Ohio State WR coach fired after wife gets protection order against him
Ohio State announced Monday evening that wide receivers coach Zach Smith had been fired.
Smith’s ex-wife reportedly obtained a protection order against him following his misdemeanor criminal trespass charge from a May incident. She’s also reportedly accused him of domestic violence on at least two occasions throughout their relationship.
According to Brett McMurphy, the protection order was filed Friday evening. Smith has pleaded not guilty to the charge, which came after he allegedly dropped the couple’s children off at his ex-wife Courtney’s house rather than in a public place.
The domestic violence civil protection order served to Zach Smith on Friday is for five years, unless reversed by a judge in an Aug. 3 hearing, a City of Delaware police spokesperson said. The protection order issued Friday prohibits Zach Smith from getting within 500 feet of his ex-wife.
The ruling states: “the court finds that (Courtney Smith) is in immediate and present danger of domestic violence and for good cause the following temporary orders are necessary to protect the persons named (Courtney Smith and her children Cameron, 8, and Quinn, 6) in this order from domestic violence.”
McMurphy’s report notes that Courtney accused Zach of domestic violence in 2009 after he brought home an unknown woman to their residence and “threw” a newly-pregnant Courtney into a wall. The alleged incident happened while Smith was working on Urban Meyer’s staff at the University of Florida. Charges were never filed.
Later Monday afternoon McMurphy reported that Courtney Smith had accused Zach of another domestic violence incident in 2015. He was fired not long after the 2015 allegation became public.
Smith had been part of Meyer’s staff since the former Florida coach took over at Ohio State in 2012. The team did not immediately announce his replacement.
Smith’s attorney told the Columbus Dispatch that an agreement to drop the couple’s children off in a public place was a non-binding agreement. Bradley Koffel said that Smith had called Courtney about dropping the kids off and then went to her place after he didn’t hear back. That’s when police were called. Smith entered his plea on Wednesday.
“They pick up and drop off like every other divorced family,” Koffel told the Dispatch. “They said, ‘He was told by one of our officers five months ago not to drop off at her apartment.’ I said that’s not enough to override a domestic-court order on where he’s allowed to drop off or pick up his kids. It’s a court order that controls this.”
Smith was also Ohio State’s recruiting coordinator in addition to serving as the team’s wide receivers coach. He coached at Marshall and Temple between Florida and Ohio State.
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Nick Bromberg is a writer for Yahoo Sports.
Follow @NickBromberg on Twitter
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