Jacob Sweeney enters his eighth season with Polk State soccer.
“I try to lighten the mood and keep things fun,” he said. “I also try to offer counsel and feedback to both the staff and players, as well as be a role model. I help in different areas and try to be available for any direction from the head coach.”
A full-time schoolteacher, he also coaches high-school soccer at McKeel Academy in Lakeland, where he has been for the last 13 years.
As a high-school coach, Sweeney earned FACA 3A-9 District Coach of the Year honors in 2009, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. He has won five district championships and led his team to multiple regional appearances, including three Sweet-16 state appearances and one Elite Eight.
He has also coached in the FYSA Olympic Development Program for the past six years and has a US Soccer D license and a United Soccer Coach’s National Diploma.
Sweeney played soccer in Irving, Texas with a club team named the Saints, and in Olney, Md., with the Olney Boys & Girls Club. He played high school soccer at Sherwood High School in Sandy Spring, Md. In college, he played with several men’s teams and briefly with the University of Utah men’s club team, as there was no NCAA team.
Sweeney has been married for 19 years and has two children.
