Besides playing with Nunavut, Jake coached twice for US teams at the Olympic level. In 2014, Jake coached a friend’s team in the US Olympic Men’s Trials, which they didn’t win. Two years later, the USA Nation - al Program leader asked Jake to join their high-performance coaching team and to be head coach for their Mixed Doubles Team at the 2018 Olympics in Korea should they qualify, which they did. Not surprisingly, getting to know Sam Mooibroek during the past three seasons was how Jake landed the coaching spot for Team Mooibroek and another trip to the brier. It didn’t hurt that Jake also played against the fathers of three Team Mooibroek players. As the team’s coach, Jake offers insights based on his years of competitive curling. “I love working with Sam, Ryan, Scott, Nathan and Gavin,” Jake adds. “They’re keen to learn and work hard at being the best versions of themselves.” Jake also keeps the mood light as stress levels increase. “Com- peting at this level gets intense. The guys need to understand that the emotions they feel are normal.” The 2025 Montana’s Brier runs from February 28 to March 9. Regardless of what happens, Jake knows he enjoys these op - portunities because of the support he gets from the community, including the Ilderton Curling Club, Arthur Voaden Secondary School, where he teaches high school math, and his wife, Sara, who shares Jake’s passion for curling. Photo courtesy of Team Mooibroek
Local Connection at the 2025 Montana’s Brier
Long-time Strathroy resident Jake Higgs is no stranger to high- stakes curling with two Montana’s Briers behind him. This year, Jake heads to his third national championship in Kelowna, BC, this time, however, as the coach for Ontario’s provincial champion. Jake’s first two runs at the Canadian men’s curling title happened in 2020 and 2023 when he played on Team Nunavut Team as their “import player.” This year, Sam Mooibroek, the skip for Team Mooibroek out of the Whitby Curling Club, asked Jake to help his team tweak their game for this year’s provincial play down, it paid off for the young team with a championship win. Coming from a family with a deep passion for sports, the only question for Jake as a child was whether he would follow the hockey path like his father, an NHL assistant head coach, or the curling path, inspired by his mother’s love of the game. “I started curling at age 10 and playing competitively at age 14 or 15,” Jake explains. “I played hockey too, but I loved the strategy involved in curling more.” Jake has curled at a high level for most of his life, but he’s the first to admit it’s not solely because of his skill on the ice. “I’m good at is thinking my way through the game,” he says. “It’s like playing chess on ice. I’m always thinking a few moves ahead.” For Jake, curling is as much about the connections you make as it is the strategy. Networking at local tournaments and making friends over the years have given Jake extraordinary opportunities.
Team Ontario: Nathan Steele (Lead), Scott Mitchell (Second), Ryan Wiebe (Third), Sam Mooibroek (Skip), Gavin Lydiate (Alternate) with Jake Higgs (in back).
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