Ad Disclosure
Before Hudson Clark delivered one of the best defensive performances in Fayetteville in recent years last week, he was pretty much unknown.
He’s on a few more radars after recording 3 interceptions in Arkansas’ 33-21 victory against Ole Miss. He also doesn’t have to worry about paying tuition anymore, with coach Sam Pittman announcing this week that Clark is on scholarship.
Before arriving as a walk-on last season, Clark actually had an impressive track record and football pedigree. Here are 5 interesting facts about the Razorback cornerback.
1. He was high school teammates with Chandler Morris
Morris, the son of former Razorback coach Chad Morris, was committed to play for Arkansas once upon a time.
As you can imagine, Morris decommitted after his father was fired this past season. The former 3-star prospect is now in his first season with the Oklahoma Sooners. Clark is a year older than Morris, so was a senior when the latter was a junior at Highland Park High School in Dallas.
Morris passed for 3,793 yards and 43 touchdowns that season, though Clark was not a receiver. He played strictly defense, where he was the team’s leader with 8 interceptions.
2. He helped Highland Park to a 3-peat
Highland Park is one of the most storied high school programs in Texas.
The Scots hold the active record for most wins by any program and have won 6 state championships. Three of those came with Clark on the team in 2016, 2017 and 2018.
He played a prominent role his senior season when the team finished 16-0. He came away with 2 interceptions in a playoff game where Highland Park needed to erase a 3-touchdown deficit in the 4th quarter. He was also the backup kicker and the only field goal attempt of his career was a game-winner.
It’s clear that he’s a clutch performer who doesn’t shy away from big moments.
3. His grandfather is a member of the Arkansas High School Coaches Hall of Fame
Ronnie Clark coached at Berryville High School from 1969-96 and has the school’s football field named after him.
Hudson Clark’s parents are also both graduates of Arkansas, so perhaps his appearance in Fayetteville was inevitable. Hopefully, he soaked up some football knowledge from the coaches in his life.
Randy Allen, his coach at Highland Park, is considered a Texas legend. Allen is the 3rd-winningest coach in Texas high school football history, with over 400 victories and counting.
4. He had preferred walk-on offers from Oklahoma and Texas
Clark chose the Razorbacks over a pair of traditional football powerhouses.
He could have chosen to stay in state and play for the Longhorns or go to a Sooners team that has made several appearances in the Playoff. Instead, he picked Arkansas likely because of his family ties.
It seems he made the right choice. Razorback fans are certainly happy to have him and who knows whether he would have got the playing time to earn a scholarship this quickly at either of those other schools.
5. He ran a 4.6 40-yard dash in high school and is tied for the SEC lead in interceptions
We’ll see how long Clark is able to stay at the top, but his game this past week gave him a huge boost.
All 3 of his interceptions came in that game, but it’s good enough to tie him for first in the conference with Georgia’s Richard LeCounte. His 3 picks were also tied for the 2nd-most in a single game in Arkansas history.
A 40 time of 4.6 isn’t elite level speed, but it’s still fast. Perhaps if Clark ends up with any more interceptions this year, he’ll be able to run one back.
He’s bound to cool down as the rest of the season goes on, but overall the Razorbacks might have found a gem.
Chandler Vessels covers the SEC West for Saturday Down South. Previously, he worked for the East Texas Sports Network in Tyler, Texas, covering high school football and recruiting. You can follow him on Twitter @ChandlerVessels.
