Mark McKeever (American Soccer)
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Mark McKeever | ||
| Date of birth | April 25, 1977 | ||
| Place of birth | Motherwell, Scotland | ||
| Playing position | Head Coach | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | Young Harris College | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1997-1998 | Tyler Community College | ||
| 1999-2001 | Christian Brothers University | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2002 | Memphis Express | ||
| Teams managed | |||
| 2003-2004 | Christian Brothers University (asst.) | ||
| 2005-Present | Young Harris College | ||
| 2015-2018 | Mississippi Brilla | ||
| 2019-2021 | Des Moines Menace | ||
| 2022-Present | One Knoxville SC | ||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only | |||
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Mark McKeever (born April 25th, 1977) is a former soccer player and current coach for One Knoxville SC, a USL League Two team and Young Harris Mountain Lions, a NCAA Division II program. He previously coached the Des Moines Menace for 3 years.
Background[edit]
Mark McKeever originally played for youth Scottish soccer teams including Hamilton Academicals during the 1995 season.
He decided to leave for Texas, and play on scholarship for Tyler Community College for the 1997 and 1998 seasons. After the 1998 season, he decided to transfer to Christian Brothers University for the rest of his collegiate career. He received several accolades during his time at Christian Brothers, winning Gulf South Conference Player of the Year in 2000. He also helped his team reached the conference championship and reached the NCAA regional.
He graduated Christian Brothers University with a degree in Psychology in 2001 and returned to get his master's degree in Education in 2003.
Mark was drafted 4th overall by Nashville Metro in the 2001 USL Draft. The team had financial difficulties after losing a sponsor, so he ended up playing a season for the Memphis Express before returning to Scotland.[1][2]
Coaching Career[edit]
Early Career[edit]
After deciding playing soccer wasn't for him, he decided to return to his alma mater Christian Brothers University to work as an assistant for both the men and women's soccer programs. He saw immediate success coaching, winning two Gulf South Conference titles with the women's program in 2003 and 2004.[1]
Young Harris College[edit]
Mark became head coach of Young Harris College before the 2005 season and has been head coach ever since. When he first started coaching the Mountain Lions, they were members of the National Junior College Athletic Association or NJCAA. The program saw immediate success just like Christian Brothers, going to the Region 17 Final 4 out of his first 5 years coaching. He won the Region 17 Coach of the year in the 2007 season. The program became nationally ranked in the 2008 and 2009 seasons, coming in the Top 15. [1]
Young Harris College became a four-year institution by the 2011 season meaning the team became apart of the NCAA Division II. Although the league change, Mark still lead the team to a 10-6-1 record, even reaching No. 6 in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America's NCAA Division II Southeast region.
The 2012 season saw even more success, as the team reached a 14-4-2 record and reached 6th on the national NSCAA NCAA Div. II Poll. This is the first time that Young Harris College became nationally ranked in the NCAA. This also was the program's first year in the Peach Belt Conference, where they reached the semifinal of the conference tournament.[3]
The 2013 season saw more success on the pitch, as they reached an 16-2-0 record. The team won the Peach Belt Conference Regular Season title, going 9-0-0 that season. The team was ranked No. 1 nationally for the first time in the program's history.[4] For the team's success, Mark was given the Peach Belt Coach of the Year Award.
The 2014 season was a remarkable season for the Mountain Lions because they went to the NCAA Division II playoffs for the first time in program history. The team ended the regular season with a 19-1-1 record with a record 19 game winning streak. Young Harris won the Peach Belt regular season title and won the Peach Belt Tournament for the first time. The team advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division II Tournament, losing to the eventual champions Lynn.
Following the success of last season, the Mountain Lions returned to the tournament in the 2015 season, with a 17-4 record. They won the conference title for a third consecutive year. The team lost in the third round to the champions Pfeiffer University.
2016 also saw the Mountain Lions winning the Conference Tournament for the third consecutive year as the team finished with a 11-6-1 record. The team reached as high as No. 9 in the national rankings that year.
2017 season saw the Mountain Lions finish with a 14-4-2 record. Although they did not win the conference tournament, they still reached the quarterfinals for the second time in program history, beating several nationally ranked teams including No. 7 Limestone College 2-0. Their season was ended like the 2014 season by losing to Lynn 2-1. For the team success, they were awarded NCAA Division II Southeast Regional Staff of the Year.[5]
The 2018 season was one of the best seasons Young Harris College has had. They finished with a 17-1-1 record and No. 7 in the final rankings. There were several weeks the team was ranked No. 1 nationally. The team won the Peach Belt regular season and tournament.[6]
The Mountain Lions finished the 2019 season with a 12-5 record, reaching the tournament for another year.[7]
The 2020 season was affected by the pandemic, so it was played in the spring. The team finished with a 5-2-2 record, reaching up to No. 14 in the United Soccer Coaches Division II Coaches Poll. The team finished second in the conference. Mark reached his 200th career win with the Mountain Lions, defeating rival University of North Georgia 2-1.
