Anthony Schlegel is reuniting with Urban Meyer in Jacksonville.
Schlegel, a former Ohio State linebacker who later worked for Meyer and the Buckeyes as an assistant strength and conditioning coach, is joining Meyer's new staff in Jacksonville as the Jaguars' head strength and conditioning coach, he confirmed during 97.1 The Fan's Morning Juice on Monday.
“You have the opportunity to work for someone you believe in and trust and understand their culture and what they want in an organization with Coach Meyer,” Schlegel said. “All gas, no brakes, let's go.”
Schlegel played for the Buckeyes from 2003-05 and went on to play in the NFL for two seasons with the New York Jets and Cincinnati Bengals. He returned to Ohio State in 2011 and worked as an assistant strength and conditioning coach under Mickey Marotti. Famously, Schlegel showed he could still tackle during a game against Cincinnati at Ohio Stadium in 2014, when he body-slammed a student who ran onto the field during play.
After earning his MBA from the Fisher College of Business in 2015, Schlegel opted to leave Ohio State and start his own company, The Difference USA, which designed strength and conditioning equipment for NFL, college and high school teams. Schlegel was also the co-host of Morning Juice on 97.1 The Fan.
That said, the opportunity to be a head strength and conditioning coach in the NFL and work for Meyer was one he decided he could not pass up.
“It's something you've been preparing for, you pray about it, you consult with your wife about it, you ask your kids about it. You try to show them how you make these types of decisions in a godly manner. And then you come to the conclusion that this is what you gotta do,” Schlegel said. “So you put your trust that you have the tools to accomplish the mission.”
