Meet John Clark, Sierra Pacific High School’s new head football coach. Clark is a football coach with experience in the sport, all the way from his youth.
Clark, who also teaches special education at Sierra Pacific, said teaching and coaching are quite similar jobs in his eyes, each having similar experiences and end goals.
“Teaching in the classroom and coaching on the field go hand in hand for me because both are about helping kids grow and holding them to a standard.” Clark said.
As a football coach, this is his first time being the head football coach of a whole program, but he has years of experience in the sport, including six years as assistant coach at Hanford High School, helping run several football camps for youths and teens, and one year of assistant coaching at a school in Colorado. In college, Clark also played Div. I football at Colorado State after playing at Hanford High.
Clark takes over a program that went 4-6 in 2025. He replaces Ryan DeSantos, who was at Sierra Pacific for three seasons. In DeSantos’ three years as head coach, Sierra Pacific went 14-17, making the playoffs once but winning no playoff games.
Clark believes the game to be about the connection between players, and the hard work and dedication to the sport, which becomes important for growth as people over time.
“The time, effort and shared struggle that go into football create relationships that last a lifetime,” Clark said. “I have always loved being part of a team, and now as a coach, I really enjoy watching players grow in confidence and maturity from one season to the next. Winning games is great, but football is bigger than that. It teaches kids how to work, how to handle adversity, and how to be part of something bigger than themselves.”Clark wants everyone at this school to know that he cares about this school and community, and wants Friday night football to be something both students and parents are proud of and remember.
Clark says he is proud of the types of men those he has coached grow up to be, and that the connections formed through the sport are strong bonds that last lifetimes, which he deems the most enjoyable part of the game.
“Building relationships and connections with players has always been the most enjoyable part for me. I have coached players who went on to play at the college level, and that is something I am proud of, but the ones that mean the most to me are the players I have seen grow into good people, good husbands, and good fathers.” Clark had said
Clark promises to bear the responsibility placed onto him as coach well, and despite the work put into it and the work of being a teacher as well, he finds the balance between what he does and who he is.
Not only has Clark become a coach he’s proud of and one he hopes the community is proud of too. To lead this year’s team to a possible victory, or better than last year, described by varsity player Jeremiah Cortez as a poor year.
“Last year was another poor year, we definitely grew as a team but we’re still not the best I think we can be,” Cortez said. “We definitely have more potential to grow if we get our stuff together.”
