Liberty Christian Volunteer Coach Fills Trophy Case
By Derrick Forsythe, Record Sports Editor
Posted 11/7/19
Winning six state championships in 13 years would earn most coaches a healthy bonus. Adding another five runner-up finishes during that period would warrant more prestigious honors. Butch Clark may …
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Liberty Christian Volunteer Coach Fills Trophy Case
Posted
By Derrick Forsythe, Record Sports Editor
Winning six state championships in 13 years would earn most coaches a healthy bonus.Adding another five runner-up finishes during that period would warrant more prestigious honors.Butch Clark may be one of the most successful guys walking the sidelines in Missouri.One thing for certain, he’s definitely among the lowest paid.“Most coaches will tell you they’re not coaching for the money,” acknowledged the Liberty Christian boys basketball coach. “Not in high school anyway.”The Warrenton Christian School was looking to start a girls basketball program in the fall of 1998. Having recently enrolled his son in the school and seeing the team in desperate need of a coach, Clark volunteered.“I had no idea the time commitment I was getting myself into,” quipped the Montgomery City native.It was a temporary venture, a humanitarian act on his part. He gave it up after one year.But the following winter the boys program needed a new leader, and this role was more enticing. Clark would get to coach his son and inherit a team that was blossoming with potential.Butch’s son has long graduated, and the school has since become Liberty Christian Academy.But one thing remains constant — every fall Clark will assemble his Eagles basketball team in preparation for another run at the Missouri Christian School Athletic Association title.The standards have become lofty since the inception of the program, which has produced an impressive crop of college players.“The expectation is not to win state every year,” assured Clark. “It’s to at least get to that game though ... 20 wins is a benchmark we set for ourselves. Anything past that is great.”The Eagles brought home their most recent title a month ago after defeating Eagle Ridge in the championship game in Joplin.“We’ve been fortunate,” said Clark. “We’ve been blessed with great kids. It’s more of a reflection on them than anyone else, because they’re the ones that play the game.”Arguably the greatest talent in school history was Dane Brumagin, who went on to play for the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He led the Eagles to the championship during his junior and senior seasons.“We played lights out,” recalled Clark, of the 2005 game. “We shot the ball unbelievably well and scored 93 points in the championship game.”That was his favorite game out of the 444 he has coached, along with a 300th victory that secured the Metro Athletic Conference crown in 2012.Brumagin still values the lessons he learned from Clark, who has since considered “retiring” on several occasions.“We may not have always liked what he said or how he said it, but we knew he was trying to make us the best we could be,” said Brumagin.A younger group of players has since benefited from Clark’s tutelage, coaxing him into prolonging his career.“I thought about stopping a couple of years ago, and Ben (Wishman) kind of laid a guilt trip on me,” said Clark. “I’d known Ben since he was in the fifth grade, so I stayed one more year, and it turned into two or three.”Wishman, a 2012 graduate, convinced his mentor to hang around for his final two seasons.“I’ve always seen him as someone who wanted us to succeed on, and especially off the basketball court,” said Wishman. “He always pushed us as players and developing young men to better ourselves in every way.”Clark, who has a career record of 327-117, earns his living as a financial adviser. It’s a flexible role that has enabled him to continue pursuing a passion that has filled the trophy cases at the tiny Wright City school.“If we have 35 to 40 kids in high school, that’s a big year right now for our enrollment,” said Clark.Regardless of how much success the Eagles have had, though, they’ve always faced one criticism. How would they fair against MSHSAA schools?Aside from summer camps, they haven’t had many chances to prove that, but Clark says the finger can’t be pointed at he or his program.“We get told, ‘there’s no upside to us playing you. We’re expected to beat you. We’ve got 10 times the students you’ve got, and if we lose, it looks bad,’ “ said Clark.Still, he has persistently tried to convince local schools to include LCA on their schedules. The Eagles fell short of being included in the Clopton Tournament after a frustrating attempt in recent years.“It takes two to dance,” said Clark. “You’ve got to have a partner, and there haven’t been very many willing partners over the years.”Fortunately, Wright City High School has agreed to play the Eagles during the 2014-15 season. Clark says there’s a good chance he’ll still be roaming the sidelines for that meeting, driven by a desire to continue pouring into the lives of young people.
Liberty Christian Coach Butch Clark has won six state titles as a volunteer at the school.
