Dwight Clark

Clark (middle) pictured making "The Catch" in the 1982 NFC Championship Game

No. 87

Position:

Wide receiver

Personal information

Date of birth:

January 8, 1957

Place of birth:

Kinston, North Carolina

Career information

College:

Clemson

NFL Draft:

1979 / Round: 10 / Pick: 249

Career history

San Francisco 49ers (1979–1987)

Career highlights and awards

2× Pro Bowl (1981, 1982)
2× All-Pro (1981, 1982)
2× Super Bowl champion (XVI, XIX)
San Francisco 49ers #87 retired
Inducted into the Clemson Hall Of Fame (1988)

Career NFL statistics

Receptions:	506
Receiving yards:	6,750
Receiving TDs:	48
Rushing yards:	50
Games played:	134
Games started:	97
Player stats at NFL.com

Dwight Edward Clark (born January 8, 1957) is a former American football wide receiver and executive. He played for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL) from 1979 to 1987. With the 49ers, Clark played on two Super Bowl championship teams. He caught the winning touchdown pass thrown by quarterback Joe Montana in the NFC Championship Game in January 1982 against the Dallas Cowboys. The play, immortalized as "The Catch," propelled the 49ers to their first Super Bowl championship. Clark played college football at Clemson University before being drafted by the 49ers in the 10th round of the 1979 NFL Draft.^[1] He served as the general manager of the 49ers in 1998 and in the same capacity with the Cleveland Browns from 1998 to 2002.

Early life

Clark was born in Kinston, North Carolina and graduated from Garinger High School in Charlotte, North Carolina.

NFL career

Bill Walsh drafted Clark as the first pick of the 10th round of the 1979 NFL Draft. Clark tallied 506 catches for 6750 yards and 48 touchdowns, along with 50 rushing yards in his eight NFL seasons with the 49ers. He led the NFL in receptions (60) during the strike-shortened 1982 season, and made the Pro Bowl twice, in 1981 and 1982.^[2] Sports Illustrated writer Paul Zimmerman named Clark his Player of the Year for 1982.

"The Catch"

Clark's most memorable touchdown came in the 1981 NFC Playoffs. On January 10, 1982, against the Dallas Cowboys, the 49ers trailed 27–21 in the final minute of play. Clark leaped and caught a 6-yard pass from quarterback Joe Montana in the back of the end zone to give the 49ers a 28–27 victory and advance to Super Bowl XVI. That play, one of the most famous in the history in the NFL, has been immortalized as "The Catch". Clark finished the game with eight receptions for 120 yards and two touchdowns. During the 1981 season, Walsh had Montana and Clark routinely practice the 20-yard end-zone throw after regular practice.

Retirement and legacy

After eight seasons with San Francisco 49ers, Clark retired following the 1987 NFL season. He was a member of two Super Bowl-winning teams. To honor his contribution to 49ers, the club retired his number 87. He has served as a team executive for both the 49ers and the Cleveland Browns as well as starring in the lead role in the 1994 direct-to-video comedy Kindergarten Ninja. Clark has also appeared in the video game, All-Pro Football 2K8. He joined Comcast SportsNet Bay Area in 2011 as an analyst for 49ers Postgame Live. In retirement, Clark expressed remorse about the end of Candlestick Park, saying that “It was a dump [but] it was our dump, so we could talk bad about it, but we didn’t want anybody else to talk bad about it.”^[3]

Personal life

Clark has two sons, Mac and Riley, a daughter Casey, and a dog named Fido. He currently resides in Santa Cruz, California with his wife, Kelly.^[2]^[4]

References

↑ http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/tag/_/name/dwight-clark ESPN
1 2 http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/C/ClarDw00.htm Pro Football Reference
↑ http://blog.sfgate.com/49ers/2013/12/18/dwight-clark-leaving-candlestick-park-is-bittersweet/
↑ "The Catch looms larger than life". Boca Raton News. 18 January 1985. Retrieved 15 February 2011.

External links

Official website

Career statistics and player information from Pro-Football-Reference

San Francisco 49ers general managers

John Blackinger (1946–1951) Louis Spadia (1952–1976) Joe Thomas (1977–1978) Bill Walsh (1979–1982) John McVay and Carmen Policy (1983–1997) Dwight Clark (1998) John McVay (1998–1999) Bill Walsh (1999–2001) Terry Donahue (2001–2005) Mike Nolan (2005–2007) Scot McCloughan (2008–2009) Trent Baalke (2011– )

Cleveland Browns general managers

Paul Brown (1946–1962)
Harold Sauerbrei (1963–1973)
Peter Hadhazy (1977–1981)
Ernie Accorsi (1985–1992)
Bill Belichick # (1992–1995)
Dwight Clark (1998–2002)
Butch Davis (2002–2004)
Phil Savage (2005–2009)
George Kokinis (2009)
Tom Heckert Jr. (2010–2012)
Michael Lombardi (2013)
Ray Farmer (2014–2015)
Sashi Brown # (2016– )

Pound sign (#) denotes de facto general manager.

