Ursuline’s Clark to start in Penn State’s opener

Coach Paterno picked Clark to start at quarterback in Saturday’s debut.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Joe Paterno’s record 43rd season on the sideline will begin with a new starting quarterback, and, most likely, another milestone.

The Hall of Fame coach picked Ursuline High’s Daryll Clark to start No. 22-ranked Penn State’s season opener Saturday against Coastal Carolina, a contest in which Paterno could tie Florida State’s Bobby Bowden atop the career wins list for major college coaches.

Not that Paterno keeps track of that kind of stuff.

“Bobby is a good friend of mine. Who cares?” the 81-year-old Paterno said Tuesday when asked about the milestone. “When they bury me are they going to put on my gravestone, ’You’re one win ahead of Bobby Bowden?”’

Bowden surged ahead of Paterno in 2003, when Penn State was in the midst of a string of four losing seasons in five years.

Now, it’s Bowden who has been struggling of late — at least by the lofty standards Bowden set for himself at Florida State. The Seminoles are coming off back-to-back 7-6 seasons following an 8-5 season in 2005. Penn State has been 11-1, 9-4 and 9-4 the last three years, allowing Paterno to catch up again.

The 78-year-old Bowden has said he doesn’t care whether he finishes first, though he wouldn’t mind finishing his career with 400 wins.

“It’s attainable if I stay healthy and whole and win like I should,” Bowden said earlier this summer. “It could happen to Joe, too.”

Paterno has often said the wins record doesn’t matter to him, either. He had more pressing concerns Tuesday, like picking Clark as his starting quarterback.

“I wondered whether that question would come up,” a frisky Paterno said after his weekly news conference started with a question about the quarterback race.

Clark, a senior, was the backup the last two years behind Anthony Morelli, who’s now in the NFL. Paterno said Clark beat out sophomore Pat Devlin, in part, because of his experience. Clark played sparingly behind Morelli, while Devlin has played even less.

Clark’s biggest contributions came in last year’s Alamo Bowl win over Texas A M, when he ran for 50 yards and a touchdown in six carries