Screen grab: The Triple Option

On Thursday, Urban Meyer co-hosted a live episode of The Triple Option podcast at Urban Meyer’s Pint House in Dublin, Ohio.

But as attendees at Meyer’s eponymous pint house celebrated the legendary former Ohio State head coach, the crowd quickly erupted in boos as Dave Portnoy joined the program dressed as ex-Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh.

Serving as Ohio State’s head coach from 2012-2018, Meyer earned 4-0 record against Harbaugh in the annual rivalry game between the Buckeyes and the Wolverines. Still, the now-Chargers head coach remains a hated man in Columbus, especially following the Connor Stalions sign-stealing scandal that emerged during the Wolverines’ national championship-winning season in 2023.

A proud Michigan alum, Portnoy hasn’t been shy to rub the scandal in Ohio State’s face, or the fact that the Wolverines got off with what most consider to be a relatively light punishment. In fact, the Barstool Sports founder made his debut on Fox’s Big Noon Kickoff cutting a pro wrestling-style promo in Columbus taunting he Buckeyes faithful over that very subject ahead of OSU’s season-opening victory over Texas on Aug. 30.

In the time since, Meyer and Portnoy have displayed varying degrees of on-air chemistry as the weekly Fox pregame show has traveled across the Big Ten and Big 12 this season. If nothing else, the three-time national champion head coach appears to be a bigger fan of the Boston native than his former conference is, with Portnoy recently implying that the Big Ten is responsible for him not being a part of next week’s episode.

As for his appearance on Thursday, Portnoy joined Meyer and co-hosts Rob Stone and Mark Ingram II for the first 10 minutes of the show. That began with El Presidente removing his Harbaugh-esque sweatshirt to reveal maize and gold t-shirt reminding Ohio State fans that it’s been 2,163 days since the Buckeyes’ last victory over his beloved Wolverines.

“Now we’ve got a high energy crowd here,” Meyer joked as the audience booed.

About Ben Axelrod

Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.