Ever the opportunist when it comes to motivation for his football team, Urban Meyer apparently hopes to use the Cleveland Cavaliers’ NBA championship victory over the Golden State Warriors as Ohio State prepares for another run at the Big Ten title and the College Football Playoff.
The OSU football Twitter feed shared an edited video of Meyer with snippets of a speech he made to the Buckeyes in which he reacts to Cleveland’s first major pro sports championship since the mid-1960s.
When the @cavs win the #NBA title it's a nice reminder for the Bucks what it takes to win championships. #AllIn216 https://t.co/Ub6g08idMh
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) June 20, 2016
Meyer and Cavs star LeBron James, as most probably know, are both northeast Ohio natives, and each has frequently shown love to the other since returning to chase championships in their home state.
James, who was an all-state receiver as a high school football player in Akron, has made multiple appearances at Ohio State home games, and was there when the Buckeyes won the first College Football Playoff National Championship two years ago.
In the video, Meyer praises James for coming through on his promise to make northeast Ohio proud when he chose to sign with the Cavaliers two summers ago.
The football coach was impressed with Cleveland’s effort level in taking down the favored Warriors on their home floor.
“God bless it did they play hard,” Meyer said. “I know you might say, ‘Well I’m not a Cavs guy,’ but get something out of that. I know what I got out of that: I can’t wait to do that again with a group of players.”