University of Nevada Athletics

Jalen Ortiz enters his second season on the Nevada staff as Cornerbacks coach.

In his first season in Reno, Ortiz had his two starting cornerbacks, Isaiah Essissima and Jaden Dedman, rank in the team's top seven in tackles, with Essissima ranking second on the Pack with two interceptions. Overall, Essissima and Dedman contributed to a defense that intercepted 11 passes in 2022.

Essissima was named Mountain West Defensive Player of the Week after the team's Week 0 victory at New Mexico State, in which he picked off a pair of passes.

Ortiz joined Nevada in Jan. 2022 after two seasons at Oregon as a graduate assistant primarily coaching defensive backs. He was a member of Mario Cristobal's staff that won a Pac-12 championship in 2020 and finished runner-up in 2021. Prior to his time in Eugene, Ortiz spent five seasons (2015-19) at Wyoming where he served as a graduate assistant on the defensive side of the ball his last two years after being a member of the Wyoming team from 2015-17.  
 
From 2020-21, Ortiz made an immediate impact with the Ducks, helping Oregon to its second straight Pac-12 Conference championship in 2020 and a berth in the Fiesta Bowl.
 
Ortiz helped coach a secondary that finished with three all-conference players and had a NFL draft pick. Cornerback Mykael Wright earned first-team All-Pac-12 Conference honors from both the league’s coaches and the Associated Press, while cornerback Deommodore Lenoir claimed second-team honors from both the coaches and AP and safety Jamal Hill nabbed honorable mention honors from the coaches.
 
The San Francisco 49ers selected Lenoir in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
 
At Wyoming from 2018-19, A former standout defensive back for the Cowboys, Ortiz spent two seasons as a Wyoming defensive graduate assistant. Ortiz worked primarily with the Pokes’ safeties and nickels helping Wyoming win 14 games during his two season on the coaching staff, including an 8-5 record in 2019 and a 38-17 win over Georgia State in the Arizona Bowl.
 
Ortiz coached a pair of first-team All-Mountain West Conference performers during his time at his alma mater. In 2019, Alijah Halliburton earned first-team all-league honors after leading Wyoming in tackles with 130, finishing 11th in the nation with 10.0 tackles per game. In 2018, free safety Andrew Wingard claimed first-team All-MWC recognition, finishing his career as the Mountain West’s record holder in career tackles with 454. Nickel Tyler Hall joined Halliburton and Wingard as all-conference selections under Ortiz, claiming honorable mention honors in both 2018 and 2019.
 
Wingard and Hall both moved into the professional ranks along with Marcus Epps, a sixth round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings who Ortiz coached. Wingard signed a free agent contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars, making the Jags’ 53-man roster as a rookie. Hall inked a free agent deal with the Atlanta Falcons in late April 2020.
 
Ortiz began his collegiate career at UCLA lettering two seasons for the Bruins before transferring to Wyoming. After sitting out the 2015 season, Ortiz lettered for the Cowboys in 2016 and 2017.
 
As a senior, Ortiz was the starting strong-side (SAM) linebacker and nickel back. He helped the Cowboys to an 8-5 record and a victory in the 2017 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. He was part of a defense that ranked No. 1 in the nation in takeaways, forcing 38 opponent turnovers. The Pokes ranked No. 9 in the country in scoring defense, No. 1 in the NCAA in fumbles recovered, No. 2 in interceptions, No. 13 in pass defense and No. 23 in total defense.
 
Ortiz graduated from Wyoming with a degree in political science in 2017. He and his wife, Breah, were married in 2020.
 
COACHING CAREER
2020-21    Graduate Assistant/Defensive Backs        Oregon
2018-19    Graduate Assistant/Defensive Backs        Wyoming
                                                            
CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS
2020 Pac-12 Conference – Oregon (Graduate Assistant/Defensive Backs)
2016 MWC Mountain Division* – Wyoming (Player)
* Co-Champions
 
BOWL GAMES
2021 Fiesta Bowl – Oregon (Graduate Assistant/Defensive Backs)
2019 Arizona Bowl – Wyoming (Graduate Assistant/Defensive Backs)
2017 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl – Wyoming (Player)
2016 Poinsettia Bowl – Wyoming (Player)
2015 Alamo Bowl – UCLA (Player)
2013 Sun Bowl – UCLA (Player)
 
NFL DRAFT PICKS COACHED (5)
2021 (RD 5) CB Deommodore Lenoir – Oregon – San Francisco 49ers
2019 (RD 6) FS Marcus Epps – Wyoming – Minnesota Vikings
 
UNDRAFTED NFL PLAYERS COACHED (2)
FS Andrew Wingard – Wyoming – Jacksonville Jaguars
LB/N Tyler Hall – Wyoming – Atlanta Falcons
 
NATIONAL AWARD FINALISTS COACHED
2018 Burlsworth Trophy – Marcus Epps – Wyoming

ALL-CONFERENCE SELECTIONS COACHED
2020 CB Mykael Wright – Oregon – Pac-12 (AP – 1st, Coaches – 1st)
2020 CB Deommodore Lenoir– Oregon – Pac-12 (AP – 2nd, Coaches – 2nd)
2020 SAF Jamal Hill – Oregon – Pac-12 (Coaches – HM)
2019 SAF Alijah Halliburton – Wyoming – Mountain West (Coaches/Media – 1st)
2019 LB/N Tyler Hall – Wyoming – Mountain West (Coaches/Media – HM)
2018 FS Andrew Wingard – Wyoming – Mountain West (Coaches/Media – 1st)
2018 LB/N Tyler Hall – Wyoming – Mountain West (Coaches/Media – HM)