On January 10, 1982, Dwight Clark officially attained legendary status in the pantheon of NFL history.
That was the day when he reached impossibly high into the heavens and came down with a pass that nearly sailed out of bounds.
#49ers Legend Dwight Clark has passed away after a battle with ALS
RIP 🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/LYe21xA3wL
— NFL Stats (@NFL_Stats) June 4, 2018
His teammate, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Joe Montana, had thrown the ball after eluding a heavy Dallas Cowboys pass rush.
Less than a minute remained in the 1981 NFC Championship game and the Niners were down by six to a Dallas team that was still one of the best in the league.
Meanwhile, San Francisco was in the postseason for the first time in a decade.
Clark’s miraculous catch gave his team the lead, and eventually, the opportunity to appear in the franchise’s first Super Bowl.
The third-year receiver was part of a nucleus led by coach Bill Walsh that transformed the woebegone organization by the Bay into a first-class outfit.
By the time Clark retired following the 1987 season, he had been part of two world titles as a player and would get three more as a team executive.
He continued as an executive in pro football until 2002 then left the sport to work in real estate.
In 2017, Clark announced that he was suffering from ALS and would ultimately die from the disease in 2018.
This is the story of Dwight Clark.
Growing Up in North Carolina
Dwight Edward Clark was born on January 8, 1957, in Kinston, North Carolina.
Shortly after he was born, the Clark family relocated to Charlotte, North Carolina.
It was there that he sprouted to well over six feet tall and became a heralded student-athlete at Garinger High School.
At the time, the school didn’t have anywhere close to the modern luxuries that some high schools have today.
Dwight Clark’s @49ers jersey hangs in the front office of Garinger H.S. Clark never forgot where he got his start, writing “Work hard, and your dreams can come true too!” Clark passed away yesterday after battling ALS @SpecNewsCLT #RIP pic.twitter.com/Dm9rjOlkc3
— Katy Solt (@katysolt) June 5, 2018
The Wildcats practiced on a dirt field and played at a field off campus.
However, it was evident early that Clark would have been comfortable playing ball anywhere.
Due to his length and talent, Clark was a good basketball player, track star, and thrived as a quarterback on the gridiron.
Years later, fellow teammates commented that he was a standout in more ways than one.
“He was 6’4″ and there were not a lot of guys 6’4″ walking around Garinger. He’d stay after practice and throw balls. He worked just as hard if not harder than anyone on the football team,” former teammate Jack Brayboy recalled.
College coaches from across the southeast attended many of Clark’s prep games, but he never let the attention get to his head.
Former 49ers wide receiver Dwight Clark, who graduated high school at Garinger in Charlotte, dead at 61. https://t.co/UFAfouuLKE pic.twitter.com/IZNBdthKsx
— WSOCTV (@wsoctv) June 5, 2018
He was known as a team leader and Clark “did not seek or demand any special attention,” according to Brayboy.
Clemson
One of the colleges that had interest in Clark was Clemson University.
At the time, the program didn’t have a lot to brag about.
Unlike today’s version, the Tigers had a lot more bad years than good.
Before Clark arrived in 1975, Clemson’s last good season was a 9-2 record in 1959.
Coach Red Parker, who was about to begin his third year at the school, convinced Clark to come aboard, despite the bleak past.
Clark accepted Parker’s opportunity along with the likes of Steve Fuller and Joe Bostic, both of whom would later play in the NFL.
Due to Fuller (and three other QBs on the roster), Parker and his coaching staff moved Clark to receiver as a freshman.
Then, before the 1976 season began, he was moved to strong safety and pegged as a starter.
Clemson Football Legend Dwight Clark Passes https://t.co/XyiFidDNk7 #chssprts pic.twitter.com/A2F0ykaVw6
— Live5News (@Live5News) June 5, 2018
Having played primarily on the offensive side of the ball up to that point, Clark became unhappy with his role on the team.
At one point, he had all but made up his mind to withdraw from Clemson and transfer to Appalachian State University to play basketball.
Parker and others convinced Clark to stay and promised he could stay at receiver.
When he agreed and returned to the program, Clark was a backup who ended the Tigers’ 3-6-2 season with five catches for 99 yards.
Coming Into His Own
In 1977, Clemson had a new coach in Charley Pell and new optimism.
