NEW HOPE — Ellis Clark needed cones and advice.
Clark, a senior on the New Hope High School soccer team, had accepted a coaching position with the Veal Chiropractic under-12 boys team in the Columbus Parks and Recreation soccer league this summer. His stepbrother was on the team, and it needed a coach, so Clark stepped up.
But his only prior coaching experience was with an under-5 team, so he turned to New Hope coach Andrew Olsen for help. He asked Olsen what kind of drills he should run for practice and borrowed cones from Olsen to run them.
“At that age, you’ve gotta keep it fun for them,” Olsen said. “It all can’t be like, ‘Win a championship. Win a championship.'”
Clark did, incorporating into practices a “keep-away” drill where he dribbled the ball around the field, daring his players to take it from him.
“They always liked that,” Clark said. “It was fun. It kept them entertained, and it was keeping their conditioning and trying to get their footwork in a better position.”
His efforts paid off: The team finished second in its league under Clark’s leadership.
“I guess it’s payback for a lot of my coaches, too, because they had to deal with me,” Clark said. “It opened my eyes: Not everything’s just about me; I also have to put it in a different perspective.”
Clark’s youth coaching stint was but one example of the boundless soccer knowledge he displays, whether it’s at his central midfielder position or working on tactics from the sideline.
The New Hope senior, a varsity starter since his freshman year of high school, used that intelligence to quickly blossom into one of the Trojans’ leaders. So Friday morning, when he signed his letter of intent to play soccer at Northwest Mississippi Community College, Olsen was anything but surprised.
“You can tell when he’s on there that he knows the game,” Olsen said. “A lot of the guys, when we’re on the field, they’re looking at him to see what’s going on, and he keeps it flowing.”
Clark has played a key role in the Trojans’ 6-1-1 start to the season as of Friday morning. With his longtime starting experience, he’s someone New Hope can count on in clutch moments and critical games.
“When everything’s on the line, he’s been in these big games before, so he’s one of those guys that we’re looking at because he’s been there and done it before,” Olsen said.
That included a first-round playoff win at Corinth that stuck in Olsen’s mind. With New Hope down 1-0 at the half, Clark — just a sophomore — helped the team calm down. New Hope equalized in the second half and won 6-5 in a penalty shootout to advance.
“He came out in the second half and helped us get the game under control,” Olsen said.
Though Olsen knew Clark longed to play collegiate soccer since his freshman year, it was Clark’s junior season that made his coach sure it would soon become a reality.
That year, he moved from the winger spot to the central midfield in more of a defensive role, allowing him to be in the midst of everything on the field.
Taking that leap allowed Clark to reach the goal he’d long wanted. He visited Northwest and loved the campus, and when the Rangers offered him late this summer, Clark committed.
“It’s just all around a good school to go to,” he said.
Clark also plays football — he’s a kicker for the Trojans — but there was no doubt that his future lies in soccer. Football coach Wade Tackett knew that, letting Clark head over to soccer practice once kicking drills were finished so Clark wouldn’t miss any more time practicing the sport he loved.
“I’ve been dreaming about playing soccer since I couldn’t remember,” Clark said.
He signed not 12 hours before the Trojans’ key district match against Grenada on Friday night, and New Hope also squares off with rival Caledonia on the road Saturday. But with the stress of finalizing his college decision in the past, Clark can home in on the goals of his senior season.
“It’s all behind him,” Olsen said. “Now he can just focus on trying to get us into the playoffs and make a run.”
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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