Shawn Clark
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 16, 1975 Charleston, West Virginia, U.S.[1] |
| Alma mater | Appalachian State University |
| Playing career | |
| 1994–1998 | Appalachian State |
| Position(s) | Offensive lineman |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 2001–2002 | Louisville (GA) |
| 2003–2008 | Eastern Kentucky (OL) |
| 2009–2012 | Purdue (OL) |
| 2013–2015 | Kent State (OL) |
| 2016–2018 | Appalachian State (co-OC/OL) |
| 2019 | Appalachian State (AHC/OL) |
| 2019–2024 | Appalachian State |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 40–24 |
| Bowls | 3–1 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| Sun Belt East Division (2021) | |
Shawn Clark (born August 16, 1975) is an American college football coach who was most recently the head football coach at Appalachian State University from 2020 to 2024. He had been an assistant with the program since 2016, and was promoted to head coach following the departure of Eliah Drinkwitz.
Playing career
[edit]An offensive lineman in college, Clark was a two-time All-American (1996 and 1998) and three-time all-conference selection (1995, 1996, 1998) for teams that went a combined 45–16 during his first five years in Boone. In fact, as a player during the 12–0 start in 1995 and a coach for the 2019 team that has set a single-season record for wins by an FBS program in the state of North Carolina, Clark has been part of the two App State teams to post 11 regular-season victories.
Clark graduated from App State with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice in 1998 and earned a master's degree in education from Louisville in 2003.
Coaching career
[edit]Clark joined the Appalachian staff as offensive line coach in 2016 under head coach Scott Satterfield, then becoming an assistant head coach in 2019. Upon the departure of Eliah Drinkwitz for Missouri, Clark became the 22nd head coach in program history on December 13, 2019. Clark led the Mountaineers in their bowl game that year to a 31–17 victory over UAB Blazers in the New Orleans Bowl. Clark's first full season as head coach of the Mountaineers was met with complications from the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused many changes to schedules and football operations around the country. The team persevered and Clark finished 9–3 and lead the team in the inaugural Myrtle Beach Bowl and defeated the North Texas Mean Green with a dominating 56–28 performance.[2]
Clark was fired following a 5–6 season in 2024.[3]
Head coaching record
[edit]| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | Coaches# | AP° | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appalachian State Mountaineers (Sun Belt Conference) (2019–2024) | |||||||||
| 2019 | Appalachian State | 1–0 | 0–0 | W New Orleans | 18 | 19 | |||
| 2020 | Appalachian State | 9–3 | 6–2 | 2nd (East) | W Myrtle Beach | ||||
| 2021 | Appalachian State | 10–4 | 7–1 | 1st (East) | L Boca Raton | ||||
| 2022 | Appalachian State | 6–6 | 3–5 | T–4th (East) | |||||
| 2023 | Appalachian State | 9–5 | 6–2 | 2nd (East)[a] | W Cure | ||||
| 2024 | Appalachian State | 5–6 | 3–5 | T–5th (East) | |||||
| Appalachian State: | 40–24 | 25–15 | |||||||
| Total: | 40–24 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
- ^ Appalachian State represented the East Division in the Sun Belt Championship Game. James Madison finished first place in the East Division, but was ineligible to participate in the Championship Game due to FBS transition rules.
References
[edit]- ^ Brocato, Joe (April 3, 2020). "GW grad Shawn Clark settles into first head coaching opportunity at Appalachian State". WV MetroNews. Retrieved August 18, 2020.
- ^ Iacobelli, Pete (December 22, 2020). "Peoples sets bowl rushing mark, App State tops North Texas". AP News. Retrieved November 27, 2024.
- ^ Thamel, Pete (December 2, 2024). "Appalachian State fires coach Shawn Clark after five seasons". ESPN. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
External links
[edit]- 1975 births
- Living people
- American football offensive linemen
- Appalachian State Mountaineers football coaches
- Appalachian State Mountaineers football players
- Coaches of American football from West Virginia
- Eastern Kentucky Colonels football coaches
- George Washington High School (Charleston, West Virginia) alumni
- Louisville Cardinals football coaches
- Kent State Golden Flashes football coaches
- Purdue Boilermakers football coaches
- Players of American football from Charleston, West Virginia