My first day as the Sports Information Director at Clarion State was Monday, August 25, 1980.
Jack’s passes away at the age of 87
We were only 6 days from the first football game, and I was really nervous about getting started. I wanted everything perfect.
Al Jacks, the Golden Eagles legendary football coach was, to me, remarkably calm, cool, and collected. He made such a positive and big impression on me in my first days. The team was prepared, ready, and focused. And of course, like they had so many times during his career, won the game.
My memory of that win was not as important as what came next. The post-game gathering at one of the coach’s’ houses. I was encouraged to cut my work short and be there to have a good time. The camaraderie – that was the thing. Everything at the post-game party was first class and took place win or lose (but almost always following a win). And the people who gathered there were leaders in the greater Clarion Community. The following was incredible!
The team generated huge crowds. Nothing to have 5,000 or more people at every home game. Close to 10,000 for ALF (Homecoming). Following a winner is always easy. The Clarion teams did a lot of that (winning) during Al’s tenure. Putting a record together of 128-46-5 (72.9% winning rate) that included PSAC Titles in 1966, 1977, and 1980 and Western Division crowns in 1966, 1967, 1969,19 77, 1978, and 1980 was certainly enough.
But there was more. There was Al Jacks the man.
He was an extremely humble man who liked talking more about his coaches and players and about the team’s successes than anything he did. Al was an intelligent man who possessed great character, integrity, and the principles of hard work and sacrifice. But also a man that was extremely loyal to his family and friends and never forgot a well-placed thank you or congratulations to others.
Jacks often said that getting All-America QB Jim Alcorn at Clarion for the perfect 10-0 season in 1966 was the catalyst to the team’s success while he was head coach.
That’s true – but there was so much more.
He surrounded himself with people who had the same mentality towards coaching young men and treating all people with class and dignity. There were his Penn State teammates Charlie Ruslavage and Richard “Dick” Pae, and of course even a guy from Pitt – Gene Sobolewski. They were the mainstays.
The formula for recruiting quality football players for Jacks and crew was simple – at least to Jacks. They recruited mostly within a two-hour radius of Clarion. They treated their players with dignity and respect and when they made a promise, they kept it. Parents knew when they sent their sons to Clarion they would be watched over by these men as if they were their own. High school coaches trusted the Clarion staff, directed by Jacks, to not only take care of their players but see to it they went to class and graduated – on time! And Jacks always – always kept his word. Trust, something seemingly not common today, was at the forefront of his success.
Accolades followed Al Jacks with his election into the Western Pennsylvania (1979), Clarion (1989), Pittsburgh City League (2016), and Pennsylvania (2022) Sports Hall of Fames, but really, as much as he appreciated the honors, he appreciated the personal relationships he had developed over the years with his former players, coaches, and friends.
After retiring as head coach in 1981 it was time to move forward. He valued his teaching skills. Teaching a full load of HPE classes while he was coaching for 19 years, he devoted his next 17 even more to the classroom by being named Chair of the Health and Physical Education Department. Having an influence on shaping how young men and women were treated and taught in the classroom were very important to Jacks.
A native of Pittsburgh and a 1953 graduate of Peabody High School, Al was proud of his Pittsburgh and Penn State heritage. I know he felt between his parents and those experiences, shaped how he approached his life.
Not the typical athlete or football coach, Al was funny, well-rounded, quick-witted, sarcastic, and loved to play jokes on everyone and anyone. He lit up a room like no one else. And you loved listening to him tell stories about his childhood, Penn State or somewhere else. He was well-read in all walks of life. For example, he enjoyed as much having a conversation quoting Henry David Thoreau, Hannibal crossing the Alps, the Civil War, and innumerable topics. His memory and recollection of facts and events were most astonishing. He was simply amazing.
When you talked to Al he made you feel like you were the most important person in the world – and that he truly cared about the conversation – Because he did. He always thought of others ahead of himself. Here’s a simple example. We have a breakfast club that meets every Wednesday. Al is without a doubt its leader. When he realized this past Christmas that our waitress could use a little help, Al insisted that we pass the hat for a donation to give her and her children something special for the holiday – setting a minimum for us to give so it could have an impact. That’s Al Jacks. Not just thinking of others, but a man of action too.
Al – you were one of a kind. Tough, disciplined, well-organized, smart, and dynamic as Clarion’s football field general. As a man, you were warm, funny, gentle, caring, and a credit to yourself, wife, Karen, and your sons Craig, Dean & Glenn, partner, Sandy, and entire family. You’re a winner – not just on the field but in the game of life.
May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face; the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.
I already miss you – I’ll never forget you!
Shalom Jumbo!
Editor’s note: Rich Herman served as Clarion’s award-winning sports information director from 1980 through 2016. He is a member of the Colege Sports Communicators (CoSIDA) Hall of Fame and the Lawrence County Sports Hall of Fame
