Clark ready to role
Senior standout leads Brighton
Brighton tight end Jerrod Clark was busy preparing for the 2016 season opener against O’Bryant when his world was turned upside down.
His older brother Roland Singleton was shot and killed in Dorchester two days before the Sept. 9 kickoff. For someone who leaned so heavily on Singleton for a variety of reasons, Clark was devastated.
“He was my role model, he was a big part of my life,” Clark said. “He was always giving me advice, giving me that extra push to become a better person in the classroom and on the field.”
The 6-foot-5, 250-pounder played the game with a heavy heart, but refused to let that affect his performance. Clark was dominant on both sides of the ball and added a two-point conversion catch in a 28-20 victory.
“There was no way I wasn’t going to play in the game,” Clark said. “He would have wanted me to play.”
Clark blossomed into one of the dominant players in the Boston City League. He caught 28 passes, 12 of them going for touchdowns, as the Bengals captured the Boston City League and Division 4 North title. He was just as impressive on the other side of the ball, registering 78 tackles and three sacks.
The rise to prominence came as no surprise to Brighton coach Randolph Abraham. He knew from the first time Clark arrived at school that he was a player who could be a role model for the other studentathletes.
“He came here as a freshman and we knew we had something special right away,” Abraham said. “He’s one of those kids who is the first one at school (Clark is a member of the National Honor Society) and the last one to leave and he’s the same way with football. He’s just a special, special kid.”
Clark also had to deal with a physical setback later in the year. The week of the team’s first-round tournament contest against Lynn Tech, Clark tore ligaments in his left hand when he slipped on a wet field during practice.
Showing the same resolve which would have made his brother proud, Clark played and practiced with a cast protecting the injured thumb. He still remained a constant threat as evidenced by his 63yard touchdown catch against Mashpee in the Div. 4 state semifinals and a signature moment on Thanksgiving Day against Latin Academy.
Trailing 24-20 with 34 seconds left, Brighton had the ball on the Latin Academy 32-yard line. Quarterback Nate Hall floated a high arching pass intended for Clark in the corner of the end zone. Showing off his athletic skills, Clark tipped the ball with his injured hand and corralled it with his right hand for the winning score in an eventual 28-24 triumph.
“I told coach I could make the play, just make sure that they got the ball to me,” Clark said. “I knew I had to come through for the team in order to win the game.”
It was those kind of plays which made Clark one of the top recruited juniors in Eastern Mass. Clark sifted through a few opportunities, but quickly decided that Coastal Carolina was a place he could see himself flourishing as a student and football player.
“I remember we were practicing before one of the basketball tournament games (Winchester) and coach Abe came up to me and said Coastal Carolina wanted to offer me,” said Clark, who helped lead the basketball team to the Div. 2 state title. “It’s something I dreamed of since I was playing Pop Warner in the eighth grade.”
A dream fulfilled with the help of a loving brother.