Urban Meyer Reveals Why He Hired Nick Sorensen As Special Teams Coordinator

The Jaguars' head coach had to replace his first special teams hire in the summer leading up to training camp, but his newest addition is one he says came with the highest of recommendations.

It isn't often a head coach has to find a new special teams coordinator in June, let alone one who can help keep a brand new system in place. But that is what Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer set out to do when he hired Nick Sorensen earlier this week. 

Sorensen will be a rookie coordinator and replacing former special teams coordinator Brian Schneider, who was with the team for three months before stepping away from coaching due to personal reasons. As a result of the circumstances, the 42-year-old ended up being the perfect man for a difficult job.

"Yeah, Nick came extremely highly recommended by guys on our staff that worked with him," Meyer said on Thursday. "I did a Zoom interview with him, I talked to [Seattle Seahawks Head] Coach [Pete] Carroll about him and the system we have in place is, we’re going to continue."

That system, which had been implemented by Meyer, Schneider, and special teams assistant Carlos Polk for the last several months, served as a major reason Meyer decided to bring Sorensen on over any other candidate. An experienced defensive and special teams assistant, Sorensen worked side-by-side with Schneider in Seattle during their time on the staff together.

“It was a big lure, yeah. But he had to perform well, obviously," Meyer said. "You know, his recommendations were off the chart, and he did a great job in the interview.”

But it wasn't just the system, Meyer explained. It was also what Sorensen brought to the table and what others on the Jaguars' staff had to say about him (the Jaguars have three other former Seahawks coaches on staff). In a role that would otherwise be tough to find the right fit for, Sorensen stood out to Meyer. The ability to have some continuity and consistency played a part, but not the only part.

"I just evaluated, I really like the system that we had in place and if it changed dramatically in June, I don’t know if it would be fair to the players. And then when I interviewed Nick, we interviewed several people, I thought he was fantastic," Meyer said. "And then he had a great couple of days, he got off a plane and the next morning, he was coaching the team. So, he’s done great."

Sorensen was named the Seahawks staff as an assistant special teams coach in 2013, three years after retiring following a 10-year NFL career that saw stints with the Jaguars, Cleveland Browns, and the then-St. Louis Rams. Sorensen joined the NFL coaching ranks after spending 2012 as a volunteer defensive quality control coach at Youngstown State. He was named secondary coach for the Seahawks in 2017 and in 2020 doubled as the team's nickel coach, giving him some experience with Jaguars cornerback Shaquill Griffin as well.

Sorensen played as a safety for 10 years, also playing for the Rams from 2001-02 and the Browns from 2007-10. During his professional playing career, he tallied 133 special teams tackles.

In addition to Sorensen stepping into the coordinator role, the Jaguars are also set to lean on Polk, another veteran member of the staff. Polk has been with the Jaguars since Meyer announced his initial coaching staff in February, giving him a sense of familiarity with the players to ease any transitions. 

"Carlos Polk is very involved, we elevated his assignments as well and I feel great about where we’re at," Meyer said.