Mark Francis (born in London, England) is a former English-American

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

midfielder who played in the American Soccer League, American Indoor Soccer Association,

SISL United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues currently organized are the ...

and USISL. He has also coached at the high school, college and professional levels. He retired from his position as the women's head coach of the University of Kansas October 23, 2023.

Player

Youth

Francis attended Southern Methodist University, playing on the men's soccer team from 1983 to 1987. During his four seasons, he was a three time All American, second team in 1984, third team in 1985 and

first team First team may refer to: Sports * First team (association football), the colloquial name given to the most senior team fielded by a football club * The First Team, the first players known to have played the sport of basketball * First Team All-A ...

in 1986. He graduated from SMU in 1987 with a bachelor's degree in physical education.

Professional

In 1988, Francis signed with the

Orlando Lions The Orlando Lions were an American soccer team from Orlando, Florida which existed from 1985 to 1996. Over the years, the Lions competed at both the amateur and professional levels including some seasons as an independent team. The Lions is a ni ...

of the American Soccer League, remaining with them through the 1989 season. In the fall of 1989, he joined the Dayton Dynamo of the American Indoor Soccer Association. The Dayton Dynamo lost to the

Canton Invaders The Canton Invaders was an indoor soccer club based in Canton, Ohio that competed in the National Professional Soccer League. After the 1995–96 season, the team relocated and became the Columbus Invaders. History The Canton Invaders were a pro ...

in the championship series. In 1990, he then moved to the

Richardson Rockets Richardson may refer to: People * Richardson (surname), an English and Scottish surname * Richardson Gang, a London crime gang in the 1960s * Richardson Dilworth, Mayor of Philadelphia (1956-1962) Places Australia *Richardson, Australian Capit ...

for the

summer indoor soccer season. He continued to play for the Rockets until 1992. In 1991, the SISL was renamed the USISL and the Rockets became the North Texas Mid-Cities Flyers. During this time, the Rockets/Flyers alternated between summer indoor and winter outdoor seasons. The Rockets won the 1991 SISL outdoor season. In 1993, Francis moved to the

DFW Toros DFW Tornados (also known as Dallas–Fort Worth Tornados) was an American soccer team based in Dallas, Texas, United States. Founded in 1986, the team played in the USL Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer P ...

before returning to the Flyers, now known as the

Dallas Rockets The Richardson Rockets were a soccer club based in Richardson, Texas, United States, a suburb of Dallas. The club originally started in the indoor SISL league. They became the North Texas Mid-Cities Flyers for the 1991/92 USISL indoor league an ...

in 1993. In 1995, Francis moved again, this time to the

Mesquite Kickers The Mesquite Kickers were a soccer club based in Mesquite, Texas that competed in the USISL United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's a ...

for the USISL Indoor season before finishing his playing career with the Mobile Revellers.

Coach

Francis began his coaching career will playing for the

. In 1991, he was hired as the girls’ soccer coach at Highland Park High School. Over six seasons, he won two Texas State high school championships. In 1995 while still at Highland Park, he began a woman's team at Brookhaven College. In 1996, Francis moved to the University of South Alabama to become the women's soccer coach. In his three seasons, he took the Jaguars to a 33-25-1 record. His worst season was his first as the team finished 2-17. By 1998, he had built the Jaguars into a 13-5 team, being named the Big South Conference Coach of the Year. In 1997, Francis also served as the head coach of the Mobile Revellers while also playing for the team. In 1999, the University of Kansas hired Francis as its women's soccer coach. Francis led Kansas to three NCAA Tournaments, and won the Big 12 in 2004.

References

External links

Kansas Jayhawks coaching profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Francis, Mark 1960 births Living people All-American college men's soccer players National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) players American soccer coaches American men's soccer players American Soccer League (1988–89) players Dallas Rockets players Dayton Dynamo players Kansas Jayhawks women's soccer coaches Mesquite Kickers players South Alabama Jaguars women's soccer coaches English emigrants to the United States Orlando Lions players SMU Mustangs men's soccer players USISL players Men's association football midfielders