West Virginia State star named Lake Region football head coach

EAGLE LAKE, FLORIDA - Lake Region has a Hall of Famer in its coaching ranks.

The school announced Jermain King as its new football head coach Friday. It marks King's second head coaching job in Polk County.

“I am tremendously excited and feel blessed that God has given me this opportunity,” King said. “I feel like God has put me here for a reason to make a change in this program. So, I am extremely excited.”

King, who is a dean at Lake Region, was the head coach at Kingdom Prep for the 2018 season where he posted a 2-8 record after taking over a start-up program just entering its third season. He also coached youth football in Hardee.

He played wide receiver at West Virginia State from 2007-2011 where he hauled in 25 touchdown passes and set records for career receptions (239) and career-receiving yards (2,970). Both records have since been broken, but he was elected to the program’s Hall of Fame in 2022.

“Looking at the record, (Lake Region) hasn’t made the playoffs since 2007-08. So that is at the forefront of the goals we are trying to get to. We are trying to get this program into the playoffs and to compete with other Polk County teams, especially some of our rivals like Winter Haven, Bartow and Auburndale. That is the goal.”

King also played arena football in the IFL, beginning in 2012 with the Nebraska Danger. He also had stints with the Reading Express and Sioux Falls.

“Our biggest obstacle right now is to get the kids to understand discipline, and that the small things make a difference,” he said. “For us to get to the point where we are competing with Lake Wales, we have to get the discipline of details to assignments. Those things mean so much.”

King takes over for Ryan Mills, who posted an 11-11 record over the past two seasons. Lake Region will face Bartow in its spring game this year.