Bo Clark
Biographical details
Born (1957-04-24) April 24, 1957 (age 69)
Appleton, Wisconsin
Playing career
1975–1980UCF
PositionShooting guard
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1982–1984Flagler
1984–1987Winter Park HS
1987–1988St. Johns River State
1988–2017Flagler
Head coaching record
Overall491–378 (.565)
Accomplishments and honors
Awards

James Paul "Bo" Clark (born April 24, 1957) is an American former college basketball player, basketball coach, and author. He played at the University of Central Florida and remains, to this day, the all-time leader in points scored. After graduating, he was hired as the head men's basketball coach at Flagler College, where he coached for 31 years, leading his teams to 491 wins. In his tenure, the Saints qualified for three National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) national basketball tournaments. The court at Flagler is named in his honor. The "Clark Family Court" was dedicated on February 18, 2017.[1][2]

Early life

Born in Appleton, Wis., he is the son of former Xavier High School (Appleton, Wis.) and University of Central Florida basketball coaching legend, Gene "Torchy" Clark.[3][4][5] The younger Clark played for his father at UCF and was a three-time NCAA Division II All-American.[4] He is the school's all-time leading scorer with 2,886 points.[6] On January 30, 1977, Clark scored 70 points in a game against Florida Memorial University.[6] He also played one season for Athletes In Action USA (1980–81). Clark's No. 23 jersey is retired at both Bishop Moore Catholic High School, in Orlando, Fla., and at UCF.[7]

Honors

High school

  • 3× Florida Class AAA All-State selection at Orlando's Bishop Moore High School (1973–1975)
  • All-Central Florida (1974, 1975)
  • 3× All-Metro Conference (1973–1975)
  • Bishop Moore Catholic Hall of Fame inductee (1992)

College

  • 4× All-Sunshine State Conference (1976, 1977, 1979, 1980)[8]
  • UCF's all-time leading scorer (2,886 points) and is first in scoring average (27.8 ppg), field goals (1,215), and field goals attempted (2,418) [9][10]
  • Ranks 15th all-time in NCAA Division II scoring with 2,886 points[11]
  • Led NCAA Division II in scoring with 31.6 points per game average (1978–79)[12]
  • UCF Hall of Fame inductee (1998)[13]

Coaching

  • 2× NAIA Division II National Tournament Sweet 16 (2002, 2003)[14]
  • 2× Florida Sun Conference regular season championships (2002, 2003)[14]
  • 2× Florida Sun Conference Tournament championships (2001, 2002)[14]
  • 3× Florida Sun Coach of the Year (1995, 2004, 2005)
  • Independent College Athletic Association Coach of the Year (2008)[15]
  • Flagler College all-time leader in wins (491)[14]
  • Flagler Athletics Hall of Fame inductee [16]

Head coaching record

Record table
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Flagler Saints (NAIA District 25) (1982–1990)
1982–83 Flagler 18–12 NAIA District 25 Toun.
1983–84 Flagler 12–14
1988–89 Flagler 16–9
1989–90 Flagler 14–12
Flagler Saints (Florida Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) (1990–1992)
1990–91 Flagler 19–7 NAIA District 25 Tourn. semis
1991–92 Flagler 19–8 NAIA District 25 Tourn.
Flagler Saints (Florida Sun Conference) (1992–2006)
1992–93 Flagler 8–19 0–14
1993–94 Flagler 12–16 5–9
1994–95 Flagler 20–10 9–5 Florida Sun Conf. Tourn.
1995–96 Flagler 22–7 10–4 Florida Sun Conf. Tourn.
1996–97 Flagler 22–9 9–5 Florida Sun Conf. Tourn.
1997–98 Flagler 20–11 7–7 Florida Sun Conf. Tourn.
1998–99 Flagler 16–14 7–7 Florida Sun Conf. Tourn.
1999-00 Flagler 14–16 3–9 Florida Sun Conf. Tourn.
2000–01 Flagler 20–9 9–3 Florida Sun Conf. Tourn.
2001–02 Flagler 24–6 9–3 Florida Sun Conf. Tourn.
2002–03 Flagler 22–8 9–5 NAIA Division II Nationals
2003–04 Flagler 26–6 10–0 NAIA Division II Nationals
2004–05 Flagler 23–8 8–2 NAIA Division II Nationals
2005–06 Flagler 14–14 2–8 Florida Sun Conf. Tourn.
Flagler Saints (NCAA Division II provisional) (2006–2009)
2006–07 Flagler 14–13 National Independent Tourn.
2007–08 Flagler 20–7
2008–09 Flagler 12–15
Flagler Saints (Peach Belt Conference) (2009–2017)
2009–10 Flagler 11–16 6–12 5th/East
2010–11 Flagler 10–16 4–14 6th/East
2011–12 Flagler 9–17 2–16 7th/East
2012–13 Flagler 11–15 7–12 5th/East
2013–14 Flagler 11–15 5–14 T-5th/East
2015–16 Flagler 8–20 3–16 7th/East
2016–17 Flagler 10–16 4–15 7th/East
Total: 491–378

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

Personal life

Bo Clark and his wife Nancy (m. 1984), have three sons: JP, David, and Matt. He presently runs youth basketball camps, Bo Clark Basketball Camps, in St. Augustine, Altamonte Springs, and Winter Park, Florida.

References

  1. ^ "Bo Clark announces retirement after 31 years at Flagler". Flagler College Athletics.
  2. ^ "Flagler Gymnasium renovation completed". Flagler College Athletics.
  3. ^ "Former Flagler men's basketball coach Bo Clark publishes bio of his legendary father Torchy". Flagler College Athletics.
  4. ^ a b Pollock, Tim. "Flagler College Basketball: The History". Bleacher Report. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  5. ^ Brown, Will (June 20, 2020). "Former Flagler College basketball coach Bo Clark dedicates debut book to biography about his father, 'Torchy' Clark". St. Augustine Record. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  6. ^ a b "UCF Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). UCF Athletics.
  7. ^ White, Russ. "BO CLARK'S JERSEY IS RETIRED – AGAIN". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  8. ^ "Sunshine State Conference". Sunshine State Conference.
  9. ^ History [dead link]
  10. ^ "UCF Men's Basketball Record Book" (PDF). UCF Men's Basketball.
  11. ^ "Division II. Men's Basketball Records" (PDF). ncaa.org. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  12. ^ "NCAA Division II Record Book" (PDF). NCAA.
  13. ^ "UCF Hall of Fame". UCF Athletics.
  14. ^ a b c d "Flagler Men's Basketball Record Book" (PDF). Flagler Men's Basketball.
  15. ^ Jordan, John. "Sports Information Director". Flagler Men's Basketball.
  16. ^ "Proctor, Clark and Malvebo inducted into Flagler Athletics HOF Thursday night". Flagler College Athletics. Retrieved May 4, 2023.