Zak Clark was hired Wednesday as the new football coach at Searcy High School.
Clark previously served as the football coach at Springdale High since 2015 and was an assistant coach at Fayetteville prior to that.
"I wanted to be in a school where it's a one-horse town, where football is ingrained into the fabric of the community," said Clark. "I just think that's really cool. I've looked into a couple of opportunities and this one just kind of fell into my lap about a week ago. So it's kind of been a whirlwind, but I'm very excited."
Clark was a dual-sport standout at Fayetteville High School and played quarterback at the University of Arkansas before transferring to the University of Central Arkansas to play baseball.
In addition to serving as the head football coach at Springdale, he was also an assistant athletic director.
Clark said Searcy's recent success including a state championship, was another factor in his decision.
"With the success they've had recently including winning a state championship, it's exciting," Clark said. "I've seen them in recent years in 7on7 and they have a lot of talent. So the more you look into it, I think it's going to be a great opportunity."
Clark compiled a 26-39 record at Springdale and led the program to four playoff appearances. His best season came in 2018 when a large number of players transferred from crosstown Springdale Har-Ber and led the team to a 7-4 record and its first home football playoff game since the 2005 season.
He said the thing he will be most proud of on the field at Springdale was making the Bulldogs relevant again after almost a decade of low records. The team made the playoffs in each of his first four seasons, but did not reach the postseason the past two seasons.
Clark said he was unsure of when he will make the relocation to Searcy. He planned to return to Springdale today to meet with the Red'Dog players, then likely make the commute to Searcy for a couple of weeks.