Because, you know, Googling 'Daryll Clark stats' is so tough

Clark did many things for the PSU offense in 2009, but rushing the ball was hardly at or near the top of that list. (LBU photo/Mike)

I make every attempt to avoid fisking an article, or jumping on anyone for an understandable mistake. But sometimes an article, a sentence, a word or two can leave you wondering, "really? You chose to write that?"

That was the unfortunate case in a Detroit News article written by Angelique Chengelis, in which Big Ten Network analyst and former Indiana head coach Gerry DiNardo gave his post-spring impressions of the conference's teams, and how things could shake out this fall.

"[DiNardo] wonders if Penn State can overcome its shaky quarterback situation now that Daryll Clark, who also provided much of the Nittany Lions' running, is gone."

Sorry, but that's simply not an accurate portrayal of Clark's role in the Penn State run game last year, or even the year prior. To say that a quarterback provided much of a team's running implies that the player contributed at least one third of the team's rush yards for that season.

Clark most definitely did not do that. I know it's so difficult, but I somehow managed to navigate the complex ways of the internet, to research (gasp!) Clark's contributions to the Penn State offense, particularly the run game--something I would do if I were, say, writing an article about the subject.

Here are Clark's rushing numbers for both 2008 and 2009. For context, I included all Penn State rushers who eclipsed 100 yards for the season. (Stats courtesy of GoPSUSPorts.com)

2009 RUSHING	GP	Att	Gain	Loss	Net	Avg	TD	Long	Avg/G
Royster, Evan	13	205	1195	26	1169	5.7	6	69	89.9
Green, Stephfon	11	71	337	18	319	4.5	3	52	29.0
Clark, Daryll	13	84	310	99	211	2.5	7	51	16.2
Beachum, Brandon	11	24	118	5	113	4.7	1	16	10.3
Newsome, Kevin	10	20	121	26	95	4.8	2	16	9.5
2008 RUSHING	GP	Att	Gain	Loss	Net	Avg	TD	Long	Avg/G
Royster, Evan	13	191	1266	30	1236	6.5	12	44	95.1
Green, Stephfon	13	105	588	10	578	5.5	4	69	44.5
Clark, Daryll	13	79	386	104	282	3.6	10	24	21.7
Williams, D.	13	43	257	14	243	5.7	3	36	18.7
Carter, Brent	7	22	137	8	129	5.9	0	31	18.4
Beachum, B.	13	28	117	3	114	4.1	1	15	8.8

Was he a contributor to the Penn State run game? I would agree if you said that. But did he provide "much of Penn State's running" in either of those seasons? No. He wasn't even the second leading rusher in either season. Nor was he even the second leading rusher over both seasons combined--Clark ran for 696, Stephfon Green ran for 925.

I could completely understand this kind of characterization of Clark's contributions to the run game, had he put up rushing numbers like, for instance, Michael Robinson did in 2005, when he was the No. 2 rusher behind Tony Hunt. That season, Robinson ran for 806, only 230 yards shy of Hunt's 1,047.

As I said at the top of this post, I really do try not to fisk someone's article, or try to attack them with any real animosity. We here at LBU actually discussed this before launching the site, that fisking wouldn't be in our regular repertoire.

But... it's not like Clark is a third string running back for Eastern Michigan. He was twice named the league's first team quarterback. Not only should writers know off-hand that he wasn't a major running threat, they should have at least the dignity to not make implications that may not be factually legitimate.

Daryll Clark did not "provide much of Penn State's running," not even close. Thought I'd mention that.

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