A Day in the Life: Jack Sorenson

At 4:52 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 13, Miami's Jack Sorenson caught his final pass of the day. He finished playing catch with fellow receivers Mac Hippenhammer and Jalen Walker, pantomimed wrapping a giant gift (complete with an imaginary bow on top) and walked off the Yager Stadium turf.

"That's a wrap!"

Next week, Sorenson will be able to say the same thing about his six-year tenure with the RedHawks. The leading receiver in the Mid-American Conference (with 1,290 yards this season) heads into the Frisco Football Classic looking to put a bow on a prolific career with one last special performance.

Sorenson enters the postseason needing just 46 yards to reach 3,000 for his career, a milestone that less than 30 players in the conference (and just three RedHawks: Ryne Robinson, Nick Harwell and Martin Nance) have ever attained. The MAC record books are littered with names of wide receivers that went on to become NFL standouts – Randy Moss, Corey Davis, Greg Jennings and Antonio Brown, just to name a few – and Sorenson would love to follow in their footsteps at the next level.

But first, there's the matter of a bowl game vs. North Texas…in North Texas. And that's exactly what was on Sorenson's mind when he first arrived at the football facility nearly nine and a half hours earlier to kick off a full day of preparation.

- - -

Sunrise at Yager on Monday, Dec. 13 — Sunrise at Yager Stadium
on Monday, Dec. 13

The sun was just starting to peek over the east bleachers Monday morning when Sorenson headed into the stadium and walked through the doors to the Gunlock Family Athletic Performance Center (APC). Although his official agenda for the day didn't really begin until a group lifting session at 11 a.m., Sorenson arrived for treatment shortly after 7:30. He went through an individual half-hour workout, using a combination of balls, weights, bands and a mini-trampoline (practicing a one-foot landing from different angles), before heading up to the wide receiver room to watch film on his own.

Sorenson will readily admit that he doesn't have any 'elite' traits as a football player, going so far as to call himself the 'runt of the family talent-wise', so while this morning's activities may not be his favorite part of football, he embraces the solo work that it takes to be as good as he can between the lines on gameday.

"If you know that you're not as gifted naturally as other people, then you have to be willing to sacrifice more than others," Sorenson said. "That's a hard thing to learn how to do. If you want to be the most successful at anything, you've got to be willing to sacrifice things you don't want to sacrifice."

Both the large screen on the wall and the computer monitor on the desk in front of Sorenson showed a playlist of clips of the North Texas defense, all in the same alignment. Over the next half-hour, Sorenson watched plays from a variety of games the Mean Green had played in 2021, evaluating what the UNT defense liked to do and how.

Fast forward, rewind, fast forward, rewind, pause, scribble, fast forward, rewind…and the pattern repeated.

Sorenson's research on this morning was especially focused on the individual defensive backs he expects to face on Dec. 23. The Miami wideout took notes on each cornerback, safety and nickel back, their strengths and weaknesses, their individual tendencies and how he thought he could successfully attack them to get open.

One North Texas player who showed up on quite a bit of film from the early part of the year wasn't even listed in the depth chart on the back page of the scouting report Sorenson held in his hands. "I wonder if he's injured?", Sorenson mused out loud.

Sure enough, the front page of the scouting report said exactly that: The UNT player in question is out for the season.

"See, I probably should have read the whole thing!"

(Or at least not started on the back page?!)

- - -

"Hey, Siri. Call 'CEO.'"

After a quick trip to pick up some groceries for the apartment he shares with linebacker Ryan McWood, Sorenson had one phone call to make before heading back to the APC.

A moment later, his mom's voice was on the other end of the phone.

"She's 'CEO,' and my dad is stored as 'CFO,'" he chuckled later.

When Sorenson isn't getting ready for his final college football game, he's working on laying the groundwork for the professional career he hopes to have afterward. Logistics related to senior all-star games, travel plans, pre-draft training opportunities and pro days all take time to sort out; this was one of several conversations throughout the day to try to nail down those sorts of details.

(For example, it's surprisingly difficult to fill out an online profile with 'player's career accolades and accomplishments' when said player is so unwilling to dwell on his personal stats and successes. The 2019 MAC Championship Offensive Player of the Game and Biletnikoff Award Watch List member—who has caught a pass in 38 consecutive appearances—basically had to run a Google search to find that information out for himself.

In fact, whether it's due to humility, superstition, or a combination of the two, Sorenson joked he wouldn't even read this story unless his career total numbers were redacted…and he actually may not have been joking.)

