Motivational leader, goal-driven mentor, and innovator, JakeZweig has brought the standards of excellence in training,toughness, focus and teamwork from his former world as a Navy SEALcommando to college football. Mr. Zweig has earnedprofessional success as a naval special warfare officer and appliesthat same intensity and commitment to coaching his players.
Currently on the Bryant University coaching staff andreunited with his former coach, Marty Fine, from the Naval AcademyPrep School, Coach Zweig is challenging the Bulldog defensive cadreto stretch for ambitious goals and re-define their knowledge of thegame and themselves. Zweig expanded his own perspective of footballearlier this year by participating in the NCAA Expert CoachesAcademy in Orlando, Florida. After the coaches academy, Zweigwas selected for the National Football League's Bill Walsh MinorityFellowship with the Oakland Raiders, during which gained valuableexperience with the Oakland defensive line and special teams staffand players.
Coach Zweig took a brief hiatus from football last summer andaccepted the History Channel's invitation to compete in thetelevision show “Top Shot.” He earned expertpistol and rifle marksmanship awards in the Navy and sought toshowcase the elite Navy SEAL training and esprit de corps. Zweigeagerly competed against law enforcement officers, militarysnipers, and professional shooters with his usual full-throttle andout-of-the box approach.
Coach Zweig's previous coaching experience includes assignments asthe defensive line and special team's coach at the University ofNew Hampshire. Zweig boosted the New Hampshire defense to21st in the nation in sacks—up from109th the previous year—with two defensiveplayers earning All-League status under his tutelage. Inaddition to his success on the field, Zweig earned appointments tothe University President’s Commission on the Status ofDisable People, the President’s Commission on the Status ofPeople of Color and the NCAA’s Football Coaches Academy Classof 2009.
Coach Zweig's arrival to the New Hampshire staff followed onesuccessful season as the defensive line coach and special teamscoordinator at Iona College and prior to Iona, he spent two seasonsas the defensive line and special teams coach at the CatholicUniversity of America. While at Catholic, his special teamsearned top conference honors in both touchdowns scored and puntreturn yards.
Off the field, Coach Zweig is a natural recruiter and relatesto prospective players and their parents by drawing from his ownpersonal experiences of setting and achieving difficultgoals. As a result, he was instrumental in recruiting thelargest class in the history of Catholic football. A truementor to his team, Zweig charted and executed academic progressionplans, identified potential academic problems early, and createdincentives for consistent performance. The Catholic teamresponded with significantly higher grade point averages duringZweig’s tenure.
Coach Zweig began his coaching career in 2005 when he joined theUniversity of Maryland staff as a graduate assistant working withthe Terrapin wide receivers. A life-long athlete and teamleader, Mr. Zweig returned to college athletics following asuccessful career in the U.S. Navy. Zweig graduated from theU.S. Naval Academy in 1995 as a commissioned officer. Heserved as a surface warfare officer for two years onboard theU.S.S. Merrimack before reporting for Navy SEAL training at BasicUnderwater Demolition School. SEAL training is the mostgrueling and demanding physical and mental regimen in the world andZweig not only personally excelled at the challenge, but mentoredthe other trainees through the program and was named the SEAL classleader. Following his SEAL training, Zweig reported to SEALTeam 8 in Little Creek, VA and attained the rank ofLieutenant.
Coach Zweig has earned a Masters of Business Administrationfrom the University of Michigan and a Bachelor of Science Degree inComputer Science from the U.S. Naval Academy. His athleticrecord at the Naval Academy includes playing nose guard for CoachGeorge Chaump, varsity wrestling, and an intensive swimming routinein preparation to be a Navy diver.
A native of Steilacoom, Washington, he attended the CharlesWright Academy of Tacoma where he was inducted into the Hall ofFame as a member of the 1989 State runner-up football team. He was also a State “A” wrestling champion and a memberof the varsity golf team. He is married to the former SarahClaud of Stony Creek, Virginia.