Dwight Clark—championships, awards, and honors

San Francisco 49ers 1979 NFL draft selections

James Owens Joe Montana Tom Seabron Jerry Aldridge Ruben Vaughan Phil Francis Steve Hamilton Dwight Clark Howard Ballage Billy McBride

San Francisco 49ers Super Bowl XVI champions

3 Jim Miller 7 Guy Benjamin 10 Matt Bahr 14 Ray Wersching 16 Joe Montana (MVP) 20 Amos Lawrence 21 Eric Wright 22 Dwight Hicks 24 Rick Gervais 27 Carlton Williamson 28 Lynn Thomas 29 Saladin Martin 30 Bill Ring 31 Walt Easley 32 Ricky Patton 33 Ricky Churchman 35 Lenvil Elliott 36 Paul Hofer 38 Johnny Davis 40 Arrington Jones 42 Ronnie Lott 49 Earl Cooper 50 Terry Tautolo 50 Jim Looney 51 Randy Cross 52 Bobby Leopold 53 Milt McColl 54 Craig Puki 56 Fred Quillan 57 Dan Bunz 58 Keena Turner 59 Willie Harper 60 John Choma 61 Dan Audick 62 Walt Downing 64 Jack Reynolds 65 Lawrence Pillers 66 Allan Kennedy 68 John Ayers 71 Keith Fahnhorst 74 Fred Dean 75 John Harty 76 Dwaine Board 77 Pete Kugler 78 Archie Reese 79 Jim Stuckey 80 Eason Ramson 81 Matt Bouza 82 Brian Peets 84 Mike Shumann 85 Mike Wilson 86 Charle Young 87 Dwight Clark 88 Freddie Solomon

Head coach Bill Walsh

Coaches Cas Banaszek Norb Hecker Milt Jackson Billie Matthews Bobb McKittrick Bill McPherson Ray Rhodes George Seifert Chuck Studley Sam Wyche

San Francisco 49ers Super Bowl XIX champions

4 Max Runager 6 Matt Cavanaugh 14 Ray Wersching 16 Joe Montana (MVP) 19 Tom Orosz 21 Eric Wright 22 Dwight Hicks 24 Derrick Harmon 26 Wendell Tyler 27 Carlton Williamson 28 Tom Holmoe 29 Mario Clark 30 Bill Ring 32 Carl Monroe 33 Roger Craig 42 Ronnie Lott 43 Dana McLemore 49 Jeff Fuller 50 Riki Ellison 51 Randy Cross 52 Blanchard Montgomery 53 Milt McColl 54 Ron Ferrari 55 Jim Fahnhorst 56 Fred Quillan 57 Dan Bunz 58 Keena Turner 61 Jesse Sapolu 62 Guy McIntyre 64 Jack Reynolds 65 Lawrence Pillers 66 Allan Kennedy 67 Billy Shields 67 John Macaulay 68 John Ayers 71 Keith Fahnhorst 72 Jeff Stover 74 Fred Dean 76 Dwaine Board 77 Bubba Paris 78 Manu Tuiasosopo 79 Jim Stuckey 81 Russ Francis 83 Renaldo Nehemiah 84 Al Dixon 85 Mike Wilson 86 John Frank 87 Dwight Clark 88 Freddie Solomon 89 Earl Cooper 90 Todd Shell 94 Louie Kelcher 95 Michael Carter 97 Gary Johnson 98 Greg Boyd 99 Mike Walter

Head coach Bill Walsh

Coaches Paul Hackett Tommy Hart Norb Hecker Sherman Lewis Bobb McKittrick Bill McPherson George Seifert Ray Rhodes Fred von Appen

San Francisco 49ers retired numbers

8 Steve Young 12 John Brodie 16 Joe Montana 34 Joe Perry 37 Jimmy Johnson 39 Hugh McElhenny 42 Ronnie Lott 70 Charlie Krueger 73 Leo Nomellini 79 Bob St. Clair 80 Jerry Rice 87 Dwight Clark

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