Clark Blocks Out Distractions

There is more to life than a 10-point pop quiz in Spanish, a football playbook and Friday night parties.

At least in Philip Clark’s world.

The Newbury Park High senior lives with his 23-year-old sister and legal guardian, Renae, and has pressing needs in addition to school, sports and a social life.

Clark’s father lives in La Quinta and his mother lives in Las Vegas, leaving it up to Renae and Philip to buy groceries, pay electric bills and get themselves up in the morning at their apartment in Westlake Village.

Temptation to stray is always present, but going to church on Sunday is more important to Philip than directions to a Saturday night bash.

“Sometimes the things that come up, I have to think about the big picture in general,” Clark said. “Having parties at my house is throwing away my life. It’s not what I want to do.

“I don’t like the whole party atmosphere, especially not now. If I got into that and started liking that, I’d be [in trouble]. My college dreams of playing would go downhill if I turned into an alcoholic or something like that.”

Clark, who has lived with his sister for a year, grew up in Newbury Park and remembered watching Keith Smith wend his way toward 10,000 yards passing in his career.

Two years ago, Clark’s dad moved to La Quinta. Clark, wanting to stay at Newbury Park, convinced his mother to relocate from Las Vegas. She did, but missing family and friends, eventually returned to Nevada, with both parents giving permission for Clark to stay with his sister. The parents support him financially.

Clark, who was 3 years old when his parents divorced, has the wherewithal to steer clear of football-related allurements that might not be in his best interest.

Clark, a 6-foot-6, 270-pound tackle, recently ran into a former Marmonte League standout who touted the benefits of steroids. Clark declined.

“It’s a sign of weakness,” Clark said. “If they kept on doing that, they’d probably get to the college level, but wouldn’t get any further and would probably get busted. It’s stupid. Eat all the right fruits and vegetables and you probably get just as big.”

That is, if you mix in a workout akin to Clark’s.

Imagine Coach George Hurley’s surprise last spring when he glanced at the football field and saw Clark towing nearly 250 pounds while using a body harness that “looked like it was made in shop class,” Hurley said.

The joke was on Hurley, however, when 45-pound weights started to disappear from the team weight room. Turns out that Clark borrowed the weights for his harness, worked out well beyond the time the weight room was locked up, and left them near the entrance to the room.

Maintenance workers would pick up the unattended weights and haul them to the lost and found. Hurley finally figured out the problem and discovered a treasure trove of sorts.

“I was all upset that people were taking them out of the weight room,” Hurley said. “It was just Phil taking them.”

Not that Hurley should complain.

Clark is the cornerstone on a team expected to challenge for the Marmonte League title.

Not much more than a big, slow galoot at the start of last season, he showed up late for two-a-days because of the death of a grandmother and needed several weeks to catch up.

By the time the fourth game rolled around, however, he asserted himself as a starter.

“It took him a little bit longer on that learning curve than others,” Hurley said. “With his size as a sophomore, all he did was stand there and bull people over. It took him some time to develop technique [as a junior].”

He improved his footwork and, more important, his aggressiveness, particularly during the last few games of the season as Newbury Park made a surprising run to the semifinals of the Southern Section Division IV playoffs.

“I’d always get criticism that I was big and that I wasn’t doing it out there,” Clark said.

“I started thinking about it and I got really mad. I realized that if you’re more mad and physical than the other guy, you’re going to win. Ever since then, I’ve just gone crazy.”

Now he has several Pacific 10 Conference schools inquiring about him.

His half brother, Jeremiah Clark, was a 6-5, 285-pound defensive end at Mesa (Ariz.) High who played briefly at Nebraska. Philip is hoping to stay closer to home, favoring UCLA, USC and San Diego State.

Wherever Clark goes, Hurley realizes he will miss one of the best lineman in Newbury Park history.

“Not everybody gets an ideal home life,” Hurley said. “He’s a survivor. He’s not interested in hanging around the mall and [fooling] around.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

HOW THEY RATE

A look at the top offensive linemen in the region:

With comment by Eric Sondheimer

*--*

Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 1. Philip Clark Newbury Park 6-6 270 Sr.

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Ready to become region’s dominant lineman

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Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 2. Chris Frome Hart 6-5 1/2 235 Jr.

*--*

Smart, athletic and mastering blocking techniques

*--*

Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 3. Mark Manning Westlake 6-1 300 Sr.

*--*

Thrives on protecting the quarterback

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Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 4. Bobby Garafolo St. Francis 6-3 310 Sr.

*--*

Has size, intelligence, toughness

*--*

Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 5. David Velasquez Chatsworth 6-2 1/2 270 Sr.

*--*

Will be a three-year starter

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Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 6 Victor Gomez Cleveland 6-5 320 Sr.

*--*

His size is intimidating

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Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 7 Jeff Gallo Saugus 6-4 300 Sr.

*--*

Knows how to pass block

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Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 8 Mario Palomino Birmingham 6-6 290 Sr.

*--*

Offensive tackle with improving strength

*--*

Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 9 Billy Griffin Ventura 6-2 255 Sr.

*--*

A center ready for an MVP-like season

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Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 10. Nestor Robles Sylmar 6-3 310 Sr.

*--*

Crucial player for Sylmar to move the ball

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Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 11. Chris Bozeman Harvard-Westlake 5-10 220 Sr.

*--*

Knows how to block

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Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 12. Anthony Smith Grant 6-0 270 Sr.

*--*

Can be an All-City lineman

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Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 13. Angel Palazuelos Hueneme 6-4 265 Sr.

*--*

Big, agile and loves to knock people down

*--*

Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 14. Lee Williams Reseda 6-2 270 Sr.

*--*

Will be Eddie Robinson’s best friend

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Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 15. Casey Andrews Ventura 6-3 255 Sr.

*--*

Part of strong line

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Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 16. Jordan Kniseley Channel Islands 6-3 275 Sr.

*--*

Returning all-league tackle

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Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 17. Logan Judah Moorpark 6-3 265 Sr.

*--*

Count on him becoming one of Marmonte League’s best

*--*

Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 18. Carlos Gonzales Notre Dame 6-2 290 Sr.

*--*

Powerful run blocker

*--*

Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 19. Dan Gonzalez Valencia 6-2 270 Sr.

*--*

Critical blocker for Vikings

*--*

Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 20. Joey Daugherty Quartz Hill 6-0 250 Sr.

*--*

Made All-Golden League a year ago

*--*

Rk Player School Ht. Wt. Yr. 21. Glen Propst Camarillo 6-3 310 Sr.

*--*

Not somebody to push around

SNEAK PEEK

Third in a nine-part series.

Wednesday: Quarterbacks. Kyle Matter of Hart

Friday: Running backs. De’Andre Scott of Alemany

Today: Offensive linemen. Philip Clark of Newbury Park

Sunday: Wide receivers

Aug. 30: Tight ends

Sept. 1: Defensive linemen

Sept. 2: Linebackers

Sept. 3: Defensive backs

Sept. 6: Kickers