‘Hands down the best’: Coaches weigh in on Mike Alberghini’s career, Grant High football
The news of Mike Alberghini’s football coaching career coming to an end at Grant High School inspired scores of area coaches and players who suited up for him to reflect.
Sheldon’s Chris Nixon, who coached against Alberghini for years while at Elk Grove, said “Coach Al is the standard of excellence I’ve been trying to emulate for the last 25 years. What he’s done at Grant is just remarkable. Despite outside events and issues that would derail a typical coach and program, he’s not only kept Grant football functioning, but functioning at the highest level. The guy is better than Gorilla Glue.”
Inderkum coach Casey Taylor, who coached against Grant while leading Del Oro and Capital Christian, “What a career. I mean, 282 wins is 28 years of 10 win seasons. I can’t imagine. Just a great guy and career. He did amazing things. I’m sorry to see him out.”
Former Oak Ridge coach Eric Cavaliere, “Grant High is hands down the best football atmosphere in the Sacramento area. Passionate fans, dance team in the stands, talented teams, spirited student body and a great band. It was so much fun to be a part of that atmosphere. Grant just had a knack for making football fun under Coach Al.”
Carl Reed, Alberghini’s longtime assistant coach and successor, “I’m not just following his legacy as a coach, it’s everything off the field. It’s graduating kids, getting kids into college, to the next level. It’s also how he guided this program through tragedy, of losing players or coaches to violence. It’s beyond football here and always has been. His legacy is what he did for kids, what he did for players like me, helping us, caring for all of us, handling adversity. We went 1-9 in 2019, and it took, what, 30 years for us to fall that far? Then we got it turned around this spring, and he was in charge of that.”
Guy Anerson, a 1980s baseball rival while at Cordova and a longtime friend, “What a great coach and man, and Michael should be proud of what he’s done. He’s done more for that school than any person or coach that I can think of. He was the guy that made Grant go, in baseball and football and on campus. It’s very hard to leave a program you’ve run forever, and I can relate from my exit at Cordova (after setting regional records for victories). I hope he can take some time, relax, smell the roses, enjoy life and be proud.”
This story was originally published May 1, 2021 at 2:21 PM.