Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, September 3, 1993 TAG: 9309030181
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ANDREA KUHN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LEXINGTON LENGTH: Medium
\ Mike Clark has had to make more than a few adjustments since joining the football staff at VMI.
He uprooted his family. He acclimated himself to life at a military academy. He adjusted to the move from Division I-A to I-AA.
Clark, who was released by Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer in January and hired in April as defensive coordinator for the Keydets, is even toting his own equipment.
"At VMI, I'm carrying my own bags to the practice field - there's no manager to do it," he said.
But that doesn't make practice any less intense.
"Football is football," Clark said. "It's just as challenging here to find a way to upset Richmond as it was to find a way to upset Clemson [at Tech]. Competition is a relative thing."
"On the mental level, I'm not doing anything here with the kids than I did at Tech."
Clark joined Beamer's staff in 1988 and coordinated the nation's fourth- ranked defense in 1989. His 1990 defense held four bowl-bound teams to an average of 13 points in the season's final month.
However, in 1992, things took a turn for the worse. His unit ranked sixth in the Big East in total defense (406 yards per game) and gave up 25.6 points per game.
Beamer, citing a need for a "fresh outlook" on defense, replaced Clark with Syracuse's Phil Elmassian. Clark described the situation as a wake-up call.
"It's a cruel part of our business that people don't talk about," he said. "But that was the card that was dealt to me. The key to survival as a coach is to accept the total package and accept things you can't control."
Clark replaced Bob Forgrave, who took a job as defensive coordinator at Division II Millersville (Pa). VMI head coach Jim Shuck said he felt fortunate to get Clark.
"I felt bad for Mike as a friend," Shuck said. "You hate to see anyone in that situation. ButI'm glad that things have worked out here.
"He's a good person.He has a quality that works well with the kids and the staff and that is that he is a very sincere person."
Joining Clark on the trip up Interstate 81 was Sam Daniels, who played on special teams last season for the Hokies while working at defensive back. Daniels, from Norton, took advantage of an NCAA transfer rule that allows players to move from a Division I-A school to a I-AA school without having to sit out a year.
Daniels, projected as a linebacker for the Keydets, said he chose VMI because he needed more academic discipline. He was unware Clark had accepted the defensive coordinator's job when he decided to transfer, but he was not disappointed.
"Coach Clark is not a yeller and a screamer," Daniels said. "He's really calm. He makes you want to perform and I react better under that. And his football intelligence is incredible."
Shuck agreed that Clark's knowledge of the game is "vast" and that it already has had an impact on the VMI defense.
"I feel like there has been a good atmosphere between thecoaches and players established, as far as them understanding where we need to be going as a team. There's a good player-coach rapport," Shuck said.
Clark's mission is likely to be as difficult as it was at Tech. He takes over a defense that gave up an average of 368 yards per game in 1992, but Clark explained that he hasn't been the one making the biggest adjustments.
"The toughest part has been the impact on my family," he said. "They sold their souls to Tech. They're the ones that have made sacrifices for me to stay in coaching and for that I'm grateful.
"In our business, you don't want to become known as what they call a `journeyman assistant.' I always knew I was young enough [37] to recover, and I never lost faith in my ability."
by CNB