Separated shoulders from three years as linebacker and a senior season as nose guard nearly kept then-cadet Richard Clark from pilot training and a career in the skies.
That is until Air Force Academy superintendent Lt. Gen. Winfield Scott Jr. who lead the academy from 1983-1987 stepped in.
Scott flew F-51 Mustangs during the Korean War and piloted F-4s in more than 100 combat missions during the Vietnam War.
After learning Clark was selected for a pilot slot but medically denied, Scott invited him to his office, where he asked the soon-to-be second lieutenant to rotate each of his arms above his head.
Separated shoulders from three years as linebacker and a senior season as nose guard nearly kept then-cadet Richard Clark from pilot training and a career in the skies.