Nathan Clark Jr. (February 28, 1933 – February 9, 2005) 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 ...

halfback who 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 ...

Hillsdale College Hillsdale College is a Private university, private Conservatism in the United States, conservative Christian liberal arts college in Hillsdale, Michigan. It was founded in 1844 by Abolitionism, abolitionists known as Free Will Baptists. Its missio ...

from 1953 to 1956. He led Hillsdale to consecutive undefeated seasons in 1955 and 1956 and was selected as a first-team back on the Little All-America teams in both years. He also led the country in scoring with 144 points scored in 1955.

Early years

Clark was born in Hawkinsville, Georgia, and raised in

Benton Harbor, Michigan Benton Harbor is a city in Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is 46 miles southwest of Kalamazoo and 71 miles southwest of Grand Rapids. According to the 2020 census, its population was 9,103. It is the smaller, by population, of ...

. He overcame a speech impediment. He excelled in sports and appeared in every football game for Benton Harbor High School from 1949 to 1952. He was twice selected as an all-state player. He was also a Golden Gloves champion of Michigan. He compiled a 42–2 record as a boxer.

Hillsdale College

Clark enrolled at

in the fall of 1953. He was the scoring leader for Hillsdale in 1953 with six touchdowns and one extra point in seven games played. As a sophomore in 1954, he was the top scorer in the

Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association The Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) is an athletic conference that competes in the NCAA's Division III. There are nine teams in the conference, all located in the states of Michigan and Indiana. The Michigan Intercollegiate A ...

. In 1955, Clark rushed for 949 yards and led all of college football with 144 points (24 touchdowns) scored in nine games played. His 144 points led small college football by 36 points over the second-highest scorer. It was also the highest point total scored by a football player in Michigan since

Willie Heston William Martin Heston (September 9, 1878 – September 9, 1963) was an American football player and coach. He played halfback at San Jose State University and the University of Michigan. Heston was the head football coach for Drake University ...

in the early 1900s. At the end of the season, he was selected by 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 the

1955 Little All-America college football team The 1955 Little All-America college football team is composed of college football players from small colleges and universities who were selected by the Associated Press (AP) as the best players at each position. For 1955, the AP selected three tea ...

. The 1955 Hillsdale team was invited to play in the

1956 Tangerine Bowl The 1956 Tangerine Bowl was an American college football bowl game played after the 1955 season, on January 2, 1956, at the Tangerine Bowl stadium in Orlando, Florida. The Juniata Indians with a record of 8–0 faced the Missouri Valley V ...

, but the players unanimously decided to decline the invitation after bowl officials advised that Hillsdale's four black players (Clark included) would not be allowed to play. Clark later recalled: "I felt bad for the team because it deprived them of the opportunity to play in the bowl, but I was proud of the guys who made the decision because we couldn’t go as a team." Clark was chosen as co-captain of the 1956 Hillsdale team. With defenses focusing on Clark, his scoring declined, but the extra coverage focused on Clark opened up room for other backs, and Hillsdale coach

Muddy Waters McKinley Morganfield (April 4, 1913 April 30, 1983), known professionally as Muddy Waters, was an American blues singer and musician who was an important figure in the post-war blues scene, and is often cited as the "father of modern Chicago b ...

opined that Clark played "the best of his four seasons" in 1956. He helped lead Hillsdale to its second consecutive undefeated season and was again included on the first team of the Little All-America team.

Family and later years

Clark was married in 1956 to his high school sweetheart, Lucille Butler. They had four children. In June 1957, Clark received his bachelor's degree in physical education from Hillsdale. He attended camp with the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

, but he hurt his knee and was cut in August 1957. He also returned to boxing in 1957. Clark and his family moved to Detroit in 1969, where he worked for a construction company. He was inducted into Hillsdale's athletic hall of fame in 1998. Clark suffered from diabetes in his later years. He died in 2005 at age 71.

References

Additional reading

Nate Clark Piles Up TDs, Steak Dinners
October 25, 1955 {{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Nate 1933 births 2005 deaths American football halfbacks Hillsdale Chargers football players People from Benton Harbor, Michigan Players of American football from Michigan