BUCKINGHAM — Dwight Clark, the 49er who made “The Catch” a quarter-century ago, remembers it like it was yesterday. But then, so — it seems — does everyone else among the “49er Faithful” as their fans have come to be known.
The gallery that flocked to Buckingham Golf & Country Club to watch Joe Montana and other pro football legends in the 10th annual Pepsi Celebrity Quarterback Shootout served as a sampling of the admiration — or, if you prefer, adoration — for Clark.
Photos of his high-leaping reception of Montana”s pressured throw over the head of Dallas Cowboy defensive back Everson Walls are still a hot commodity in most Bay Area sports memorabilia shops.
On Saturday, he received as much fan support as his playing partner Montana, regarded by many as the greatest quarterback ever.
“I tell you what it”s done more than anything — it”s connected me with the fans forever,” said Clark just before teeing off. “Forty-niner fans always remember that play and want to talk about it.”
As well they should. Effectively, “The Catch,” which gave the 49ers a victory over Dallas in the waning moments of the National Football Conference Championship at Candlestick Park in early January of 1982, was the birth of an unforgettable era.
The Niners would go on to win Super Bowl XVI over the Cincinnati Bengals, followed by victories in Super Bowls XIX (1985), XXIII (1989), XXIV (1990) and XXIX (1995).
As a single electrifying and historic moment, “The Catch” has few rivals outside of Scotsman Bobby Thomson”s home run that enabled the New York Giants to come from 13 games behind in August and seal their comeback over the Brooklyn Dodgers in a playoff for the 1951 National League pennant.
“That”s an honor if that”s true,” says Clark. “I just hope they keep showing that picture. Eventually someone”s going to make another important catch and they”ll show that one for the next 25 years.”
One place they won”t show Clark”s catch is in Dallas, where he says they still lament the loss, adding with a laugh, “Every time I see Walls he tells me I was out of bounds.”
In the parlance of football Xs and Os, the play climaxed by Clark”s catch was named “Sprint Right Option” and was one of many from the agile mind of 49er coach Bill Walsh, credited as the inventor of the pass-action “West Coast offense,” which became a national trend.
The play called for Montana to roll to his right and look for his primary receiver, wideout Freddie Solomon. As the No. 2 option, Clark”s job was to run a curl to the back of the end zone.
He remembers thinking that the ball would go to Solomon, who, as it turns out, fell down.
“Solomon kind of slipped on the turf,” said Clark, “and the way the play is called if Freddie”s not open Joe”s supposed to throw it high enough to where I can either jump and catch it or it will go out of bounds. Bill (Walsh) said, We”ll never use that play on fourth down.”
“To me, the most spectacular part of that play was the throw, because Joe had to throw it high enough that I was able to get up there and get it. With the duress Joe was under (chased by three Cowboy linemen) he was still able to put it in the exact spot where it had to be to prevent Walls from jumping up and knocking it down. Any higher I couldn”t have gotten it.”
Montana was among people who didn”t see the catch. “I was on the ground,” he recalled Saturday.
“We ran the play a lot in practice, but I never threw the ball to Dwight — always to Solomon,” he added.
Like baseball”s Roger Maris, who exploded from the ranks of the unknown to set a major league home run record 20 years earlier, Clark was relatively unsung and quite likely would still be today if not for “The Catch.” He was a 10th-round draft pick out of Clemson, where he caught only 33 passes, three for touchdowns.
“We had Jerry Butler,” he said of his Clemson days. “He was a first-round draft pick, so we threw to him all the time and ran to my side because I was a pretty good blocker.”
That all changed for Clark in Bill Walsh”s offense in which Clark once caught at least one pass for 105 consecutive games.
“The way Bill coaches it just made sense. He shows you how to get open and made it impossible for defenses to cover everybody. So, when you have a quarterback like Joe who has unbelievable field vision you”re going to be successful,” Clark said.
Montana says “The Catch” was “a play that put the whole (49er) organization over the hump” and is not surprised that the picture of Clark”s leaping grab is still popular.
“Everybody talks about it, you see it all the time,” Montana said.
Dwight Hicks, a rookie who emerged as the leader of the 49ers” defensive secondary in 1981, said the play “changed the history of the 49ers, because it was their first NFC Championship win against a perennial power.”
Clark remembered that the 49ers had beaten Dallas soundly during the regular season in 81. ” … But the Cowboys were always tough. They had kind of been the nemesis of the 49ers in the 70s. To finally get over on Dallas, I think, meant so much to the longtime 49er fans.”
The 82 NFC Championship was the first NFC title game against the Cowboys since Dallas overcame a 21-7 49er halftime lead to eliminate them in 1972.
Tom Rathman, an eight-year 49er veteran who played during their Super Bowl years, said “The Catch” put them “on the map” and was “a stepping stone toward the ultimate accomplishment.
“But if they hadn”t won the Super Bowl that year it wouldn”t have meant much,” he added. “Just another great play.”
Contact John Lindblom at jlwordsmith@mchsi.com.