The Tigers fell to Maryland in the first week but then went on a tear, reeling off seven straight wins before finishing 8-3-1.
Then, in the program’s first postseason game since 1959, Clemson was crushed by the Pitt Panthers, 34-3, in the 1977 Gator Bowl.
Playing in an offense that was focused on the ground game, Fuller connected with Clark 17 times for 265 yards and one touchdown.
The receiver was such a good guy that the media found an excuse to interview him as much as possible, even if he didn’t have a big game.
30 days
We made it through another day, and the horizon got a little bit closer. Clemson's best #30, Dwight Clark (1975-78):-ACC champion
-#8 yards per reception (17.3)
-33 catches, 571 yards, 3 TDs
-Clemson Hall of Fame
-South Carolina Athletic HoF
-South Carolina Football HoF pic.twitter.com/EIsSv4WIaz— Austin Pendergist (@apthirteen) August 14, 2020
During his senior year in 1978, Clark had all of 10 receptions for 179 yards and two touchdowns.
Clemson, meanwhile, was in the beginning stages of a resurgence that continues today.
After humiliating The Citadel in the season’s first week, and losing to Georgia in Week 2, the Tigers dominated their opponents the rest of the way.
On December 29, 1978, they met Art Schlichter and the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Gator Bowl.
With just under two minutes remaining in the contest, OSU was trailing by two, 17-15, and driving toward what they hoped would be the winning points.
Regrettably, Schlichter threw a bad pass that found its way into the arms of Tigers defensive lineman Charlie Bauman.
Bauman eluded a few tackles until finally getting tackled into the Buckeyes sideline.
When he got up, OSU head coach Woody Hayes inexplicably made his way to Bauman, grabbed his jersey, then punched him in the throat.
December 29, 1978#OhioState head coach Woody Hayes punches #Clemson nose guard Charlie Bauman late in the fourth quarter of Clemson's 17-15 win in the 1978 Gator Bowl.
Hayes would be dismissed by Ohio State the following morning, ending his 28 years as the Buckeyes head coach pic.twitter.com/wIxc7M4yHQ
— Kevin Gallagher (@KevG163) December 29, 2024
The incident was shocking, to say the least and Hayes was fired a day later after 28 years with the program.
10th Round Pick
The Tigers ended up tying Notre Dame and their quarterback, Joe Montana, for 6th overall in the nation in 1978.
Clark’s college career amounted to 33 total receptions (including bowl games), for 543 yards and three touchdowns and he was eventually added to the program’s Athletics Hall of Fame (as well as the SC Football Hall of Fame and the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame) .
Although he was a good pass-catcher, Clark wasn’t on the radar of most teams before the 1979 NFL Draft.
Dwight Clark #FTTB pic.twitter.com/hS8Qnpp0N4
— Niners History (@NinersHistory) February 29, 2024
However, during the spring of 1979, Clark was headed out of the apartment he shared with Fuller when the phone rang.
The caller was new San Francisco 49ers head coach Bill Walsh who was trying to connect with Fuller, a first-round prospect in the upcoming draft.
Since his roommate wasn’t home at the time, Walsh spoke with Clark for a while.
The coach asked if Clark would attend a workout he wanted to schedule with Fuller to gauge San Fran’s interest in the quarterback.
By the time Fuller returned, Clark had everything organized.
“Dwight had the whole thing (workout) set up before I even knew about it,” said Fuller in 2018. “That was typical Dwight. He never met a stranger. He and coach Walsh hit it off from the start.”
During the afternoon, Clark served as a catch partner and snagged everything Fuller sailed his way.
Walsh returned to the Bay Area impressed with both athletes.
Dwight Clark #FTTB pic.twitter.com/LODBwTxM69
— Niners History (@NinersHistory) April 25, 2024
San Francisco didn’t have a first-round pick and the Kansas City Chiefs took Fuller with the 23rd overall selection.
In the third round, Walsh decided to take Montana.
It wasn’t until the 10th round, 249th overall, that the Niners selected Clark.
The pick was surprising as most clubs (including some members of Walsh’s staff) considered him an undrafted free agent at best.
Gelling with Montana
During his first training camp with San Francisco, Clark was fully aware that he could get cut at a moment’s notice.
Not many 10th-round picks stick with the team that drafted them.
So, whenever he felt like the hangman was coming for him, Clark would sneak through the team cafeteria.
His reasoning was the Niners couldn’t cut him if they couldn’t find him.
However, Walsh nor his assistants ever delivered any bad news to Clark.
Instead, he and Montana bonded quickly and consistently worked on running plays together.
Walsh was installing his West Coast offense that he developed as an assistant with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Dwight Clark put him in the spin cycle 🌪 #49ers pic.twitter.com/RLb67XXsqk
— SFN✌️ (@TheSFNiners_) June 6, 2018
Montana’s skill set and Clark’s ability to catch anything in his area code was perfect for the coach’s system.
During their rookie season in 1979, Montana didn’t get any playing time as he was stuck behind veteran Steve DeBerg.
Clark started three games and ended the 2-14 season with 18 catches for 232 yards and zero touchdowns.
In 1980, the Niners improved to six wins and Montana got on the field for seven starts.
That same year, Clark started a dozen games and hauled in 82 catches for 991 yards and eight scores.
Before the 1981 season, the Niners drafted defenders Ronnie Lott, Eric Wright and Carlton Williamson, who would serve as the backbone of the San Fran defense for years to come.
Montana (now the full-time starter) found his buddy 85 times for 1,115 yards (both career-highs) and four touchdowns.
Dwight Clark#49ers pic.twitter.com/LX1MzwaQOA
— Old Time Football 🏈 (@Ol_TimeFootball) May 2, 2023
The receiver was voted to his first Pro Bowl.
Now clicking on all cylinders under Walsh’s direction, the Niners won 13 games for the first time in franchise history.
They then dispatched the New York Giants in the divisional round before facing the mighty Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Championship game.
“The Catch”
When the two franchises met for their date with Destiny on Sunday, January 10, 1982, the contrast between the clubs was the talk of the day.
Dallas had perpetually been at the top of the pecking order for much of the 1960s and the 1970s.
During the 70s alone, the Cowboys played in five Super Bowls and won two.
When they weren’t playing for a world title, they advanced twice to the NFC Championship game before losing.
The contest with San Fran that day was simply business as usual.
On the other hand, there were the Niners.
After the organization’s founding in 1946, there had been mostly lean years, save for a few good moments.
In 1970 and 1971, San Francisco and Dallas met in the NFC title game with Coach Tom Landry and his team prevailing both times.
However, on this day, things would be different.
The scoring went back-and-forth all afternoon with Montana connecting with Clark for a 20-yard touchdown in the second quarter to take a 14-10 lead.
Dallas answered not long after to take a 17-14 halftime advantage.
During the second half, the Niners scored again before the Cowboys responded with 10 straight points to take a 27-20 lead.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of 49ers legend Dwight Clark, who died at 61 after his battle with ALS pic.twitter.com/BdKhhuD1XS
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) June 4, 2018
With 4:54 left in the contest, Montana took the 49ers down the field.
Walsh and company helped bleed much of the clock and the team eventually found itself with a 3rd-and-3 situation at the Dallas 6-yard line.
Montana relayed the call from Walsh in the huddle, “Sprint Right Option” with the primary target on the pass play being receiver Freddie Solomon.
Shortly after the play began, Montana was under a heavy Dallas rush and worked his way toward the right sideline, looking for Solomon.
We said farewell to Dwight Clark five years ago today.#49ers #Random49ers #TheCatch @DwightC87 pic.twitter.com/3o69voPr85
— #Random49ers (@Random49ers) June 4, 2023
At the last second, he heaved the ball in the direction of Clark who was gliding along the back of the end zone.
The pass was high, but not too high for the 6’4” Clark who leaped up, extended his arms and fingers to their limits, and came down with the ball.
Immediately following “The Catch,” it was bedlam in San Francisco’s Candlestick Park as the score put the home team up by one.
RIP Dwight Clark (January 8, 1957 – June 4, 2018) pic.twitter.com/3DNMIT7dhS
— SportsPaper (@SportsPaperInfo) June 5, 2018
Although there was still almost a minute on the clock, Dallas sputtered and the Niners were headed to the Super Bowl.
Super Bowl XVI
“We’d never thrown the ball to Dwight on that play, at all. But it was crazy because Bill Walsh made us practice that part of the play back in training camp. And we both thought he was crazy,” said Montana after the game.
