Bio

Began: 2023 | Season: 2024 is his second season
Overall record at Milligan entering 2024 season: 19-3-4

Patrick "Paddy" Sweeney as the Buffs' head men's soccer coach following a national search in February 2023.

In his first season at the helm of the Milligan men’s soccer program, the Buffs used a 21-game unbeaten streak to reach the 2023 NAIA Men’s Soccer National Championship Game and finished as the national runner-up, the top head-to-head team sport finish in school history.

Milligan won Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) regular season and tournament championships in 2023. The Buffs went unbeaten in conference play (10-0-3) and posted three shutout victories in the AAC Tournament, including a 4-0 triumph over (RV) Tennessee Wesleyan in the title game. The Buffs placed a league-high eight players on the AAC all-conference teams with graduate forward Inaki Moreno collecting AAC Player of the Year honors and Sweeney was named an AAC Co-Coach of the Year.

The Buffs defeated No. 10 William Carey 2-0 in the NAIA National Championship Round to punch their ticket to the NAIA National Championship Final Site at the Scheels Stryker Sports Complex in Wichita, Kan.

Milligan knocked out 2021 and 2022 NAIA national runner-up No. 6 Mobile in the NAIA National Championship Round of 16 in penalty kicks. The Buffs defeated (RV) Bellevue in the quarterfinals 2-1 to make the program’s and conference’s first appearance in the national semifinals. The Buffs took a 1-0 win over No. 3 St. Thomas in double overtime to secure their first-ever title game appearance, but fell 2-1 to MidAmerica Nazarene in the tournament final.

The Buffs led the NAIA in shutouts (15), including five postseason clean sheet. Milligan also finished second in the nation in goals (90) and assists (81) as the Buffs boasted a top-10 scoring offense (3.46 GFA) and scoring defense (0.71 GAA). The Buffs notched seven wins against ranked opponents or teams receiving votes in the national rankings.

Sweeney holds a special place in Milligan men's soccer history as he scored the first-ever in-game goal at Anglin Field in 1999. He tallied 14 goals and eight assists to lead the Buffs in points that season and helped the Milligan men's soccer program to its first-ever conference championship in 1999. After his time at Milligan, Sweeney went on to earn his bachelor's degree in sports management from Columbia Southern University.

Sweeney enjoyed a professional career over the course of 12 years, appearing in over 500 senior-level games. He played in the Irish First Division, Irish Premier League, USL Pro League and USL Pro Select League. In his final professional stint with the Real Maryland Monarchs, Sweeney served as a player and assistant coach under manager Anthony Hudson, the former interim head coach of the United States men's national team.

Sweeney served on the staff of the Bahrain U23 national team when they won their first-ever gold medal in the U23 Gulf Cup of Nations and went on to serve on staff of the Bahrain senior national team from 2012-14. He also served as a trainer and scout for the New Zealand senior national team from 2015-17. Sweeney coached the All Whites against the likes of the United States, Mexico, Portugal and Northern Ireland.

His collegiate coaching experience includes four seasons as an assistant coach of the University of Tampa's women's team, who achieved a national No. 1 ranking in 2008 and made runs to the NCAA round of 16 and national quarterfinals.

Sweeney then spent three seasons as the technical director at Clearwater Christian College. The Cougars achieved a top-five national ranking in 2012 and won regional regular season and tournament titles on their way to a No. 5 final national ranking in 2013.

Over the last decade, Sweeney has been a fixture in club and professional soccer ranks in Florida, serving at Seminole FC and with the St. Pete Raiders and the St. Pete Aztecs. Under his leadership, the St. Pete Aztecs claimed the league title for the United Premier Soccer League in 2020.

Originally from Ireland, Sweeney owns FIFA and USSF A Licenses. He is married to Bethany, a Milligan alumna from the class of 2001, and has one son named Keenan.