We had the absolute pleasure of catching up with Springfield Sports Hall of Famer and MLS veteran Jack “Jackie” Jewsbury to look at how a kid from the Ozarks went on to conquer the professional soccer world. From setting state records in the halls of Springfield Public Schools to watching Kansas City catch absolute fire as a World Cup host city, Jack takes us on a journey through his incredible 14-year career and the massive evolution of the sport in the Midwest.

Kansas City on Fire for the World Cup

We started off diving right into the soccer nirvana currently taking over Kansas City. Jack painted a vivid picture of the atmosphere, from thousands of fans packing out the Power and Light District to Lionel Messi putting on an absolute clinic with a hat trick in the opener at Arrowhead Stadium (now KC Stadium for the tournament). The city is buzzing, and Jack even broke down the mind-blowing possibility of a Lionel Messi vs. Cristiano Ronaldo knockout matchup happening right here in the Midwest if the group stages break just right. According to Jack, a ticket for that match could easily fetch more than a Super Bowl ticket.

The Legend of the Kickapoo “Jack-O-Meter”

We took a nostalgic trip back to the 1990s when Jack was absolutely tearing it up for Kickapoo High School. He shared a fantastic story about his senior year in 1998, when he scored a then-state record 59 goals. Right as Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa were chasing the MLB home run record, the Kickapoo student body created a “Jack-O-Meter” poster to track his goals. In true local rivalry fashion, the sign was actually stolen from the student union by cross-town rivals Parkview or Hillcrest! Jack also reflected on the fierce, competitive club rivalries split right down the middle between Kickapoo and Glendale High School.

Choosing the Pitch Over the Mound

It wasn’t always a given that Jack would stick strictly to soccer. He was a highly talented multi-sport athlete growing up, balancing baseball and soccer into his freshman year at Kickapoo. We got a chuckle out of his memory of trying out for legendary baseball coach Pittman. When Coach Pittman asked what would happen if a soccer practice conflicted with a baseball game, Jack honestly replied, “I’m gonna go to soccer practice.” That was the end of his baseball career, sparking a singular focus that led him to a national powerhouse career at Saint Louis University (SLU) and eventually into the MLS draft in 2003.

Winning Over Coach Kevin Byrne

Of course, we couldn’t let Jack go without asking about his greatest high school achievement: convincing legendary Kickapoo High School football coach Kevin Byrne to let a soccer player marry his daughter, Brady. Jack reminisced about having Coach Byrne for an “individual and dual sports” class during his hectic college recruiting days, which helped break the ice. While Coach Byrne was strictly “football, football, football” back then, Jack proudly admits that soccer has finally grown on the legendary gridiron coach after all these years.