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By Eric Thomas, Assistant Sports Editor, July 20, 2008

Last updated: Monday, July 21, 2008 7:52 AM EDT

There was never a doubt in Daryll Clark’s mind. Somehow, some way, he was getting to this point.

Four years ago, Clark — an admitted unsteady high school student — found his world upside-down.

He had chances to go to Toledo, West Virginia or possibly even Nebraska and play right away. But Clark, the product of Youngstown, Oh., chose the hard road.

After signing with Penn State, his college choice became null and void. He ended up in Kiski Prep, an all-male boarding school in Saltsburg.

“It’s been a rocky road. (I’ve) been through a whole lot,” Clark said at last week’s Lift for Life. “My mother always told me, ‘Those who are patient will benefit in the end.’ The time is now.”

The time is now, after putting in the time to get where he is.

Clark’s journey to possibly securing the starting quarterback job for the Nittany Lions this fall is less about pure football ability and more about character and Daryll Clark the man.

It’s also about those who stuck by him through his toughest times.

Raised in Youngstown, Clark’s parents, Sheryl and Daryll Sr., always kept him busy. They deflected negative approaches growing up in the predominantly urban environment.

According to the 2007 U.S. Census, Youngstown had a population of 570,104 and the average household had a median income of $30,701. Once a thriving industrial steel town, Youngstown is now trying to revamp itself behind mayor Jay Williams.

Dilapidated housing projects have been replaced with more upscale living quarters. There is also currently a $250 million project put on by a non-profit group to build even more quality living quarters near the Youngstown State campus.

The neighborhoods that were once defined by gang-related slayings are still fighting drug and gang problems, but growing up Clark was able to stay away from the troubles by playing sports.

“All those negative things were around him and us,” said Daryll Clark, Sr. “We surrounded him with more positive things like sports. A lot of people who don’t watch Daryll don’t know that his best sport is baseball. He just got away from it. He always loved football, but once he got his start playing baseball in Little League, he excelled in it.

“He never got involved in those (negative) things because we always made sure he was involved in after-school programs and sports. We never had to worry about those things, thank God. We kept him surrounded and well grounded. Some of his friends may have taken the wrong path, but we always instilled in him that he could always be a follower, but he should always want to be a (positive) leader.”

Clark is not over the top. He keeps things relatively low key, always honest and humble.

In his spare time, he plays golf — something he picked up recently, according to Daryll Sr. He studies the game like he studies for his next gridiron opponent.

There was a time where the little roadblocks in life bothered Daryll Clark. Not now, not after what he’s been through.

Clark’s time at Kiski exposed him to different levels of living.

He met foreign students, which encompass 35 percent of Kiski’s enrollment, according to the school’s Web site. He learned about different cultures, kept a strict regiment, all the while bettering himself and his grades.

And even more the while, becoming a man; the man Penn State coaches hope will lead the Nittany Lions back to the top of the Big Ten in 2008, and possibly beyond.

Nittany Lions quarterbacks’ coach Jay Paterno kept in touch with Clark the entire time he attended Kiski, never once hinting the Penn State coaching staff doubted Clark’s ability to right his academic ship.

“One of the challenges we threw at him was whether you make it or not, by NCAA standards, we want you at Kiski Prep, even if you make it because (Penn State head coach) Joe (Paterno) wants you to spend a year at Kiski and get ready to compete academically in college,” the younger Paterno said.

“I said you’re going to an all-boys school in the middle of nowhere and I said, ‘It’s going to be a complete shock to you.’ But I said, ‘If you want to go to Penn State, you’re going to have to do that for a year.’”

“Jay has never been a person that steered me wrong,” the quarterback said. “I have a tremendous amount of respect for him (and Joe) as far as what they did recruiting (me). (Jay) and Joe sat there right in front of my parents and said, ‘His grades in high school, I’m not ashamed to say, weren’t good. His grades don’t show what type of person we think he is, so we’re going to take a chance on him.’ That lit me up. There were a lot of schools that were like, ‘Hey, we’re not going to take a chance on this guy.’

“They did and I’m glad they did. Jay and Joe have been a very important part of my life.”

Clark eventually got his grades up to NCAA standards and re-upped with the Nittany Lions.

But he wasn’t out of the woods yet.

Into his first year with Penn State, Clark was told he could no longer dress or participate in practice sessions because of an NCAA Clearinghouse issue he has refused to discuss at length.

“The thing that makes me most proud is how he was able to overcome that little setback with Kiski,” Clark Sr. said. “There are things you learn through time and some of the setbacks happened because of not taking his high school grades that seriously. It’s made him not only a better person in class, he’s an overall better person. Kiski instilled a lot in him. He’s at peace right now compared to some times before.”

When the Clearinghouse issue popped up and it looked like his career would once again be in jeporday, Clark’s teammates —— including 2005 quarterback Michael Robinson —— rallied around him. So much so that as legend has it, cornerback Knowledge Timmons bought Clark a ticket so he could attend the Orange Bowl in Miami.

“That blew a lot of people away,” Daryll Clark, Sr. said. “The thing that got to me the most was the short amount of time it took for Daryll and the guys to bond and for Daryll to make that kind of impression. Daryll still talks about that and when they told him what their plan was that blew him away.

“That was huge. Daryll explained to me his friends’ backgrounds and, OK, everyone has something in common somewhere. But for those guys that had the opportunity to do that, it was major. We’ll never forget that. It was very much appreciated.”

If that alone doesn’t display the character and image of Daryll Clark the person, what will?

