from YAHOO! Sports:
Appalachian State fires coach Shawn Clark after program’s first losing season in 11 years
Clark went 40–24 in his five seasons at Appalachian State, including an upset of Texas A&M in 2022
Appalachian State has fired head football coach Shawn Clark after five seasons. The Mountaineers went 5–6 this year (3–5 in the Sun Belt), the program’s first losing campaign since its final season at the FCS level in 2013.
“The expectation for App State football is to annually compete for a conference championship and a berth in the College Football Playoff,” said athletic director Doug Gillin in a statement. “We have commenced a national search to quickly find the next leader for App State football.”
Clark, 49, played at Appalachian State as an offensive lineman from 1994-98. After assistant coaching stints at Louisville, Eastern Kentucky, Purdue and Kent State, he returned to Boone, North Carolina, as the offensive line coach and co-offensive coordinator under head coach Scott Satterfield.
During Eli Drinkwitz’s first season, Clark was promoted to assistant head coach in 2019. When Drinkwitz left for Missouri after his lone season at Appalachian State, Clark became the 22nd head coach in program history.
Clark continued the Mountaineers’ success in his first two seasons, compiling a combined record of 19–7 with two bowl bids. His teams also played impressively against Power Five competition.
Appalachian State’s 10–4 season in 2021 included a near-upset of Miami. The following season, the Mountaineers lost a thriller at home to North Carolina, 63–61. But they followed that up by stunning No. 6 Texas A&M, 17–14, in College Station. That led to ESPN’s “College GameDay” bringing its show to Boone for the first time.
“I want to thank Shawn for all he has done for the App State football program,” Gillin said in announcing Clark’s dismissal. “Shawn is a true Mountaineer. He has given his heart and soul to his alma mater. He has navigated numerous challenges in his tenure and done so with class and integrity. This was a difficult decision, but after an evaluation of the program, we decided to make the change now.”
The Mountaineers finished 9–5 last season and defeated Miami (OH) in the Cure Bowl. But they were 3–4 before winning five straight games and playing in the Sun Belt championship game.
Yet after this year’s losing campaign, officials apparently did not like the direction in which the program was headed with Clark under contract for two more years. Appalachian State finished tied for the third-worst record in the Sun Belt and fourth in the conference’s East Division.
from Appalachian State Sports website:
App State Announces Football Leadership Change
BOONE, N.C. — App State Director of Athletics Doug Gillin announced Monday that football head coach Shawn Clark has been released from his contract following his fifth full season at the helm of the Mountaineers’ program.
“I want to thank Shawn for all he has done for the App State football program,” Gillin said. “Shawn is a true Mountaineer. He has given his heart and soul to his alma mater. He has navigated numerous challenges in his tenure and done so with class and integrity. This was a difficult decision, but after an evaluation of the program, we decided to make the change now.
“The expectation for App State Football is to annually compete for a conference championship and a berth in the College Football Playoff. We have commenced a national search to quickly find the next leader for App State Football. Mountaineer fans are among the most passionate in the country, and we are committed to providing a football program that builds upon the decades of previous championship tradition.”
**********Could you see Mack Brown going back to Appalachian to coach again??? He was the head coach up there in Boone, real early in his college football coaching career, and always had heard that he had maintained his home up there on the Mountain, along with his 10 million dollar home in Wilmington, N.C.**********
Just say NO to Mack.