Jordan Clark '23 Recruiting Profile

I’ve always loved the game of soccer. When I was younger, soccer, like basketball, was a sport that was fun. As I got older, playing soccer was one of my favorite things to do. After my first year of competitive soccer, at age eight, I really fell in love with the game. I’ve always loved being part of a team and making new friends while playing this sport. I think my favorite part about the game would have to be my love of competition. I love going up against a team and not knowing what is to come, the feeling of adrenaline when we win, and the determination to get right back out there after a loss. I love the fact that as a goalie I can see the whole field. Seeing our team working together and building up the play is an amazing part of the game. As a goalie, I can be a leader on the field and communicate well with my back defenders. I love being able to start a play from the back. I am excited to start planning to play soccer in college.

Academically I’m looking for a college that will have majors in Exercise Science/Kinesiology and Psychology. I would prefer a college that has at least 1500 students and without religious requirements. I need to attend a college that has a progressive atmosphere and embraces diversity as this is important to me. As of right now, location isn’t terribly important, but it is a factor. My current preferences include the Midwest or Rocky Mountain area, but the right program and school is more important than location. I prefer an area that is not overwhelmingly socially conservative.

When I think about college soccer programs three things stick out to me, team dynamics, coaching style, and individual opportunity. I’m looking for passionate teammates that will work hard together despite differences. I’m looking for long term friendships from my teammates. I want a college program that will be competitive including opportunities for after season play. I want a support system for myself and teammates soccer and academics. As for coaching style, I want coaches who will motivate and support all players of the team. I would appreciate a coach who instructs me calmly. For example, instead of simply saying “I need to do better at something”, they teach or show me how I can improve on that topic. I want a coach that cares about the improvement of the team rather than just individual success. I appreciate coaches who are willing to take input or feedback from players and maybe incorporate that into their plans. I want someone who cares about the development of their players on and off the field. As for individual opportunities, I'm eager to play games as soon as I can. As a Goalkeeper I know the opportunity to be a starter is not guaranteed and understand I may need to continue to develop within the program, I would still be eager for playing opportunities, including scrimmages and spring season games.

A little more about me. Above I mentioned what I’m looking for in a program, but I also plan to give to the program. I’ve been a team leader both tactically and personally. From my position as goalkeeper, I work to help set up defense and launch counterattacks. I am a very supportive teammate and am always there for my teammates when they need me.  Sometimes that is with a goofy gesture to provide stress relief and other times it can be a word of encouragement or even a hug. I like to make people laugh and smile, but I know when it is time to be serious. In the past few years as I have transitioned to a full-time goalkeeper, I haven’t had significant goalkeeper training during my team practices. However, I have been trying to find training opportunities including going to private practices with Coach Leo Barbosa for two years, a great coach who was named our club goalkeeper coach this year. Leo has developed me into a skilled goalie, but I know I also have not finished improving and I look forward to working hard to continue to develop my skills. Soccer is both a physical and mental game.  It was around this time that I was participating with the Minnesota ODP program too and began struggling with anxiety in these new situations. For example, at Leo’s goalkeeper session, I was the only girl with very skilled older boys that initially overwhelmed me and traveling to the Minneapolis area for ODP with people I didn’t know was initially difficult. It has been a mental game, but I’ve seen improvement over the years. Most of my anxiety is pre-anticipatory. I’ve learned new strategies to help me with my anxiety and will continue to keep learning. Specifically, before games I have created a pre-game routine for each new season which helps me feel better going into the game. Despite my pre-game anxiety, I have always been able to get into a zone as soon as the whistle is blown and am mentally strong during the ups and downs of a game. Overall, I have gotten extremely good at coping with my anxiety, and I am grateful to still enjoy and love the game of soccer.