By Ben Rekosh
RICHMOND, Va. -- Jack Clark may be one of five graduate students on this year’s VCU men’s basketball team, but he is the only one that has been playing college ball for seven seasons.
When Clark started playing college basketball, the COVID-19 pandemic was still a year and a half away – now he is on his fourth team, following his commitment to play for VCU for the 2024-25 season.
“It’s a crazy thing to see how everything changed in a matter of five or six years,” the 6-foot-10-inch, 215-pound wing said regarding his experiences over the past seven years.
Clark played for Atlantic 10 foe La Salle University from 2018-22, transferred to North Carolina State University in the 2022-23 season and was a part of Clemson University’s Elite Eight team last season. He said that he hopes to use those experiences to send VCU back to the NCAA tournament.
After playing only nine games during his first two seasons combined due to multiple knee injuries, Clark has amassed 102 games since 2020, according to College Basketball Reference, and over his career, he has scored more than 1,000 points and grabbed more than 600 rebounds.
Clark said the major asset that he brings to the game is his versatility. VCU men’s basketball head coach Ryan Odom said that Clark’s size allows him to play three different positions on the court at any given time. On a veteran-led team, that flexibility and experience is important, according to Odom.
Defensively, the lengthy forward takes pride in being able to guard all five positions. On the offensive end, he said that he is always ready to take the open shot when given the opportunity; Clark shot 30% from beyond-the-arc last season, according to College Basketball Reference.
“He’s certainly a team player,” Odom said of the effect that Clark has on the game. “He’s all about winning, and he’s really good in his own right.”
Winning the A-10 is a goal that is at the forefront of this team’s mind, Clark said. Not only is reaching March Madness Clark’s expectation for the Rams, but so is advancing to the Sweet Sixteen.
Clark views himself as a lead-by-example type of person both on and off the court, but given the number of capable vocal leaders on this team, he expects there to be a healthy balance of multiple leadership styles.
“He makes the right plays and he’s consistent,” point guard Zeb Jackson said. “It’s great to have somebody like Jack with the experience that he has, and just the way he plays, it fits perfectly.”
Clark is no stranger to adversity, however. After only seeing limited time on the court his freshman season at La Salle due to recovering from a torn ACL in high school, he tore the same ligament again during practice while attempting a dunk. That injury sidelined him for the entire next season. Additionally, he missed 10 games during the 2022-23 season while playing for N.C. State because of a groin injury.
That resilience emphasizes Clark’s passion for the game of basketball, Odom said. It demonstrates his desire to be a part of a team and impact winning games.
Having grown up outside of Philadelphia plus playing in the A-10 there and contributing at two high-level schools in one of the premiere conferences in the nation – the Atlantic Coast Conference – Clark has an abundance of experience in basketball along the East Coast. That made the decision to go to VCU, which is just a 4 hour drive from Pennsylvania, that much easier.
He said he chose to spend his final season in Richmond playing for Odom because of the family-like atmosphere.
VCU brought Clark in to have a play and have a meaningful contributing role on the team, according to Odom.
In what he said will definitely be his final season playing, the forward said that he hopes to make the All-A10 team and All-A10 defensive team.
“We go hard [in practice]... but I look forward to showing it in games,” Clark said of the intensity and determination of the 2024-25 VCU men’s basketball team.
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