Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis appoints former UF football coach Urban Meyer to New College board

Carter Weinhofer, Miami Herald on Jan 2, 2026

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BRADENTON, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed College Football Hall of Fame coach and sportscaster Urban Meyer to fill a seat on the New College of Florida’s Board of Trustees.

The appointment is one of three that DeSantis announced in a press release on Tuesday. DeSantis also reappointed Mark Bauerlein and Debra Jenks, who currently serves as the board chair.

Meyer’s appointment comes in the midst of New College expanding its athletics program, the Mighty Banyans. In 2023, the college joined the Sun Conference, adding six varsity sports with plans to add more. The college’s latest campus master plan includes ideas for a new gymnasium, baseball stadium, soccer stadium and softball stadium.

Former UF coach appointed to New College board

Meyer will replace Trustee Christopher Rufo, who decided not to continue for another term, according to a spokesperson for New College. Rufo helped lay the groundwork for a conservative takeover during a 2022 speech at Hillsdale College, the Tampa Bay Times previously reported.

In a statement, the college said Rufo “helped guide a dramatic turnaround” of the liberal arts school over the past three years. Meyer, 61, will bring something different to the table, New College President Richard Corcoran said.

“Urban Meyer brings a strategic mindset and national stature that will serve New College immeasurably,” Corcoran said in the release. “His lifetime of leadership, building teams, mentoring young people, teaching excellence and developing culture aligns perfectly with our academic mission.”

The three appointments follow DeSantis’s trend of picking New College leaders and shaping the college’s expansion. DeSantis previously appointed several board members and the college’s President Richard Corcoran.

Meyer has Sarasota connections, records say

Now a college football analyst for FOX Sports, Meyer was the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars for one season in 2021. Meyer was fired before the end of the 2021 season amid several allegations including that he kicked a player.

His time in the NFL came after 17 years as a head coach in college football, winning a national championship with the Ohio State University in 2014 and two championships with the University of Florida in 2006 and 2008. In December, Meyer was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.

Meyer also owns a home in Sarasota and, according to business records, the Urban and Shelley Meyer Family Foundation, Inc. is based in Sarasota.

Bauerlein, one of the reappointments, is the editor of First Things Magazine, and Jenks is an attorney. All three appointments will need to be confirmed by the Florida Senate at a later date.