Sorenson, the second-oldest of six children (including his twin sister Olivia, who is just three minutes younger than Jack), calls his family some of his biggest role models and influences. He is thrilled that all eight of them will be in Texas together next week for the Frisco Football Classic (the first time his entire family has been to a game since Miami's last bowl trip, after the 2019 season). His face visibly lit up with pride as he talked about each of his siblings and their successes. There are plenty of videos saved on his cell phone as well, clips of talent show performances and world records and ridiculously intricate Rube Goldberg machines, like this one he built with his brother during quarantine.

Unsurprisingly, many of the Sorenson clan's successes are of the athletic variety. Twins Will and Sophie Sorenson are both Division I student-athletes, the former on Harvard's men's volleyball team and the latter competing for the UConn women's lacrosse program. (And if three D-I athletes wasn't enough, Jack's youngest sister already has multiple college lacrosse offers as well.)

Steve Sorenson, Jack's father, was recruited to Harvard to play football and ended up playing on the Crimson basketball team. Steve's cousin, Craig Counsell, played 16 years in Major League Baseball and is the current manager of the Milwaukee Brewers. However, Jack thinks his mother, Geri, is still probably the best athlete in the family. "She ran an ultramarathon while she was pregnant with me and my sister!," he said in disbelief.

With a family heritage like that, it's no surprise Jack Sorenson has wanted to be a football player for as long as he can remember.

- - -

"Throw it as hard as you can, Dad!"

Sorenson got his start as an athlete in the front yard. The Kildeer, Ill. native remembers going outside at four or five years old and asking his father to take a NERF ball and hurl it as hard in Jack's direction as he possibly could. "I probably only caught one or two, but that was the most fun thing ever to me."

Sorenson and teammates at Packers game — *Sorenson (second from L) and teammates*

At one point or another in his life, Sorenson was involved in nearly every sport imaginable: baseball, basketball, hockey, lacrosse, swimming and tennis, to name a few. He was better at some sports than others, even initially committing to Boston University as a high school freshman to play lacrosse.

But football was always his first love.

Especially Green Bay Packers football. "In grade school, I wrote Brett Favre a letter letting him know, 'Hey, I appreciate the job you've done, but don't worry, the franchise is going to be in good hands. One day, I'll take it from you,'" Sorenson remembered.

(At that point in his life, Sorenson was convinced he'd end up a quarterback. And in high school, he did play mainly under center; Sorenson was Stevenson High's QB1, ahead of Aidan O'Connell, the current Purdue signal-caller who ranks third in the country in pass completion percentage.)

Colbert shows the Sorenson photo — *Does Stephen Colbert look impressed?*

From bike rides at Packers training camp as a youngster, to helping park cars outside Lambeau Field, to showing up at a Green Bay game a few years ago with some RedHawks teammates --complete with painted chests spelling out P-A-C-K!, a feat that earned a mention on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert-- Sorenson has been a lifelong cheesehead.

So what happens if he catches on with an NFC North rival team next year?

"I would be the biggest Bears fan in the world if they wanted to take me," Sorenson smiled. "But my parents and family would probably cheer for me to do well and still root for the Packers to win.

"They've got cheese curds running through their veins. I don't think that will ever change."

- - -

By 10:30 a.m., Sorenson was in the locker room getting ready for a session of stretching and lifting. About a third of the roster at a time gathered inside the David and Anita Dauch Indoor Sports Center to get loose before heading into the weight room for a workout, with the whole process for each group lasting less than an hour. Sorenson jumped on the scale before getting started and then headed to the nearest machine with Walker and Austin Robinson. After a variety of reps (including back squats, dumbbell exercises, pull-ups, etc.), Sorenson hopped on the scale once more before going to get cleaned up for lunch. "I usually lose about a pound," he shrugged.

From a physical perspective, Sorenson has dealt with a handful of injuries and surgeries during his athletic career, including tearing a knee ligament in a 2018 car crash. This is the first season he's really been fully healthy start to finish, and it's shown on the stat sheet with record-breaking performances, including a 283-yard performance at Ohio last month. Sorenson hopes it translates to a solid 40-yard dash time in the spring, which could be an important piece of making his NFL dreams come true.

(Reliable sources indicate Sorenson's unofficial fastest-ever 40 time came when he sprinted out of a haunted house near tears after the very first scare last Halloween, but there was no stopwatch nearby to confirm. Asked about the story, Sorenson didn't deny it: "Maybe if I have that guy chase me, I'll be able to get to the 4.4s!")

In all seriousness, though, Sorenson definitely believes he has the intangibles to help a pro team, and those character traits have shown through during his time in Oxford.

"One of the hardest working guys I've seen on a football field," said Steve Baker, the longtime 'Voice of the RedHawks.' "It takes a special [type of player] to go over the middle anyway, and he relishes it…

"He represents what I think Miami football is all about."

- - -

A week earlier, Sorenson had met with the media to discuss Miami's upcoming bowl appearance and how it felt to be preparing to don the Red and White for one final time.

"I think I've said that a couple times here," he smiled. "This is going to be my last game…then I get a fifth year. Oh, now, this is going to be my last game…then I get a COVID year.

"It's bittersweet that this is actually it; this is the last one. On top of the game, this trip is going to be an opportunity I get to create the last memories with a lot of these people I've been here so long with."

Ben Kimpler is one of those people. The Miami defensive lineman grew up competing against Sorenson at rival high schools in Illinois before finally joining forces with the RedHawks.

"I mean, what a guy," Kimpler said. "I'm so glad that I've been able to share these last six years with him."

Jack Sorenson — Sorenson is only the sixth RedHawk
to ever record a 1,000-yard season

Spend a day with Sorenson around his teammates, and it's easy to see the impact he's had on the players in the Miami program, both as a leader and a friend.

Sorenson loves football, yes, but he especially loves the locker room camaraderie. To #13, getting to play the sport without getting to be part of the team wouldn't even be worth it. "What transcends so much further than the game of football is the relationships that you make and the community that follows you afterward," he said.

"You're surrounded by 120 guys you have nothing in common with except football, and you just learn to appreciate different cultures and [backgrounds]…the coolest thing is the people you meet and the relationships you make.

"I've created some of the best friendships that I'm going to carry throughout the rest of my life."

Sorenson's knack for developing relationships was apparent even in the press conference itself. The wide receiver seemed to catch the assembled reporters a bit off guard, taking time before the camera started rolling to personally thank the media members that had covered his career and the Miami program over the past half dozen years for their work.

Speaking of work…

- - -

After a break for lunch, it was back to work for Sorenson. He headed to Ben Roethlisberger Field for some additional stretching, then made his way back to the wide receiver room to cue up a few more video clips.

Sorenson works out on Ben Roethlisberger Field — Sorenson works out on Ben
Roethlisberger Field

Over the next hour, the other wideouts trickled in one by one, with position coach Israel Woolfork stopping in as well. The vibe was relaxed; for the most part, it was just football guys talking football as certain plays scrolled by on the big screen.

A sampling:

"He one-hand Odell Beckham'd that!"

"Look at this little juke! That's why you always dive. That's nasty!"

"This guy is huge!"

"He gets cut blocked by two people and still gets there – watch!"

"You don't always need to be fast."

(The retort to that comment was instantaneous: "Well, it doesn't hurt!")

Some of the discussion centered on recent college and professional games. Sorenson was still flying high after the Packers' win the previous night over Chicago, while several of the players wanted to talk about Saturday's Army-Navy game.

On more than one occasion, Sorenson grabbed a marker to write on the whiteboard behind him and design a fun play or two of his own, complete with twisted, squiggly lines meandering all over the field.

"Too much creativity," came the response.

"But imagine trying to defend that?", Sorenson laughed.

Things turned more serious once the real meetings started down the hall Monday afternoon in the RedHawks' 150-seat Gloor Auditorium. First up, special teams. For the better part of 15 minutes, coordinator Doug Shearer explained the plan for punts, kickoffs and field goals against North Texas. The information came fast and furious, as Shearer talked about personnel, broke down schemes and walked through a presentation complete with—what else?—more film clips.

"They run through contact," Shearer said at one point. "Wrap and squeeze. Finish the tackle. We have to play harder than them every single rep."

"It can be easy to get sloppy on special teams after a long break," Shearer summarized. "We can't let that happen."

- - -

By 2 p.m., the wide receiver room was full once again, this time for a formal meeting (as opposed to the earlier informal gathering). Woolfork did most of the talking, with marker in hand, while 10 student-athletes (including Sorenson) sat with pen and paper at the ready.

The whiteboard contained a hefty list of formations, motions and other play types, and each player wrote in a thick binder divided into sections for run game, run-pass option plays, protections and other tabs.

Woolfork would quickly sketch out a play on the board, stepping off to the side to admire his handiwork once he finished, not unlike a satisfied algebra professor that had just finished solving a complex equation.

The coach's teaching approach involved calling on players by name to answer specific questions about playbook terminology and routes.

"X is running at who?"

"This reminds you of what?"

"How many yards on that route?"

"What's the signal for that again?"

(As an aside, watching nearly a dozen people simultaneously emulate a sideline signaler—to varying degrees of success—was probably one of the highlights of the meeting for this observer.)

The group talked through different plays they'd be working on in practice later that afternoon, such as 'Purple Tissue 206 Sprinkler K Wally Decimal Helmet.'

(Okay, that name is completely made up. But you get the idea: The play calls are so complex and seemingly random that it's like a Mad Libs word generator come to life.)

"There's a lot more to football than people think," Sorenson said later as he tried to explain what each part of the verbiage represents. "People think at the core that it's just guys running around hitting each other. That's why I appreciate this [conversation] – it's fun, allowing someone to get a look at what football actually is."

At one point in the meeting, Woolfork threw the marker to 'Jackie' and let Sorenson do the honors drawing plays for a bit. (Outside of not being able to draw the line of scrimmage anywhere close to straight, he didn't do too badly.)

Occasionally, head coach Chuck Martin or co-offensive coordinator Eric Koehler poked their heads into the room to clarify a certain check or call. Through it all, Woolfork gave specific pointers that would help his unit execute the plays as close to perfectly as possible.

"Get north and south."

"These are the players we want to attack."

"This guy needs to go deeper, the other guy shorter."

"Block the corner, make the safety miss."

The meeting wrapped up with an encouragement to be efficient at the upcoming practice. "Take advantage of any rep. Everybody looked faster last time out. Not sure if that's physical rest, mental rest, or whatever, but let's carry that over today."

- - -

Sorenson was in the stadium and ready to go more than 10 minutes before practice was set to begin at 3 p.m. With the sun shining and the temperature reading 50 degrees

Sorenson stretches before practice — Sorenson gets stretched out
at the start of practice

(although it certainly felt colder than that), the team would be practicing outdoors. He wore a red jersey, black pants and white Adidas cleats with a two-toned helmet featuring the script 'Miami' on one side and his number #13 on the other.

As the team began to use bright green or yellow resistance bands to get stretched out and warmed up, Sorenson sat directly on the north goal line, near where the corner pylon would normally be. The music volume cranked up, with coaches yelling loud enough to be heard over the beat: "Let's be great today!"

Sorenson picked up his gloves and joined the other receivers with Woolfork for the first drill. Practice is broken into a variety of periods, with the scoreboard showing the period number in the spot where the RedHawks' point total would normally go, along with how much time remained in each segment.

"Focus on gaining ground and making contact," Woolfork yelled.

At 3:15, Sorenson caught his first pass of the day, alternating directions up and down the field as he snagged throws from quarterbacks Brett Gabbert and AJ Mayer. It seemed like he was the first player to go in many (if not all) of the receiving drills, giving the first-team all-conference performer a chance to set an example for the rest of the group.

Much of the focus in pre-bowl practices is on the younger players, especially the ones who haven't gotten as many reps during the regular season. As such, the instructions from the coaches as the drill wore on were direct and, in many cases, fundamental.

"Everything we can do to attack it over our head!"

"Catch it with your thumbs together!"

And so forth and so on.

The players repeatedly made difficult plays look easy. Over-the shoulder grabs. Spinning back to the ball for a catch. Elevating to snare a pass at its highest point.

On one route, Woolfork came sprinting out of nowhere to chase a receiver and simulate how a defensive back would contest the catch. On another attempt, the sunlight made it impossible to see the ball in the air, but the coaches wouldn't dream of accepting excuses.

"Can't see it? Catch the sun!"

- - -

For the majority of the 83-minute session, the periods alternated between a 'team' drill (featuring the offense against the defense) and then a different form of skill work, such as a 1-on-1 competition or a gauntlet of pads smacking ballcarriers to help them learn how to prevent fumbles (with the noise reverberating from one side of the stadium to the other).

Sorenson at Miami practice — "Complacency scares me more than
anything. I'd rather fail at something
than succeed and be complacent."

When it was time for a special teams period, Sorenson took turns with two other returners catching punts at his own 25-yard line. When a kick went out of bounds, he teased the teammate coming his way, "You're lucky." On his next opportunity, Sorenson hauled in the punt and casually stepped across the sideline instead of attempting a return, causing his teammate to respond with some trash talk of his own: "You'd better step out of bounds!"

Every time the whistle or air horn sounded, Sorenson led the way in sprinting from one station to the next. His routes were sharp, his high fives were frequent, and his smile seemed constant.

"No matter the situation, I always try to bring a positive energy or outlook," Sorenson explained. "Or, sometimes I'm just goofy. I can't help it. Even in situations when maybe you shouldn't be. We're in a bad stretch, not playing well in a game, and I'm pulling pranks on the sideline, squirting water at a coach and then just looking away [innocently]."

It wasn't a perfect practice. Since the majority of the reps in the 1-on-1 drill where receivers squared off with defensive backs went to the 'young guys', Sorenson only got a single attempt…and he dropped the pass.

But overall, Martin was pleased with how his squad performed that afternoon. In the post-practice huddle, he used words like 'crisp' and 'aggressive,' complimented the way the younger players had improved in the space of a single week, and finished by encouraging his team to stay locked in for an important final few days of preparation.

At 4:40, the players were dismissed to finish with a few minutes of stretching.

"Family on 1! FAMILY!"

- - -

For more than half of 2019, Paige Coffman thought she was dating the RedHawks' team waterboy. When Coffman and Sorenson started going out almost three years ago after an initial blind date, Sorenson's knack for downplaying his own ability gave Coffman a very inaccurate impression about the receiver's status with the Miami football team.

"He's like, 'I do this and this and this, and I play football, kind of,'" recounted Coffman of the couple's first meeting. "I said, 'Oh, that's so fun. I don't really know anything about positions, but what position do you play?

"He said, 'Oh, I don't really play. I'm the waterboy.' I thought that was so cute, and I believed him…for months! We met in February, and it wasn't until the very first game that fall. My family had asked, 'Oh, is he good at football?', and I told them, 'I don't think he is. I don't think he really plays that much.'

"So I went to a watch party for the Iowa game and he's on the field, starting, and I'm like, 'Oh my gosh, this is huge! He's off the bench! He's in the game!' Then he made a catch for a touchdown in the first few plays and I'm going crazy over there, thinking, 'This guy has gotten into the game for the first time, and now he's caught his first touchdown ever, probably.' And then one of my friends looked at me and said, 'This isn't new. He plays a lot, actually.'"

As Sorenson begins to think about life after college football, he knows that he and Coffman want to make a difference in the community. The couple is in the process of launching a nonprofit organization together to help affect as many people as they can. Sorenson, who graduated from Miami's Farmer School of Business with degrees in Marketing and Human Capital Management, is currently pursuing a Master's in business administration; in other words, recent tasks like writing bylaws, drafting articles of incorporation and brainstorming plans to assemble a board of directors are right up his alley.

The goal is for their foundation to work on a different project every few years and then pivot to a new focus or need."Growing up in a bubble, I never had to worry about where my next meal was coming from, or if I'd have access to education, or a safe environment to walk down the street," Sorenson said. "You take that for granted and don't realize how emotionally traumatic it can be to not have those things.

"I have a platform right now where if I say something, maybe someone will listen."

- - -

Coffman made the comment Monday that Sorenson loves 'watching passionate people do things they're good at." From the look on his face listening to an amazing singer, watching a talented unicyclist or raving about a freshman linebacker's 'best practice ever', that seems like an apt summary.

And for fans who have gotten to enjoy the Jack Sorenson era of Miami football, that sentence also seems like a fitting description. It's fun to watch passionate people do things they're good at. It may not be as easy as it looks; it often takes a great deal more work and preparation behind the scenes than most will ever realize. But the result is impressive.

To be clear: No matter the outcome of next week's Frisco Football Classic, Sorenson's Miami career will not be defined by a single game. The sixth-year seniors on this team were part of a turnaround from 0-6 to 6-6, won a MAC title and are about to participate in a third bowl trip. Those achievements speak for themselves.

"It's obviously a special group to me, and it should be a special group to anybody who cares about Miami football, for what they've accomplished," said Martin.

However, Sorenson won't be content with just qualifying for another bowl game. He wants to finish what he started.

"I came in as a freshman wanting to leave a legacy here, to leave a team that was remembered in the history books," he said. "This is my last opportunity to go out with a big win and a bowl win – something we haven't done here in a long time.

"It's a great opportunity to write the conclusion to an awesome story."

And for someone with a bright football future still in front of him, perhaps it's only the ending to a chapter.

Find more Front Row Features at MiamiRedHawks.com/FrontRowFeatures.

Players Mentioned

Brett Gabbert

Mac Hippenhammer

Ben Kimpler

AJ Mayer

Ryan McWood

Austin Robinson

Jack Sorenson

Jalen Walker

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