“It tells you what kind of kid he is,” Jay Paterno said. “We knew that and that’s one of the things I saw in high school and Joe would say, ‘What do you know about the kid?’ And I’d say, ‘Sit down, get to know him.’ The more Joe got around him, the more comfortable he was, the more staff all saw what I had seen. Hopefully, it will pay off.”

FOLLOWING THE FOOTSTEPS

Clark said he talks to former Penn State quarterback Robinson at least “once a week.”

The two have remained close since 2005. Robinson, now with the San Francisco 49ers, and Clark have been mentioned in the same breath by fans and media alike.

What’s not to compare?

They both offer punishing running styles, both have muscular builds and are both a good blend of brash, humble and confident.

What no one yet knows is whether or not Clark can follow in Robinson’s footsteps as a leader.

But he will tell you, just a few weeks outside of preseason camp, that he will do whatever it takes to achieve Robinson-like status around Happy Valley.

“He lets me know how tough it’s going to be,” Clark said, “how tough it can get and the things you have to do to remain humble and fight out of a funk if you happen to deal with one. There’s people that don’t want you to play. There’s people that want you to play. There’s people that don’t think you can play. You can’t really play into that.

“Mike reaked of leadership and I think that’s one thing that really stood out about him. He took command of the offense, at the line he’s making checks, he let everyone know that when the time gets tough, he (was) going to get through them. That’s what I am working on now to get that trust.”

Trust has started off the field with Clark. Like Robinson, Clark watches countless hours of film when he isn’t working out.

“(Mike) watched film all the time. He taught me how to watch film, how to study opponents. He’s been tremendous and a very big help,” he said.

Clark and Jay Paterno still fondly recall Robinson’s heroics at Northwestern in 2005.

Down to a fourth-and-15, the Penn State offense moving backwards, Robinson hit tight end Isaac Smolko over the middle to convert. A few plays later, he lofted a rainbow for then freshman Derrick Williams, and the Robinson mystique was born.

Clark must now find that same type of fortitude when he is under center; the very same where he can stand in the huddle, look the other 10 players in the eye and without saying a word, they will know they are in good hands and that Clark will get them where they need to be.

“Mike made the throw and we executed,” Paterno said. “Then all of a sudden, the confidence blew up from there. We’re going to get into a situation early in the year where we’re going to have to line up to do something and we’ll see what we got.”

While Robinson can only call or text message Clark these days, the bond between Paterno and Clark is as strong as it could be. While Paterno has yet to see Clark in those situations, he’s eager to.

And he’s eager to watch his project succeed.

Clark refers to State College as “home” even when he’s back in Youngstown. He also considers Paterno family.

“Not everyone there is a Daryll Clark fan,” said Daryll Sr. “There’s a lot of Pat Devlin fans. I hope Daryll’s room for error isn’t so small.

“Jay and Daryll have formed a really close relationship. He’ll get a text from Jay when he’s home and Jay will let him know where he is if he’s in the area. They stay in touch all the time.

“I credit Jay for a lot of Daryll’s success. He never actually closed the door on him, which is big, I think.”

Leadership is something Clark has yet to define for himself as a quarterback. The significant time on the field hasn’t been there yet. Come Aug. 30 when Penn State opens its season against visiting Coastal Carolina, that will all change.

“That is important,” Clark said. “I feel like that’s what we’re working on right now. My goal is to get the players’ trust, to let them know you can trust me, believe in me to get the job done. The name of the game is moving the chains. If you move the chains, you put on points. Once you believe we can do that, we’ll be fine.”

THE POTENTIAL

There have been glimpses of Clark’s ability.

Against Notre Dame in 2006, he moved Penn State 80 yards in 13 plays to score late, however Penn State never threatened the Irish in that contest in South Bend.

With Penn State trailing 14-7 in the second quarter of the Alamo Bowl last December, Clark was inserted into the game and capitalized on a Texas A&M turnover darting up the middle and diving into the endzone to knot the game at 14.

Now the potential is there for another very productive season. Jay Paterno has visions of a spread offensive attack, ala 2005 behind Robinson, with Clark possibly running the show.

The only question coming out of San Antonio last winter was whether Clark can throw. He’s quite sure the answer will be what all Nittany Lions fans want to hear.

Since returning from the bowl trip, Clark has worked with receivers Derrick Williams, Deon Butler and Jordan Norwood at least three times a week. “Those other days that we werent’ throwing, we were watching film,” Clark said. “I made that commitment. Once you get the timing down early, it kind of releases the pressure of worrying about the timing during camp, when it’s live. It gives you more time to focus on defenses and blitz schemes. When you already know where your wideout is going to be, it makes it a whole lot easier. I feel that we’ve gotten there.

“Not saying I didn’t work hard in the past, but when you see that light, it turns on. Once you have that opportunity to run that offense, to do something you’ve wanted to do since you’ve been here, it just really elevates your game.”

Back in Youngstown, Daryll Sr. and Sheryl have had a tough time making every Nittany Lions game to this point due to hectic work schedules. Sheryl works in a correctional facility and seldom gets time off, including holidays.

But all of Clark’s hometown has taken notice, especially in the Alamo Bowl victory.

“This town is buzzing right now,” Daryll Sr. said. “If Penn State doesn’t have enough fans here before there’s a whole group now. We’ve got some family friends debating about what college jersey to wear now.”

“People around here all noticed that, they look at it like Daryll Clark goes to Penn State, he’s in the news. We run into that in the grocery store or when we go out to eat.”

The potential is waiting, but for Clark, he’s already elevated to new heights.

From Kiski to starter at Penn State. From immature, not worrying about grades, to a 3.0 student. Clark is already everything everyone wanted him to become.

Now comes the easy part.