Invited To MLS Combine
Mark Sherrod played high school soccer at Carter High School in Knoxville. Good teams, but never a state championship.
He was all-state for four years, and 2009 Tennessee Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior.
His game got a boost from two seasons with the Knoxville Football Club and he would enroll at the University of Memphis, where he would again be teammates with Cody McCoy and Parker Duncan, two other Knoxville FC players.
Four years later, and a bucket full of individual soccer honors, Sherrod is ready to take the next big step as he heads to Fort Lauderdale, Fla. for the 2014 Adidas MLS Player Combine. He hopes to hear his name called at the 2014 MLS SuperDraft in Philadelphia on Jan. 18.
[show_disconnected][show_to accesslevel=’Subscriber’] Sherrod is one of 50 NCAA Division I seniors invited to the pre-draft combine. Last chance to impress the MLS coaches before they make their selections.
He is the first Memphis Tiger to be invited to the MLS Player Combine. Former Tigers Andy Metcalf and Dayton O’Brien (both 2002-2005) were drafted, but did not attend the combine.
Sherrod completed his collegiate career with 42 goals and 96 points, third best in program history. He was named NSCAA All-America as a junior and as a senior. That made him the only player in program history to make All-America in multiple seasons.
Sherrod was also outstanding in the classroom, and was named NSCAA Men’s University Division Scholar All-Americ first team for the second consecutive year. He is on track to graduate in the spring of 2014 with a 3.5 GPA and a major in engineering.
Sherrod, who scored 172 goals in high school with 50 assists for a grand total of 394 points, has always been known as a fierce competitor and a good guy. Not just to those who have played with him, but also those who have played against him.
In a Knoxville News article back in 2009, Christian Academy of Knoxville coach Tom Gerlach said, “Mark is the epitome of what a coach desires in a soccer player. His physcal prowess is incredible, 6-foot-3, legs like trunks and quickness and speed like none other. He is one of the best – if not the best – – natural finisher I have ever seen. But above all of his physical and soccer attributes is his character.
“I would be very proud if my son grew up to be the kind of man that Mark has turned out to be. He is the first to offer his handshake in both victory and defeat. He is what is called a “class act” in all areas.”
Quite a testament from a coach who’s state championship team was pushed to sudden death overtime by Sherrod’s Carter HS team in the regional semifinals that year.
There is no indication that his college experience has changed his character one bit.
In that Knoxville News article, Sherrod gave a lot of credit to his parents, when he said, “I give my parents more credit than anybody else. They taught me if you treat people with respect you’ll get it right back. Instead of making enemies on the field, I try and make friends.
Sherrod will be difficult to replace next year when the Memphis Tigers take the field. Difficult to replace in many ways.
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