The Cowboys were at a loss for what happened.
“I will always believe that Joe was throwing the ball away,” said Dallas’ Ed ‘Too Tall’ Jones.
In Super Bowl XVI, the Niners were facing Walsh’s first NFL employer, the Cincinnati Bengals.
San Francisco was favored by one and attacked right from the opening gun, taking a 20-0 halftime lead with them into the locker room.
Dwight Clark arriving in style at Super Bowl XVI in Detroit. pic.twitter.com/syQuF0OgDS
— FB_Helmet_Guy (@FB_Helmet_Guy) February 8, 2023
In the second half, Bengals quarterback Ken Anderson helped close the gap to 20-14 before the 49ers fought off the Cincy threat to win 26-21.
Montana was named the contest’s MVP and Clark had four receptions for 45 yards on the day.
League Leader
The 49ers were looking forward to 1982 and a repeat of their championship run.
Unfortunately, a player’s strike got in the way and the league shortened the season to nine games.
San Francisco went 3-6 and missed the postseason.
Clark, on the other hand, had a very good year.
During the truncated season, he led the NFL with 60 receptions for 913 yards and five touchdowns.
Dwight Clark#49ers pic.twitter.com/X8c64cazv1
— Old Time Football 🏈 (@Ol_TimeFootball) January 9, 2024
Additionally, Clark was named to the Pro Bowl for the second year in a row and was selected as a first-team All-Pro.
In the 1983 NFL Draft, Walsh and company took Nebraska running back Roger Craig in the second round.
A 10-6 record followed with a loss to the Washington Redskins in the NFC title game.
Clark had 70 catches for 840 yards and eight touchdowns for the season.
San Fran Wins Again
1984 began with six wins before a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 7 moved the Niners to 6-1.
However, that would be the last loss for the juggernaut.
Clark had 52 receptions for 880 yards and six touchdowns as San Fran bullied opponents to a 15-1 record.
During the playoffs, they took care of the Giants in the divisional round before shutting out the Chicago Bears in the NFC Championship game.
Despite the fact that the Niners were meeting quarterback Dan Marino and a good Miami Dolphins squad, the team from Northern California was favored by 3.5 points in Super Bowl XIX.
Dwight Clark makes a spectacular catch.@JoeMontana would set the Super Bowl record for passing yards on this play.
Tomorrow Super Bowl XIX#FTTB pic.twitter.com/jvCT55SKzB— Old Time Football 🏈 (@Ol_TimeFootball) December 28, 2021
It turned out the showdown between Marino and Montana was all hype as the 49ers were up 28-16 at halftime and closed out the Fish, 38-16 (Clark had seven receptions for 77 yards during the game).
Montana outdueled Marino, 331 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions to Marino’s 318 yards, one score and two picks.
The quarterback was again named the MVP.
Clark Retires
With the 16th overall pick in the first round of the 1985 NFL Draft, San Francisco selected Mississippi Valley State receiver Jerry Rice.
It was an embarrassment of riches as Montana had Clark, Solomon, Mike Wilson and now Rice to throw passes to.
Dwight Clark talking things over with his quarterback #FTTB pic.twitter.com/Deh1mdrs7x
— Niners History (@NinersHistory) April 19, 2025
That season, while the team was winning 10 games, Clark showed the rookie the ropes while catching 54 passes for 705 yards and a career-high 10 touchdowns.
Rice started four games and caught 49 passes.
The Niners had an impressive haul in the 1986 NFL Draft that included Tom Rathman, Tim McKyer, John Taylor (yet another receiver), Charles Haley, Steve Wallace, Kevin Fagan and Don Griffin.
As San Fran went 10-5-1 (but lost for the second year in a row in the postseason to the Giants), Clark had 61 catches for 794 yards and two touchdowns.
Then, in 1987, the Niners’ loaded offense was ranked first in the NFL while the defense was third overall.
Clark started three games and collected 24 passes for 290 yards and five scores.
Dwight Clark #FTTB pic.twitter.com/g1JGh77mrA
— Niners History (@NinersHistory) July 6, 2024
Despite their 13-2 record (1987 was shortened by one game due to a player’s strike), San Fran was upset by Minnesota during the divisional round.
When the season concluded, so did Clark’s career.
During his nine seasons, the receiver caught 506 passes for 6,750 yards and 48 touchdowns and had an additional 50 yards rushing.
Clark was a two-time Pro Bowler, one-time All-Pro, NFL Receptions leader once and two-time Super Bowl winner.
Years later, he was inducted into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame, the 49ers Hall of Fame and the Niners retired his number 87 jersey.
Second Career As A Football Executive
The same year he stepped away from the Niners as a player, Clark opened a seafood restaurant in San Francisco called Clark’s By The Bay.
Soon after, he was back in the game as an executive with the Niners in 1988 and won two Championships in ’88 and 1989 as an exec.
Garinger High to retire Dwight Clark’s jersey Friday. https://t.co/6swViHcza0 pic.twitter.com/k9YvV0wTcg
— The Charlotte Observer (@theobserver) October 15, 2018
When San Francisco won Super Bowl XXIX in 1994, Clark was the team’s Vice President of Player Personnel.
He was the organization’s general manager in 1998 then became the Cleveland Browns GM when that franchise returned to the NFL in 1999.
Clark oversaw the Browns’ expansion draft selections in 1999 and also had a hand in selecting Kentucky quarterback Tim Couch in the ‘99 NFL Draft.
Following three difficult years of middling football, Clark resigned in May of 2002 when it became clear that new Cleveland head coach Butch Davis wanted to make personnel decisions.
Clark is Diagnosed With ALS
For the next several years, Clark pivoted away from football when he returned to North Carolina and ran a real estate business.
Rest easy Dwight Clark! I’m thankful for the opportunity to have met you! Thank you for helping us get our first ring with your epic catch! #NinerHistory #TheCatch #87 pic.twitter.com/PFCfEefxjY
— мιѕѕ ℓσρєz (@Sfmami) June 5, 2018
The good life continued until he announced in May 2017 that he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
“After months of tests and treatment, I got some bad news,” Clark said. “I was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. I have ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Those words are still very hard for me to say.”
Immediately, questions arose from the media and general public if playing football was the cause of Clark’s diagnosis and he addressed the issue.
“I’ve been asked if playing football caused this,” Clark wrote. “I don’t know for sure. But I certainly suspect it did. And I encourage the NFLPA and the NFL to continue working together in their efforts to make the game of football safer, especially as it relates to head trauma.”
ALS Claims Clark’s Life
Friends and relatives visited Clark regularly for the next year.
Eddie DeBartolo, the former 49ers owner, had done everything in his power to help his former player.
That included finding medical treatment for Clark and flying in friends and former teammates to the state of Montana a few weeks before Clark’s death.
Dwight Clark’s ashes in Montana . “The Catch” will forever live with Mr.D @NFL @nflnetwork @49ers pic.twitter.com/gKOTma6lSJ
— Steve Mariucci (@SteveMariucci) July 7, 2018
The get-together, chronicled by Sports Illustrated, was attended by a who’s-who of former Niners teammates and staff.
Included in the group was Huey Lewis, the lead singer of Huey Lewis and the News.
Clark, Montana and other Niners had befriended the singer during their playing days and appeared in a few videos with Lewis’s band.
We are saddened to share that @49ers great Dwight Clark has passed away at age 61. pic.twitter.com/NK8iB6DoRM
— NFL (@NFL) June 4, 2018
Unfortunately, all the money and medicine in the world couldn’t keep ALS from claiming Clark’s life on June 4, 2018.
“I cannot put into words how special Dwight was to me and to everyone his life touched,” DeBartolo said. “He was an amazing husband, father, grandfather, brother and a great friend and teammate. He showed tremendous courage and dignity in his battle with ALS and we hope there will soon be a cure for this horrendous disease.”
Every year since his passing, the Niners have hosted a “Dwight Clark Day” and teamed with the ALS Network to honor those stricken with the disease.
Furthermore, The Dwight Clark Legacy Series is an annual event that brings former Niners together in a round table panel discussion and also presents the Dwight Clark Award.
Clark is survived by his wife, Kelly, daughter Casey, and sons Mac and Riley from a previous marriage.
References
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic
https://www.sports-reference.com
https://goldenheartfund.org/dcls
https://www.pro-football-reference.com
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