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‘Just get a first down’: Urban Meyer explains QB psychology for big games

Dustin Schutte

By Dustin Schutte

Published:

Not many coaches have participated in as many big games as Urban Meyer. The former head coach won three national championships at Florida and Ohio State, and numerous conference titles throughout his career.

In less than a week, Meyer’s former team will be headed to Phoenix, Arizona, where Ohio State will take on Clemson in the Fiesta Bowl in a College Football Playoff semifinal game. The winner will take on either LSU or Oklahoma in New Orleans for the national championship.

Although Ohio State has played in several big games this season against major opponents, they’ve not encountered anything similar to what the Buckeyes will see on Dec. 28 — facing a great opponent with the high stakes.

Recently, Meyer talked about the psychology of these big games, most notably the mindset of a quarterback heading into these type of contests. He provided some really interesting thoughts on what the goal for the guys under center should be in these situations.

“The ultimate job of a quarterback — and it’s going to be this way for the rest of eternity as far as the game of football — your job as a quarterback [is to] get a first down, and stop there. After you get one first down, get another one. Then you get another one. Then the game starts to slow down.

“Get first downs. And I used to tell them this — at all cost. That means, with these things, whatever you have to do, get a first down. You know happens after you get a first down? You tend to get another one. …I know this is simple, but this is the thought process of a quarterback.”

As much pressure as quarterbacks have on them to perform well in big games, this seems like a better approach. It’s an easy way to build confidence and get the guy under center comfortable with the situation.

It helped Meyer win three national titles during his coaching days.

Dustin Schutte

Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB