COSTA MESA, Calif. -- Though he was one of the young, talented coaches Los Angeles Chargers general manager Tom Telesco had hoped to keep around, the franchise will have yet another coaching vacancy to fill with receivers coach Nick Sirianni taking the offensive coordinator position with the Indianapolis Colts.
Sirianni had worked with Colts head coach Frank Reich for three years while both were with the Chargers.
Sirianni, 36, played his college ball at the University of Mount Union, where he won three Division III national championships (2000-02) as a wide receiver.
He joined the Chargers when Mike McCoy was hired in 2013, serving as a quality control coach on offense for one season before being promoted to quarterbacks coach in 2014. Sirianni moved over to receivers coach in 2016, where he served for the last two seasons.
A coach’s son whose father, Mike Sirianni, is the head coach at Washington and Jefferson College, Sirianni was known for his innovation and hard work as an assistant coach.
He is a stickler for attention to details, which benefitted his players. Keenan Allen had his best season as a pro under Sirianni’s guidance last year, and Tyrell Williams blossomed into a 1,000-yard receiver in 2016.
It will be interesting to see who calls the plays for the Colts. Sirianni has never called plays in the NFL. Reich called plays while serving as the offensive coordinator for the Chargers but did not call plays while working in the same position with the Philadelphia Eagles for the last two seasons.
With Sirianni moving on, the Chargers are looking for a new receivers coach. They’ve reportedly filled another vacancy by hiring former UCLA assistant Rip Scherer as the tight ends coach, replacing John McNulty, who took the offensive coordinator position at Rutgers.
And with head coach Anthony Lynn’s son D’Anton Lynn headed to the Houston Texans as the assistant secondary coach, the Chargers also have an assistant coaching spot on the defensive side to fill.
The Chargers also lost assistant offensive line coach James Cregg to LSU, where he will fill the same job.