Mississippi Brilla FC[edit]
Since the collegiate soccer season runs from August to November, that means that Mark McKeever was not coaching during the summer. In December 2014, Mississippi Brilla FC hired Mark as their head coach.[8]
Mark enjoys coaching several teams during the same calendar year. He says "The challenge of building another successful team is one that I will embrace and enjoy. The opportunity to continue working with the staff at Mississippi Brilla is one that I am grateful for, and I look forward to seeing and working with everyone from the staff to the community, especially the Blue Battalion!"[9]
The team did very well under Mark, amassing a 28-14-15 overall record during the four seasons he was there. The team did the best during the 2017 season, where they won the Conference Championship and made it to the Final Four.[9]
Des Moines Menace[edit]
On January 8th 2019, Des Moines Menace hired Mark as their head coach.[10][11] The team announced many changes around the same time, including the league rebranding, and playing home games at Drake Stadium.[12]
The 2019 season was a great season for the Menace, as they finished with a undefeated 11-0-3 record in the regular season.[13] They would however lose to the Flint City Bucks in the first round of the playoffs 3-4.[14]
The 2020 season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2021 season is the Menace's best season, as they won the USL League Two Championship defeating North Carolina Fusion U23 by a score of 1-0 on July 31st, 2021.[15][16] The team ended with a 11-1 record during the regular season, winning the Heartland Division.[17] For the team's remarkable success, Mark won the USL League Two Coach of the Year Award for the 2021 season.[18]
One Knoxville SC[edit]
One Knoxville SC announced Mark McKeever as the team's first head coach on January 13th, 2022.[19] One Knoxville SC wanted to hire him as he was the best candidate to take the team pro.[20] The club is planning to move up a tier to USL League One, a fully-professional league.[21]
Head Coaching Record[edit]
| Team | From | To | G | W | D | L | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Young Harris College | 2005 | Present | 284 | 204 | 16 | 72 | [1] |
| Mississippi Brilla | 2015 | 2018 | 57 | 28 | 15 | 14 | [9] |
| Des Moines Menace | 2019 | 2021 | 32 | 27 | 3 | 2 | [17] |
| One Knoxville SC | 2022 | Present | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | [22] |
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Mark McKeever - Men's Soccer Coach". Young Harris College Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ↑ Canever, Brian Gabriel (2022-01-14). "Introducing Mark McKeever". One Knoxville Chronicles. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ↑ "2012 Men's Soccer Schedule". Young Harris College Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ↑ "2013 Men's Soccer Schedule". Young Harris College Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ↑ "2017 Men's Soccer Schedule". Young Harris College Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ↑ "2018 Men's Soccer Schedule". Young Harris College Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ↑ "2019 Men's Soccer Schedule". Young Harris College Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ↑ "McKeever Adds To PDL Coaching Staff | Brilla Soccer Ministries". brillasoccer.org. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 "McKeever Returns to Mississippi Brilla for Fourth Season | Brilla Soccer Ministries". brillasoccer.org. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
- ↑ Menace, Des Moines (2019-01-08). "Menace makes McKeever head coach". Des Moines Menace Soccer. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
- ↑ "Des Moines Menace hire Premier Development League, college soccer coach McKeever". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
- ↑ "Menace soccer team welcomes new dawn". CITYVIEW. 2019-05-01. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
- ↑ "Des Moines Menace | uslleaguetwo.com". www.uslleaguetwo.com. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ↑ "Des Moines Menace | uslleaguetwo.com". www.uslleaguetwo.com. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ↑ Goodwin, Cody. "Des Moines Menace defeats NC Fusion U23 to win USL League Two National Final". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
- ↑ "Des Moines Menace win USL League Two championship". who13.com. 2021-08-01. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 "Des Moines Menace | uslleaguetwo.com". www.uslleaguetwo.com. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ↑ Staff, USLLeagueTwo com (2021-08-24). "Mark McKeever Named 2021 League Two Coach of the Year". USL League Two. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ↑ Wilusz, Ryan. "Meet the new coach who One Knoxville SC thinks can take the soccer team pro". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ↑ "One Knoxville SC taps league champion as 1st coach". WATE 6 On Your Side. 2022-01-13. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
- ↑ Alice (2022-01-14). "One Knoxville SC Hires USL League 2 Vet Mark McKeever as Soccer Coach". THE TENNESSEE DAILY NEWS. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
- ↑ "Game Schedule - 2022 Regular Season - One Knoxville SC". www.uslleaguetwo.com. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
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