Ohio-based restaurant chain Bob Evans tweeted it is "suspending the current partnership" it has with Ohio State football coach Urban Meyer pending the school's investigation into the matter involving Meyer and a former coach, according to Mark Somerson of the COLUMBUS BUSINESS FIRST. Bob Evans on Monday announced that Meyer was the chain's first “head breakfast coach,” but has since "removed" him from its website. The endorsement deal showcased "images of Meyer wearing a Bob Evans jacket and holding a branded coffee mug." The announcement had its "own landing page" on the website, which "no longer works." Meyer was "placed on administrative leave" by OSU on Wednesday (BIZJOURNALS.com, 8/2). In Columbus, Tim Feran notes Ohio-based Big Sandy Superstore, which has been "featuring Meyer’s wife, Shelley, in its ads, was asked for comment on her relationship with the chain but did not respond." OSU professor Deborah Mitchell said, “If Bob Evans drops Urban Meyer, there would be backlash in some quarters. ... I can imagine some Buckeye fans saying they would boycott Bob Evans. That’s Buckeye Nation. That makes it very different from a national celebrity” (COLUMBUS DISPATCH, 8/3).
