Creighton has hired Jamie Clark as the 6th head coach of the Bluejays soccer program.
Clark joins Creighton after a short but successful stint as the head coach at Harvard. While leading the Crimson program from 2008 to present, Clark’s teams compiled a 25-9-1 record and made two trips to the NCAA Tournament. In 2009, Clark’s Harvard team reached the third round of the College Cup tournament, with Clark earning NSCAA Northeast Region Coach of the Year honors in the process.
Clark led the Harvard Crimson to two NCAA Tournaments in his two seasons
Prior to his success at Harvard, Clark proved his coaching ability in assistant roles at New Mexico (four seasons) and Notre Dame (two seasons).
While with the Lobos, Clark was part of the staff that led New Mexico to its second trip ever to the NCAA tournament in 2001 and the College Cup Final just four years later in 2005. New Mexico posted a record of 61-16-8 during Clark’s tenure.
After his success at New Mexico, Clark joined his father, Bobby, at Notre Dame, where he spent the 2006 and 2007 seasons. In two seasons as an assistant to his dad, Clark helped the Irish reach the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament twice.
During both his assistant coaching positions and while in Cambridge, Clark helped develop some of the top collegiate soccer players in the nation, including 2006 M.A.C. Hermann Trophy winner and Soccer America Player of the Year, Joseph Lapira, and 2009 Hermann Trophy finalist Andre Akpan. Part of Clark’s ability to connect with the student athletes may stem from his own success on the pitch.
Clark started his collegiate playing career at the University of North Carolina. He transferred to Stanford following his freshman season to play for his father, who was the head coach for the Cardinal. In 1996, in his first regular season game at Stanford, he traveled to Omaha and lost 4-0 to Creighton. Two days later he recorded his first goal for the Cardinal during a 4-2 win at Drake.
Clark finished 1996 tied with A.J. Sauer as Stanford’s leading scorer (21 points) while leading the team in goals (10).
His junior season saw Clark earn second-team All-America honors while helping lead Stanford to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1992.
And in 1998, as a senior, Clark led the Cardinal to an 18-5-2 record and a national runner-up trophy in the College Cup. He was the first Stanford footballer to earn NSCAA first-team All-America honors.
That 1998 Stanford squad has been tabbed as the greatest Stanford to date. While reaching the first final four in Stanford History, they were also able to finish with a school best 18 wins and a final ranking of #2 nationally after falling to Indiana in the finals. Plus, one of his 5 goals during his senior season came against Creighton in a 2-0 home win over the Bluejays.
His successful collegiate career helped land Clark a spot in the MLS. San Jose drafted Clark 21st overall in the 1999 MLS College Draft, and he played 34 games for the Earthquakes. He joined fellow rookie and Creighton alum Richard Mulrooney on the pitch for San Jose.
Following his time in the MLS, Clark rounded out his playing career in his home country of Scotland with clubs Falkirk and Raith Rovers. He was born in Aberdeen, where his dad Bobby is a revered former player for the local club and Scottish national team. Bobby was the back-up goalkeeper for Scotland’s 1978 FIFA World Cup team.
Following Bob Warming’s departure from Creighton to helm the Penn State soccer program, CU’s Mark Burgers told WBR the administration would look for an individual that has high character and embodies the same qualities of Creighton and Creighton athletics. With his success on the pitch as a player, an assistant, and a head coach, it seems Clark is a young coach with a lifetime of soccer experience and a bright future in the sport.
- Total record as collegiate coach: 116-37-16
Head coach, Harvard: 26-10-1
Assistant coach, Notre Dame: 29-11-7
Assistant coach, New Mexico: 61-16-8