Beryl Leon Clark (October 13, 1917 – January 15, 2000) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

player. Clark was born in

Cherokee, Oklahoma Cherokee is the largest city within, and county seat of, Alfalfa County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,476 at the 2020 census, a decline of 1.5 percent from 2010. History Settlement and founding After the land opening of 1893, ...

, in 1917, an attended Cherokee High School. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

for the

Oklahoma Sooners football The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma (variously "Oklahoma" or "OU"). The team is a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is in Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (forme ...

team from 1936 to 1939. As a senior in 1939, he completed 40 of 66 passes for a 60.6% completion rate. His completion percentage was the highest in the county. He also led the Sooners with 680 yards from scrimmage. He also led the Big Six Conference with 50 points scored (eight touchdowns and two extra points). He was selected by both the conference coaches and the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

as a first-team back on their respective 1939 All-Big Six Conference football teams. He was also selected by the

International News Service The International News Service (INS) was a U.S.-based news agency (newswire) founded by newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst in 1909.

as a second-team halfback on the

1939 College Football All-America Team The 1939 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1939. The nine selectors recognized by the N ...

. He was drafted by the

Chicago Cardinals The professional American football team now known as the Arizona Cardinals previously played in Chicago, Illinois, as the Chicago Cardinals from 1898 to 1959 before relocating to St. Louis, Missouri, for the 1960 through 1987 seasons. Roots ca ...

with the 141st pick in the

1940 NFL Draft The 1940 National Football League Draft was held on December 9, 1939, at the Schroeder Hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. With the first overall pick of the draft, the Chicago Cardinals selected George Cafego. Player selections Round one Round ...

and played for the Cardinals during the 1940 NFL season. He appeared in 10 games for the Cardinals, completed 25 passes for 316 yards and two touchdowns and kicked three extra points. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Clark served as a pilot in the

Air Transport Command Air Transport Command (ATC) was a United States Air Force unit that was created during World War II as the strategic airlift component of the United States Army Air Forces. It had two main missions, the first being the delivery of supplies and ...

, "

flying the hump The Hump was the name given by Allied pilots in the Second World War to the eastern end of the Himalayan Mountains over which they flew military transport aircraft from India to China to resupply the Chinese war effort of Chiang Kai-shek and ...

" between Burma and China. Clark died in 2000 at age 82 in Cherokee, Oklahoma.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Beryl 1917 births 2000 deaths American football halfbacks Oklahoma Sooners football players Chicago Cardinals players Players of American football from Oklahoma People from Alfalfa County, Oklahoma