Clark Leads Bishop Montgomery’s Rushin’ Revolution : The 5-8, 160-Pound Running Back Has the Knights Off to Their Best Start Since 1988

The more Koury Clark watched Bishop Montgomery High’s football team struggle to a 3-7 record last season, the more he realized something was missing.

“I sensed there wasn’t enough pride on the field,” he said. “It seemed like they would give up after they fell behind by a couple of points.”

Clark’s observations fueled his desire to make a difference. After the 1990 season ended, he began working out with the Knights in hopes of earning a spot on the team as a running back.

A year later, Clark’s attitude and ability are being credited for helping Bishop Montgomery (2-0) get off to its best start since 1988. The 5-foot-8, 160-pound senior moved into the South Bay lead in rushing Friday by running for 308 yards and two touchdowns in a 36-24 victory over North Torrance.

“I’ve got to consider myself real fortunate that this kid came along,” Knight Coach Steve Carroll said. “I mean, it was a very nice surprise.”

Clark transferred to Bishop Montgomery last year from Army-Navy Academy in Carlsbad, where he rushed for more than 900 yards as a sophomore on the varsity. However, because he missed preseason practice, Clark felt it was too late to go out for football at Bishop Montgomery.

“I missed hell week and thought I couldn’t play,” he said.

That was a regrettable decision for Clark and the Knights. But no one is looking back on what might have been if Clark had played his junior year.

“I was just happy he came out when he did,” said Carroll, whose team plays host to Harvard of North Hollywood (0-2) at 7:30 Friday night.

The addition of Clark has boosted Bishop Montgomery’s expectations from an emotional standpoint. A year ago, the Knights were plagued by costly turnovers and gained an unwanted reputation for falling apart late in games.

Clark vows that won’t be a problem this season.

“We’re not going to fold in the fourth quarter,” he said. “We’re going to keep the intensity we have right now.”

That kind of attitude has earned Clark the admiration of teammates.

“He’s a great addition to the team,” said senior offensive guard Matte Zovich, a three-year varsity player and Knight co-captain. “In past years, we’ve had some very good running backs, but they would quit when things got tough. (Clark) came out here and accepted his job and place on the team.

“If one of us misses a block, he works around it and finds somewhere to run. He’s leading our offense out there. It’s great.”

Through two weeks of the season, Clark has rushed for 416 yards and three touchdowns in 47 carries, an average of 8.8 yards per carry. Included in his scoring runs is a 63-yarder last week against North.

“He gives us the dimension of speed,” Carroll said. “He’s a very quick, hard-running back.”

Clark has also proven to be a capable receiver. His eight-yard touchdown catch from quarterback Neil Tinoco on the last play lifted the Knights to a 19-18 victory over Pius X of Downey in their season opener Sept. 13. The dramatic finish left Clark momentarily confused.

“At first, I was stunned,” he said. “I thought we had to run one more play. I started running back to the huddle and I saw everybody running onto the field. Then I looked at the clock. When I saw our score up there, I said ‘Oh, my God.’ That was a big thrill.”

Clark’s emergence has more than compensated for the loss of running back Joe McEwen, who led Bishop Montgomery with 828 yards rushing last season as a junior. McEwen left the school because of academic problems and is attending Carson High, although he is not playing football.

“Any time you lose your top running back, it’s a source of concern,” Carroll said. “It was kind of up in the air who would take (McEwen’s) place. Then Koury emerged and left no doubt in anyone’s mind.”

Carroll said Clark looked promising in spring practice and proved himself once the team began drills in pads.

“Kids look good when they don’t have pads on,” Carroll said. “There are a lot of superstars. Once the pads are on, you separate the men from the boys. Koury plays the game awfully tough.”

As an example, Carroll pointed out that Clark broke 23 tackles against North.

“He’s got all the tools,” the coach said. “He can catch, he can run through people and he can run away from people.”

And, Carroll says, Clark does it all with humility.

“When he gets tackled, he puts the ball down and runs back to the huddle,” he said. “When he scores a touchdown, he hands the ball to the referee. There’s no showboating, no gloating. He’s just a class act.

“He’s as hard-working and durable a player as I’ve ever coached. The kid loves to play the game and he loves to practice.”

Because Bishop Montgomery has a large, physical offensive line, Carroll said he wants Clark to run the ball between 17 and 30 times a game. So far Clark is on that pace, with 20 carries against Pius X and 27 against North. The Knights have attempted only 19 passes, and only four last week.

Carrying the load is fine with Clark, who gives most of the credit for the team’s early success to his blockers--tackles Brian Alexander (6-4, 270 pounds) and Ben Castellanos (6-2, 250), guards Zovich (6-4, 270) and Jai Choi (6-0, 235), center James Martinez (6-2, 245), tight end Angel Ahumada (6-1, 230) and fullbacks Tony Snowden (6-0, 240) and Anthony Milanes (5-11, 205).

“Without them, I couldn’t do it,” Clark said. “The linemen and fullbacks and wide receivers, it just takes all of us.”

Carroll believes Clark has a future in college football despite a lack of size.

“Some people may look at him and say he’s too small to play on the major college level,” Carroll said. “But if he wants to, I think he has a career in college football at some level. If heart is any indication, he could play any place in the country.”

For now, Bishop Montgomery is more than happy to have him.

“At our school,” Carroll said, “he looms very, very big.”