Mickey Jacobs will enter his fourth season season on the Dukes coaching staff in 2025 and second as Defensive Coordinator. In 2025, he will also serve as linebackers coach.
Jacobs was promoted to defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach in May of 2024, after helping guide Duquesne to the 2023 Northeast Conference championship and an NCAA FCS playoff appearance as the safeties coach and special teams coordinator in his first year back on the Bluff.
In Jacobs’ first season leading the defense, the Dukes produced seven All-NEC selections, including four first-team honorees, and tied for the regular season conference title. Duquesne allowed a league-low 18.3 points per game in conference play and held three opponents to single digits during an eight-game win streak, the program’s longest since 2002. The stretch included a Week 3 victory over No. 21/20 Youngstown State, marking just the second win over a ranked opponent in program history. Jacobs’ unit tallied nine interceptions, 27 sacks, and forced nine fumbles, recovering four, for 13 total takeaways, and scored two defensive touchdowns. The Dukes ranked second in the NEC in both red-zone defense, forcing five turnovers inside the 20 (three interceptions and two on downs), and opponent third-down conversion rate, stopping nearly 70 percent of attempts overall. During league play, Duquesne led the conference on third downs with an opponent success rate of just 20 percent. Nationally, the Dukes ranked in the FCS top 25 in third-down defense (14th), first-down defense (19th), red-zone defense (21st), and rushing defense (23rd).
Jacobs' special teams unit ranked 16th nationally and second in the Northeast Conference in kick return defense in 2023, allowing opponents just 16.81 yards per return. Under his leadership, the safeties contributed to a passing defense that had nine interceptions and ranked 30th in the FCS in passing yards allowed per game. Two DU defensive backs garnered All-NEC honors in 2023.
Jacobs, who was the Dukes' defensive quality control coach in 2018, returned to the Bluff after spending four seasons at Pitt. The last two seasons with the Panthers, Jacobs served as a defensive graduate assistant. While working with the defensive unit, the Panthers' ranked second nationally in sacks, sixth in rushing defense and eighth in interceptions on way to the 2021 ACC championship. During his first two seasons at Pitt, Jacobs was a recruiting graduate assistant, and played an integral role in signing the 2021 class, which was ranked No. 22 nationally by Rivals.
Prior to his return to Duquesne, Jacobs was the Senior Defensive Analyst at Buffalo during the spring of 2023.
Jacobs is a 2017 Duquesne graduate who played from the Dukes from 2013-16. He was part of three of DU's NEC championship teams including the Dukes' FCS playoff team in 2015.
Jacobs earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from Duquesne and served as an intern with the DU Strength and Conditioning staff in the spring of 2017 following graduation.
Jacobs and his wife, Abbi, have two children: a son, Julian, and a daughter, Ava.
