Down 24-7 at halftime last Friday, the eighth-seeded Indians was in need of a spark against No. 9 Rosemont in their Sac-Joaquin Section Division V playoff opener.
They got it in the 5-foot-9, 155-pound Clark, a slender and slippery wingback who is doing some heavy lifting for a team that has been without its lead running back, Anden Ries (knee). He racked up 143 yards from scrimmage in the second half of Ripon’s valiant 35-30 comeback victory, scoring two touchdowns including the go-ahead with 5.8 seconds remaining.
“Our team has been slow all year in the first quarter and first half, and for some reason everyone stands up and gives a speech at halftime and we get some sort of fire,” Clark said.
Clark totaled 130 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries and an additional 73 yards and a touchdown on three catches. He even completed a pass to quarterback Ty Herrin on a two-point conversion early in the fourth quarter. Clark had a hand in 14 of Ripon’s 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.
“He’s pretty damn special,” Ripon coach Chris Musseman said. “He can just do things that you can’t coach. He’s a little small, but he’s a very talented guy and a good kid.”
On the game-winning drive, Clark turned a short pass into a 42-yard gain. The series was capped by Herrin’s 15-yard strike up the middle to Clark, who evaded a tackle at the goal line and stumbled into the end zone with glory in hand and a new knock on his knee. He hobbled to the sideline with help from Herrin after taking a helmet to the knee, but the adrenaline helped alleviate the pain.
“One (receiver) ran an out (route), and the other guy on the outside and I ran a go,” Clark said of the deciding play. “I got the outside on the DB and cut in and was open, and (Herrin) threw a good ball.
“I’ve played football with (Herrin) my whole life and he’s one of my best friends,” Clark added. “He has been a lineman almost his whole life, so coming into high school as a QB he’s going to make mistakes. But tonight, he made the passes when he needed to and got us the win.”
Ripon will next travel to Sutter for the quarterfinal round Friday to take on the undefeated No. 1 seed. It will be a rematch of their 2019 Division IV-AA NorCal Bowl Game won by the Indians.
