Adam Clack has Parkview gunning for first region title in 7 years
Today’s Four Questions interviewee is Parkview coach Adam Clack, whose team will win Region 7-7A if the Panthers defeat North Gwinnett in a road game Friday night. Parkview’s most recent region title came in 2019. Clack’s first Parkview team was 4-6 last season. He took the job after spending time in college ball at Charlotte and coaching in a European professional league. Clack was Milton’s head coach from 2017 to 2021. He compiled a 54-12 record with a 2018 state championship.
1. What’s the difference between this Parkview team and your first one? Is it mostly experience with the new coaching staff, schemes, etc., or player improvement?
“I think all of the above. Coming in last year, we had a program that had gone through a rough patch. A lot of our seniors last year had played with freshmen and sophomores who were (now) playing for other teams. When I got here, I noticed a lot of good kids, but they were really defeated. My goal was just to bring the energy back and get them excited about playing football again.
“Coming in in February, there was a lot of work to be put in, from the booster club to building relationships with the parks to building a staff. There were not a lot of resources in Gwinnett when I came in. Luckily, I inherited some good coaches, but I had zero collective snaps with my staff (from coaching together on previous teams). But this offseason, I was able to bring in new coaches to help support the staff. Our defensive coordinator is John Mohring. Will Cowart has come in as special teams coordinator and helps on defense. I was able to bring in Terry Jones as co-offensive coordinator, so just some really great guys along with the ones we had. And we’ve had another year of development with our players. We had a really talented junior class that are seniors now. We’ve had a full year together, learning the culture and the schemes, and they’re excited about playing football again.”
2. What did the Brookwood game mean to your season? Did it give the team confidence, or did the team already have it and just got validation? Was it a turning point?
“I really try to subscribe to the philosophy that you never make one game bigger than another, but rivalries are real. You’ve got to respect them. Last year, we were 4-6, and we lost pretty handily to some of the top-tier teams. This season, we came out of the gate with a tough loss (49-14 against Coffee in the Corky Kell + Dave Hunter Classic). Then we had another tough loss (37-31 to Peachtree Ridge), and we’re sitting 2-2. That’s when I challenged the guys. ‘In three weeks, you’re playing your biggest rival. You haven’t had success against them, let’s be obvious. We’ve got three weeks to correct the course of this season and honestly your football career. Can you give me 12 straight practices to be able to play with one of the elite teams in the state?’ And then when you win, it becomes contagious. What’s the next thing? What’s the next thing after that? That loss to Peachtree Ridge and turning around the focus was absolutely pivotal.”
Note: Parkview has won five straight games for the first time since 2019. Parkview beat Brookwood 34-24 on Oct. 2. That was the first victory over Brookwood or a Top-10 opponent since 2023, the seniors’ freshman season.
3. What does your team do well? What’s the identity, and where can you give other teams problems?
“I think the overall team speed we have collectively on defense. We definitely use that back end (secondary) that can match up and cover, which gives us the ability to play aggressively in the box. Coach Mohring has done a phenomenal job of putting them in position to play fast. We’ve got guys not afraid to make a big play. Sometimes we get burned on it, but when you’re willing to take shots aggressively with good reason and logic, you put a lot of pressure on teams in high school or any level because pressure is something everyone struggles with offensively. On offense, we have versatility. We have a good offensive line with an elite running back (Zandon Mullins). Our quarterback (Greg Hart) has played at an exceptionally high level. One thing I like about him is it’s not about him. It’s about team success. But he also has the ability when we take our shots to make defenses pay when they come down in the box.”
Note: Parkview’s top prospects are safety KJ Caldwell (committed to NC State) and tackle JJ Brown (Clemson). Hart has thrown for 1,854 yards and 23 touchdowns while completing 70.6% of his passes. Mullins has rushed for 933 yards. Christian Ema has 737 receiving yards and nine touchdowns.
4. You were a well-established head coach at Milton, took a detour, you might call it, and now you’re back. What did you learn during that time away from high school football that makes you a different coach now? Did you expect you’d be back?
“I wasn’t unhappy being a high school football coach. Like a lot of people, I had aspirations to see what else was out there, whether that’s coaching in college, or professionally or overseas. If you’re 40 and you’ve been doing the same thing for 20 years, you don’t want to look up 15 years later and say you never gave yourself a shot to see. It was great to go out and learn from others, which becomes harder to do as a head coach.
“But I felt my skill set really lives in the high school world, with the camaraderie of the staff and the ability to be a part of young men’s lives. My personality is more built for that. Now I’m able to come back and not have my eye on something else. I felt I was getting to that point (at Milton), and I never want to be in that position where I’m not 100% committed. It felt good stepping away so when I came back I was more committed than ever to do the job as a high school football coach.”