Staff Reports
West10/Legacy Media
Retired Coach Phil Clark has passed away. He was more than a coach, he was a mentor, a friend and was loved by many. He made a huge impact on the lives he touched, as is evident from the remembrance seen on the Bartlett Schools Facebook page that states, “Coach Clark was one of the best! The lives this man impacted in his short time on this earth is unmatched. He will be greatly missed.”
Phil Clark began his long coaching career at Sky View Academy, Memphis, in 1980. A year later, he took his team to a State Championship followed by consecutive runner-up titles in 1983 and 1984. Clark’s Sky View team won
another state Championship in 1986. By 1988, Clark became the head baseball coach at Germantown High School, a position he held until 2002. Under his tutelage, the school achieved State Championships in 1995 and 2001, and runner-up titles in 1992, 1993, and 1998. His 1995 team was also ranked #1 nationally in all polls.
In 2003, Clark transitioned to Bartlett High School, leading the school to a state championship in 2007 and runner-up positions in 2006 and 2008. His coaching career culminated with an impressive record of 933-295 and earned him the accolade of ‘State Coach of the Year’ on five occasions. Coach Clark was named the National High School Coach of the Year in both 1995 and 2013. Clark’s dedication to Tennessee’s baseball scene witnessed him securing five state championships and seven state runner-up titles overall.
He was inducted into the Tennessee Baseball Coaches Association (TBCA) Hall of Fame, Baseball Coaches Association (BCA) Hall of Fame, University of Memphis ‘M Club’ Hall of Fame, the Memphis Amateur Sports Hall of Fame, and in 2023 he was inducted into the Memphis Sports Hall of Fame. Most recently, Coach Clark was inducted into the TSAAA’s Hall of Fame in 2024.
In 1996 he was awarded the U.S. Olympic Committee National Coach of the Year, and in 2000 he was the head coach of the USA Baseball 18U team that captured the world championship in Taiwan.
Clark also served the past 10 years as the Athletic Director of Bartlett City Schools, a position he held until his retirement in 2023.
One Last Call
Words of Hall of Famer Phil Clark to all student/athletes
Thomas Sellers, Jr.
West 10/Legacy Media
Back in Oct. 2023, Clark visited The Bartlett Express office fresh off his induction into the Memphis Sports Hall of Fame. The legendary Coach Phil Clark stops by to reflect on his career with Joanthan Sturdivant for ‘The JS Report.’ Phil Clark was a stellar catcher for the Memphis Tiger baseball team, who would lead Memphis to one of its best seasons in program history in 1978. Clark carried a .328 batting average and worked directly with the pitching staff that got the team to a 40-9 record and a berth to the NCAA South Regional championship.
Clark would go on to coach at Germantown High School where he won the 1995 National Championship and was named as the USA Today National Coach of the Year. He finished his amazing career as leader of the Bartlett Panthers making them a powerhouse in Tennessee baseball.
Clark expressed what motivated him throughout his career as a teacher, coach and administrator.
“The main thing is to get that degree. It will stay with you the rest of your life. No one can ever take that from you. My dad was a 42-year factory worker out there at Kimberly-Clark. If I hadn’t played baseball in college, I probably wouldn’t have gone to college back in the 70s. I knew how important it was. I remember my dad looking at me saying after I finished my eligibility, ‘How far are you from graduating?’ I said, ‘I am less than one year away.’ He said, ‘Don’t waste those four years that you’ve been in there and not get that degree. Get your tail back out there in Memphis and get those hours done.’ If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have been able to coach. It’s because of that degree I got at The University of Memphis I could coach and it is something that will stay with me for the rest of my life. It changed my life and I hope all my kids understand that.”
