National Football League

Brock Purdy, Caitlin Clark are connected as they face big moments

Updated Feb. 7, 2024 12:36 p.m. ET

One of the biggest stars in Super Bowl LVIII has a connection to one of the biggest non-Super Bowl stories in sports at the moment.

The quarterback who backed up Brock Purdy at Iowa State is the older brother of Iowa women's basketball star Caitlin Clark. Blake Clark played at Iowa State from 2018-22, overlapping with Purdy's time in Ames for four seasons.

In fact, they built such a strong bond during their college days that the 49ers quarterback is including Clark in his upcoming wedding.

Brock Purdy and the 49ers' inspirational road to the Super Bowl

"Blake Clark is one of my best friends," Purdy told reporters at Super Bowl Opening Night on Monday. "He's going to be in my wedding."

The eldest Clark sibling didn't see the field much during his time with the Cyclones, in part because of Purdy's success. Purdy quarterbacked one of the best four-year stretches in the history of Iowa State's program, leading the Cyclones to four consecutive winning seasons for the first time in nearly 100 years (1923-27). He also holds 32 program records, such as passing yards (12,170) and passing touchdowns (81). Clark, meanwhile, threw only one pass in his college career, mostly serving as the holder on the field goal team.

On the other end of the CyHawk rivalry, the younger Clark is making more than just history at Iowa. She's on the precipice of making history in women's college basketball.

Clark has scored 3,462 career points, just 65 points behind Kelsey Plum for the most in women's Division I history. She'll likely break the mark sometime in Iowa's next three games.

In fact, Sunday could serve as a special day for both Purdy and Clark. Purdy could, of course, win the Super Bowl, but before the 49ers and Chiefs take the field in Las Vegas, Clark and her Hawkeyes teammates hit the court to take on Nebraska (1 p.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app). Depending on how she plays against Penn State on Thursday, Clark could be within striking distance of breaking Plum's record before Super Bowl LVIII kicks off. She has averaged 39 points per game over Iowa's past four contests, so it isn't unreasonable to think that Clark will make history on Sunday.

Caitlin Clark GOES OFF for 38 points in Iowa's 93-85 win over Maryland

For many sports fans, Clark came to prominence last season when she led Iowa to the national championship game and was the consensus player of the year. But Purdy knew of her elite basketball skills well before that.

"Caitlin, I wasn't around as much, but obviously just through Blake, we'd always watch her," Purdy said. "What a baller she was from Day 1. Obviously, even high school. We knew that she was going to be a game-changer. To see her now just absolutely killing it, couldn't be happier for her."

Caitlin has also served as a competitive inspiration for Purdy.

"I think just the grit," Purdy said. "Just the competitive, tenacious nature she has. When you watch it, it just makes you want to play. It makes you want to play your sport well."

Unfortunately for Purdy, Clark likely won't be rooting for his side on Sunday. The Iowa star is a well-known Chiefs fan, routinely showing her support for the team on social media and attending games at Arrowhead Stadium.

"It was just something all I knew," Clark told the "ManningCast" back in November about how she became a Chiefs fan growing up in Iowa. "In our basement, we had a Chiefs vending machine. We had those toy helmets that were the Chiefs. We would [put them on] and run around in the yard and I would knock helmets with my brothers.

"But I had a lot of cousins in Kansas City that loved the Chiefs. It was like a yearly thing that we'd go down there and watch one of the Chiefs games. So, I'm not a bandwagon Chiefs fan. I was a Chiefs fan even when they weren't very good."

The Chiefs have reciprocated the support as Clark has become one of the top stars in women's basketball. She was an on-field guest of the team prior to its game against the Raiders on Christmas Day, swapping jerseys with standout rookie receiver Rashee Rice.

Clark is also drawing praise from the Chiefs' biggest star.

"Tremendous player, tremendous person," Patrick Mahomes said about Clark on Tuesday. "I've met with her and talked. You can tell she loves the game, and she loves playing at Iowa.

"She's going to be one of the best college basketball players to ever play, and then go to the WNBA and dominate there as well."

Clark will likely be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft. However, she could opt to remain in college for one more season because the NCAA granted athletes an extra year of eligibility due to COVID-19.

Whatever Clark decides to do next, Mahomes will be watching — and only watching.

"Hopefully I never have to play her one-on-one, because she'll for sure be getting buckets on me," he said.

More on Caitlin Clark: