At an autograph function years ago, Dwight Clark decided a lucky young child deserved more than a simple signature. So after a pause, Clark began swirling his pen in the language of the chalkboard, sketching out a row of blockers, a quarterback rolling to his right and a receiver sliding along the back of the end zone.
This was an old 49ers play called “Sprint Right Option.” You know it better as The Catch.
To this day, Clark still makes the play diagram a staple of his autograph shows.
“He did it for that child, and from that point on, it caught on.