PORT NECHES — PORT NECHES – It’s not entirely true that coaches cannot coach speed. There are now ways to build speed through training, with parachutes and whatnot. But, having elite speed still gives teams a ton of confidence.



It also gives players some pride in how fast they are. Take Port Neches-Groves senior cornerback Kaleb Clark. His biggest memory from last year’s Mid-County Madness matchup was Troy Benjamin’s 80-yard scamper. Why?



“I couldn’t really catch up to him because I was coming from the backside,” Clark said. “Certain plays could have changed that game. There’s not that many guys who can outrun me.”



Clark certainly has speed in bunches and is able to show it off in the most exciting way each week — kick returns. Clark has already returned two kickoffs for touchdowns this season, including an answer after Central opened last week’s matchup with its own kickoff return TD to start the game.



“I knew we needed to do something, but it was surreal when it happened,” Clark said. “The whole night was one of the best games I’ve ever played in. They’re a good team, with a really good quarterback. You always have to make the first guy miss. Once you’re in the open field, it’s a whole lot easier. Once that first guy misses, it’s usually just you and a last guy to beat. I just run as fast as I can.”



The senior is averaging 26.8 yards per kick return this season and has the longest kick return in the district so far at 93 yards. His speed there is something PN-G head coach Brandon Faircloth really likes, as he views the kick return as the first offensive play of any series.



“He is really, really fast,” Faircloth said. “His speed is so dynamic. We work hard on blocking for him. He can change field position in a hurry. We hope people continue to kick to him. He enjoys it. The way we coach our guys, (kick return is) the first offensive play. Those guys are on offense at that point, and Kaleb looks at it like that. Special teams is such a team game, because you’ve got defensive and offensive starters out there. It’s a good thing for our team and has led to some big momentum shifts this year.”



That speed helps him in his other position at cornerback. Clark picked up his first interception of the season against Central and Faircloth immediately thought about his return skills.



“The other night when he picked that one off, he did it at the one yard line,” Faircloth said. “As he’s running, I’m yelling, ‘Kickoff return, kickoff return,’ trying to inspire him. He took it out to about the 40 before he got tackled. He’s good at cornerback and played really well last week. He had an interception, and any time you have an interception and a kick return for a touchdown, that’s a pretty good night.”



Though he didn’t play cornerback until last season, Clark has made an excellent transition to the spot. The 5-foot-9, 150 pound senior has 22 tackles this season, with an interception and four pass breakups. Clark said he can feel the improvement on the field on defense.



“It’s a lot better (this year),” Clark said. “I’m starting to settle in a lot more. You can read the quarterback a lot better out there. You have to keep playing. On defense, you can’t get your head down, because they’ll keep coming after you.”



Faircloth said the move was necessary from a defensive standpoint because of that speed, but that Clark has embraced it and worked to become one of the best players on that side of the ball.



“We knew we needed him at corner because of how fast he is,” Faircloth said. “He’s been solid at it since he got in there. I don’t remember hardly anything bad that happened to him at corner. He’s consistent and worked to get better. He does a good job of watching film and watching receivers.

“We’ve had to line him up on the other team’s best receiver a lot of times. He’s been a matchup guy for us, playing man coverage in the slot and on the outside. He really has worked hard to become the player he is.”



Clark doesn’t see as many passes to his side of the field, which is a credit to his cover skills and speed. But, one of the areas he’s improved on since last season has been open field tackling in helping to support the run. Clark credited the coaching staff with really getting him up to speed on how to tackle well in a short time, and it helped him pick up six solo tackles last week against Central.



“That was one of my weaknesses when I started playing cornerback,” Clark said. “On offense, you don’t really tackle anyone. The coaches did some drills where you have to fire your feet and make sure you’re not leaning a certain way, because they can take advantage of that. I usually just tackle people at their feet because they’re bigger than me.”



INDIAN INKLINGS: The son of Kelly and Krista Clark, Kaleb is undecided on what he’d like to do after college, but is interested in staying close to home at Lamar. … The Indians had just their second 200-yard rushing performance of the season against Central, but still couldn’t find that elusive 100-yard rusher. Both Spencer Wommack and A.J. Smith came within 15 yards of the arbitrary mark, but couldn’t break the barrier. … Receiver Jeremiah Rose has now rushed for a touchdown, thrown a touchdown and caught a touchdown pass this season. He scored on a reverse against Silsbee, has four receiving TDs this season and threw his first of the season against Central on an option reverse pass to Tim Clopton. Rose leads District 20-4A in both receptions and receiving yards with 33 catches for 392 yards. He has increased his receiving yards in each game since Week 2, topping 100  yards last week against Central for the first time this season.



Five Questions with Kaleb Clark

What is your favorite TV show? Family Guy

What is your favorite NFL team? Houston Texans

What is your favorite college? University of Texas

What is your favorite color? Purple

What future city would you want to live in? Dallas