the work of the investigative team and be available to provide consultation and advice and assist with communication to the full board on the matter.

While there was some speculation that the suspension was just to give both parties time to negotiate Meyer’s parting, the fact that there will be an independent investigation suggests Meyer’s status could be in limbo for some time. While Meyer is suspended, offensive coordinator Ryan Day is serving as the Buckeyes active head coach.