‘Bash Bros’ Dubee and Kingston Lopa lead Grant resurgence as Pacers enter NorCal finals
It was a cold, cloudy day at Mike Alberghini Field on the Grant High School campus. The Pacers, two days ahead of Friday’s return to the CIF Northern California regional championships, were practicing at half speed.
Many players were trying to stay warm in the 50-degree weather. Some wore hooded sweatshirts under their practice jerseys. Others wore flannel pajama pants to withstand the crisp wind chill.
Then there was Dubee Lopa, the team’s energetic linebacker, headbutting a teammate in the defensive huddle, yelling, imploring him to get locked in, shaking the otherwise subdued practice session.
“The hype, the energy I bring to the team, it feeds their energy,” Lopa told The Sacramento Bee. “That’s just what I bring.”
Lopa is the Pacers’ unofficial spark plug. The middle linebacker is the catalyst for a roster full of personalities, which proved crucial in the Pacers winning the Sac-Joaquin Division III championship over Christian Brothers last week. It marked the fortification of Grant’s “rebirth,” a theme the program coined back in training camp coming off last year’s miserable 0-9 campaign.
“When I became a Pacer, I was already a leader,” Lopa said.
The affinity for being a Pacer is something unique to the Grant program. It’s tied to their history, which includes nine Sac-Joaquin Section championships and 27 players who have reached the NFL.
Grant led the football-obsessed Sacramento region in wins in the 1990s and 2000s under Alberghini, whom their home field is named after. This year’s team, playing for head coach Carl Reed, embodied the rebirth by resembling those elite teams of years past.
“They’re physical. They’re fast. They’re strong. Big. I mean, it’s like the old Grant team,” Christian Brothers coach Larry Morla said. “They were the same way back when I played. They won a state championship in 2008 when I played here at CB.”
That team shocked the high school football landscape by beating national powerhouse Long Beach Poly in the CIF State Championships. This year’s team is one win away from getting back to a state title game if the Pacers can beat El Cerrito in Friday’s Division III-AA NorCal final just north of Berkeley.
Lopa, a senior, is one of two brothers who stand out on a Grant roster that is loaded with talent. His younger sibling is Kingston Lopa, the 6-foot-4, long-armed, imposing defensive back who doubles as an elite receiver. He’s a junior who is garnering attention from blue-blood programs ranging from the Pac-12 to SEC.
Like his older brother, Kingston is a Pacers energizer and defensive enforcer. He has range to play sideline to sideline, and the long arms to make quarterbacks fear throwing in his direction. Kingston spent the majority of the Christian Brothers game covering fellow elite prospect Phillip Bell, an uber-talented receiver many opponents have triple covered throughout the season.
“They’re Pacers,” Reed said when asked what stands out to him about the Lopa brothers, who have come to be known as the “Bash Bros.”
“Growing up, they’ve been part of the community, part of the junior program,” Reed said. “They’ve been Pacers through and through. So them being here, going through everything, it’s only fitting that those two are part of this, the return to us getting back to being a successful program.”
Added Dubee: “Family and loyalty. That’s what it means to be a Pacer. And strive to be better. Every Pacer strives to be better. That’s what a Pacer is.”
Dubee Lopa’s value to the Pacers was apparent throughout Friday’s tough win over Christian Brothers. He left the game multiple times with an apparent leg injury, but made sure to finish it given his role as tone setter for his team. At Wednesday’s practice, there was no sign of an ailment.
Kingston Lopa still has another season left to grow his vast potential. His slender frame and speed make him an ideal defensive back, but Reed said recruiters have asked if he can play linebacker. Assuming Kingston fills out, that might be his best role in college given his long arms and ability to cover ground.
“He’s not a guy who’s overly flashy,” Reed said. “His play talks for him. So he’s a lead-by-example type guy. He’s not going to be the one in the forefront like Dubee is. You know he’s our leader, he’s our emotional leader. So they’re really like polar opposites in that sense.”
The Lopa brothers are also different in stature. Dubee is listed six inches shorter than his younger brother, which begs the question if he can play in college at a high-end program like his brother is expected to. His compact 5-11 frame is perfect for the trenches of high school football, but he’ll have to bulk up to play linebacker or increase his speed to move to defensive back in college.
Dubee indicated his focus is making sure Friday night’s game against El Cerrito isn’t the last of his high school career. The challenge he faces is taking on a tough offensive line and running back Tony McAdoo, who rushed for 236 yards on 14 carries in a North Coast Section semifinal win before logging 268 yards and three touchdowns during last week’s NCS championship win over Windsor.
“Their running back and line are really good,” Dubee Lopa said. “And, yeah, he can run the ball.”
