Alumni Spotlight
Ken Clarke ’74: Philadelphia Eagles’ “Secretary of Defense”
Former Philadelphia Eagles defensive lineman Ken Clarke ’74, has a simple yet effective formula for success: “If you are going to do something in life, regardless of what it is, be the best at what you are doing. Do the best now, and the future will take care of itself.”
This philosophy has certainly worked well for Clarke, who is likely the most successful professional athlete to graduate from English High. He enjoyed a 14-year career as a defensive lineman and spent ten years coaching in the NFL, which is four times the average career length in the league. His career highlights include playing in Super Bowl XV in New Orleans against the Oakland Raiders. “I wouldn’t trade that experience for anything. So many NFL Players never get that opportunity.”
Clarke, in his uniform number 74, made the English High Varsity team as a sophmore, shown here in the 1972 English High yearbook.
Born in the state of Georgia,at the age of eleven, Clarke’s family moved to Jamaica Plain in Boston, where he eventually entered English High as a freshman. One day, he saw a flyer announcing tryouts for the JV football team. There must have been 40 or 50 kids being put through drills. Coach Don Burgess said they would take only 20. I was shocked when the coach called my name first—at that moment, football became a big part of my life.” Clarke praised English coaches Don Burgess, Bill Stewart, and Jodi King for helping to build the foundation for his success. “They were patient, and they coached you hard. They didn’t yell at you but they made sure we did things right. They saw things in me that I didn’t see in myself as a teenager.” By his sophomore year, Clarke moved up to the varsity team, playing on both the offensive and defensive lines, and by his senior year, he was named team Captain. “Many English football players went on to Boston State College or Northeastern in those days. That’s where I thought I would go after graduation”, said Clarke. However, English coaches, impressed by Clarke’s abilities, promoted him to other colleges. “I started to get interest from other schools including Boston College, UMass, and Syracuse. ” However, Syracuse University recruited Clarke hard, and he joined the Orangemen as the first freshman recruiting class of newly hired Head Coach Frank Maloney.
“It was a great decision to go to Syracuse. I got a chance to become a starting defensive lineman as a freshman. I might have had to wait a few years to get a chance to start had I gone elsewhere. We had some great coaches at Syracuse, such as Steve Sabo, Tom Coughlin, Nick Saban,and Jerry Angelo, all who eventually went on to work and coach in the NFL. They worked us pretty hard.” By his junior and senior years Clarke had worked his way to All-East and Honorable Mention All-American honors as well as being named team Defensive Captain. “Jerry Angelo, who was my defensive line coach during my junior and senior years at Syracuse, was very instrumental in instilling the confidence in me that I could make it to the National Football League,” Clarke said. “Jerry always told me how good he thought I was even though I didn’t realize it at the time. He called me Big Dog, and he said, “Big Dog, you’re as good as anybody I’ve ever coached, “which was saying a lot because he had coached some top draft picks in the NFL”. His strong belief and support that I had the skills and talent to play professionally inspired me and gave me the confidence and the determination to believe in myself and ask myself…Why couldn’t I do it?”
In Philadelphia, for a pre-draft workout, Clarke met Eagle Head Coach Dick Vermeil. “I was immediately impressed by him. He was nice but you could tell that if you were going to play for him, you had to be a certain type of player.” Ironically, Clarke went undrafted through three days of drafting—perhaps because of his “small” size at 245 lbs. He was “upset”at first but immediately after the draft ended, Coach Vermeil called and asked Clarke to come to Philadelphia and sign a contract. “They saw in me the potential to be a pretty good football player.” In the end not getting drafted turned out to create a great opportunity for Clarke. He explained that unless you are a top draft pick, it was extremely and almost impossible for a rookie to gain a spot on a roster if there were experienced starters in front of you. Earlier that season the Eagles had released a veteran tackle so that opened an opportunity for Clarke to compete for that Eagles’ defensive tackle spot. He made the team in 1978 and became a full-time starter in 1982. Clarke had very good speed and early on specialized in rushing the passer. As he matured as a Pro he also became just as good at stopping the run. He always worked hard for those 10 years as an Eagle. Again, just like at English and at Syracuse he was elected team Defensive Captain and in 1984 team Defensive MVP. His belief was “Nobody was going to take my job!” As long as he was a starter, the Eagles never drafted a defensive tackle with a high draft pick, something he is very proud of.
After the Eagles, Clarke went on to play for another four years, one year for the Seattle Seahawks and three years for the Minnesota Vikings. After retiring as a player he then entered professional coaching becoming a defensive line coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, St. Louis Rams, New England Patriots and Washington Redskins. In addition he spent three seasons coaching defensive line and linebackers for the Barcelona Dragons and two seasons coaching the Rhein Fire of the NFL European Football League. That’s more than 20 years of football at the pro level. Today, Clarke mentors teenage boys, runs football camps, and works with his “team” of three daughters and grandchildren in Georgia. Ken, of course, still follows the Eagles and was thrilled when they decisively defeated the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl.
“Yes, I am elated that the Eagles won the Super Bowl this year. They are a great team with great players. When they won, I felt all the former Eagles Legends who sacrificed a lot and fought hard for the Philadelphia Eagles Organization and the Eagles Fans won also. GO BIRDS!!!!”
Looking back, Clarke says much of his success was due to getting off to a good start in life at English High. “English will always be a big part of my success in life. I am proud to have gone to English High School. I could have gone to other high schools in Boston, but it was cool to have gone to English High on Avenue Louis Pasteur. The people that came into my life there, teachers and coaches, respected me and developed me. At 14 and 15 I was not always a choir boy, however those folks kept me on the right path. My experience at English High helped me get into Syracuse and stayed with me when I left Syracuse and beyond.”
What would Clarke say to the English students of today? “Primary is education. Study to excel and work hard on your grades—that’s the most important thing right now. Education is the foundation that will provide you with the knowledge and skills required to leverage opportunities as they unfold in life. And if you are going to do something, work hard to be “The Best” at what you are doing.”
