Tom Herman: Wife OK with strip club visit; coach says he'll cooperate if NCAA asks
Texas head coach Tom Herman said on Thursday that he is willing to cooperate with the NCAA should it want to talk to him about his visit to a Miami strip club in 2014 with Zach Smith when they were both Ohio State assistants.
Ohio State confirmed this week that Smith — who was fired after multiple domestic abuse accusations that sparked an investigation into how head coach Urban Meyer handled those accusations — attended the strip club with Herman while on a recruiting trip.
The school said that Smith spent about $600 of his own money at the strip club. While there is nothing wrong with them going to a strip club and spending their own money, they could have violated NCAA rules if the high school coaches who attended the strip club with Smith and Herman did not pay their own way.
Herman, who was the offensive coordinator at Ohio State from 2012-2014, said he will talk to the NCAA if they approach him about the visit. He also admitted that his wife knew about the trip and was fine with him going.
He did not, however, address whether he or Smith paid for any of the high school coaches who were there.
“My wife knew exactly where I was, had no issue with it,” Herman said. “I’m happy to cooperate, be honest, truthful, transparent with the NCAA if they so need me to be.
“I understand the responsibility that comes with being the head coach at the University of Texas. I take that responsibility very, very seriously. Right now, that responsibility includes me being laser-like focused on preparing our team to win a game in less than 48 hours.”
No. 23 Texas opens its season on Saturday on the road against Maryland. Herman, who left Ohio State in 2015 for Houston, was hired by Texas after the 2016 season.
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