allow him to play for the Portsmouth Spartans in the National Football League (NFL), with the understanding that he would return to coach the school's basketball team when the Spartans' season was over. The Spartans compiled an 11–3 record in 1931, good for second place in the NFL. Clark appeared in 11 games and was the team's leading scorer with 60 points on nine touchdowns and six extra points. He ranked third in the NFL in scoring and was selected as the first-team All-Pro quarterback. Clark was actually the leading scorer in the NFL when he secured permission to leave the team early to resume his coaching responsibilities with the Colorado College basketball team. Clark returned to the Spartans in the fall of 1932 and led the team to a 6–2–4 record and third place in the NFL. Clark led the NFL with 581 rushing yards; he also led the league with 55 points scored, 10 extra points, and three field goals. For the second consecutive year, he was selected as the first-team All-Pro quarterback. In December 1932, United Press sportswriter George Kirksey rated Clark as the greatest football player of the past 10 years. Despite his success during the 1931 and 1932 NFL seasons, Clark returned to Colorado College as the school's head basketball coach at the end of the 1932 season. Then, in March 1933, he surprised followers of the professional game by announcing that he would not return to the NFL in 1933, having elected instead to serve as the head football coach for the Colorado School of Mines. Detroit Lions Clark signed with the Detroit Lions in May 1934 and joined the team for training camp at the end of August. (The Portsmouth Spartans moved to Detroit and became the Lions in 1934.) Clark was the quarterback for the 1934 Detroit Lions team that compiled a 10–3 record and finished in second place in the NFL West behind the undefeated Chicago Bears. Clark led the NFL in 1934 with 1,146 yards of total offense and eight rushing touchdowns and ranked among the leaders with 73 points scored (second), 763 rushing yards (third), and 383 passing yards (fourth). At the end of the 1934 season, Clark was selected as the first-team All-Pro quarterback for the third time in three years playing in the NFL. In August 1935, Clark was selected by his Detroit teammates as the team