Jalen Ortiz (Or-tease) is in his first season with Utah State and as the cornerbacks coach.
During his six seasons as a collegiate coach, Ortiz has coached in three bowl games and been part of one conference championship team.
Ortiz came to Utah State after spending the past two seasons (2022-23) as the cornerbacks coach at Nevada.
In 2023, Ortiz’s unit helped the Wolf Pack rank 15th in the nation with three defensive touchdowns as they returned three interceptions for scores, including a 98-yard return by defensive back KK Meier against Texas State. Nevada’s two starting cornerbacks, Jaden Dedman and Meier, combined for 60 tackles and nine pass breakups during the year.
In his first season at Nevada, Ortiz saw his two starting cornerbacks, Isaiah Esssissima and Dedman, rank in the team’s top seven in tackles, while Essissima was also second on the team with a pair of interceptions. Overall, Ortiz’s unit contributed to a defense that intercepted 11 passes in 2022.
Prior to his stint with Nevada, Ortiz spent two seasons as a graduate assistant at Oregon primarily coaching defensive backs as he helped the Ducks win a Pac-12 championship in 2020 and finish runner-up in 2021. Oregon also played in two bowl games with Ortiz on staff.
During his time with the Ducks, Ortiz helped coach a secondary that finished with three all-conference players and had an NFL draft pick in Deommodore Lenoir, who was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. At Oregon, he also coached Verone McKinley II, who was a consensus All-American, Paycom Jim Thorpe Award finalist and first-team all-Pac-12 honoree.
Oritz also spent two seasons as a graduate assistant at Wyoming (2018-19), helping the Cowboys win 14 games, including a 2019 campaign in which the Pokes finished 8-5 and capped off the season with a 38-17 victory against Georgia State in the Arizona Bowl.
With the Cowboys, Ortiz coached a pair of first-team all-Mountain West performers. 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-MW recognition, finishing his career as the league’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 on to the NFL 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, while Hall inked a free agent deal with the Atlanta Falcons.
Ortiz began his collegiate career at UCLA lettering two seasons for the Bruins (2013-14) before transferring to Wyoming. After sitting out the 2015 season, Ortiz lettered for the Cowboys in 2016 and 2017.
As a senior at Wyoming in 2017, Ortiz was the starting strong-side 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 first in the country in takeaways, forcing 38 turnovers. The Pokes also ranked ninth in the country in scoring defense, first in the nation in fumbles recovered, second in interceptions, 13th in pass defense and 23rd in total defense.
Ortiz graduated from Wyoming with a degree in political science in 2017. He and his wife Breah have two sons, Ace and Andre.
JALEN ORTIZ FILE
Coaching History
2024- Utah State – Cornerbacks
2022-23 Nevada – Cornerbacks
2020-21 Oregon – Graduate Assistant
2018-19 Wyoming – Graduate Assistant
Bowl Games (3)
Oregon (2): 2021 Alamo Bowl; 2021 Fiesta Bowl
Wyoming (1): 2019 Arizona Bowl
Conference Championships (1)
Oregon (1): Pac-12, 2020
Playing Experience
2015-17 Wyoming – Linebacker
2013-14 UCLA – Linebacker
Education
2017 Wyoming – Political Science
Family
Wife – Breah; Sons – Ace, Andre