Urban Meyer met with Arizona’s athletic director, Greg Byrne, in Miami early last week to discuss the Wildcats’ job, according to a person with knowledge of the meeting, but ultimately decided he was not interested. The person said that Meyer, who has expressed his desire to return to coaching, was intrigued but informed Byrne in a telephone call Monday night that he was not going to pursue the job.

Where Meyer will end up coaching next season is one of the more intriguing questions in college football. Meyer, who left Florida after last season, is considered the leading candidate for the head coaching positions at Ohio State and Penn State, which are both expected to be open after this year. Ohio State’s Luke Fickell and the interim Penn State coach Tom Bradley are not expected to keep their jobs after inheriting them amid turmoil. (Fittingly, Penn State plays at Ohio State this weekend.)

Meyer won two national championships at Florida and compiled a 65-15 record in six years with the Gators before stepping down last year to spend more time with his family. He has worked as a commentator for ESPN this season.

The Arizona job has been open since early October when Byrne fired Mike Stoops after a 1-5 start. Tim Kish has been the interim head coach since. The possible candidates to replace Stoops at Arizona include the former Oregon coach Mike Bellotti, the former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach, the former Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez and Southern Mississippi Coach Larry Fedora.