Urban Meyer, who's stepping down as Ohio State football coach after the Rose Bowl, will co-teach a course on character and leadership at the university next year.

"I met with Gene (athletic director Gene Smith) and I met with my family because am I going to commit that much time? Because I've never done anything half speed," he told Columbus' WCMH-TV. "And I thought about it, I prayed about it, I know the relationship we have with the Fisher School of Business, the dean and everybody and I said yes. So I look forward to it."

There's a pretty good chance that the class might be one of Ohio State's most popular offerings.

Meyer was suspended for the first three games of the season for his handling of domestic-abuse allegations against his former assistant coach, Zach Smith. He announced early this month that he would step down after leading the No. 5 Buckeyes against Washington in the Rose Bowl because a cyst on his brain had been causing severe headaches.

In addition to his teaching schedule -- details haven't been finalized -- Meyer plans to work with the athletic department in some capacity.

"My passion is student-athletes still. That's never going to change," he said.

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He'll turn the program over to co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Ryan Day, who had run the team during Meyer's suspension.

Meyer said the team is in good hands.

"I am so excited about the direction of the program. The guy that's taking over is elite. You can see the way he recruited. You can see the way he handles his business," he said. "You can see our support staff is elite. The infrastructure is elite. And that's not changing."

Follow Gardner on Twitter @SteveAGardner