Football is still on hold at Grant High, but schools are prepping for spring games
The Grant Pacers are about football tradition, community pride and championship pedigree.
It is about players who went from Del Paso Heights to success in college, leading to coaching gigs or school administrative roles. The school produced NFL first-round draft picks, such as Shaq Thompson of the Carolina Panthers, who was up for NFL Man of the Year honors this past season. It is about Mike Alberghini, the grizzled-yet-charming bonding element to all of this for more than 30 years as head coach and more than 50 in the region.
Coach Al, now 75 years old, is so revered that the school’s stadium bears his name. Grant is a focal point of the regional football landscape.
But will the Pacers play a spring schedule?
The state Department of Public Health announced last week its latest guidelines for youth sports now allow outdoor sports such as baseball, softball, soccer, water polo, lacrosse and football to start practices on Friday after nearly a year on pause or stop-and-starts during the pandemic.
That is in question. A county must have a COVID-19 caseload of 14 per 100,000 residents to be cleared to play outdoor sports. Sacramento County, which includes Grant, is inching closer to that threshold. The latest numbers released Tuesday by the California Department of Public Health showed Sacramento County at a case-rate of 15.3 per 100,000 residents.
El Dorado County and Placer counties are 10.3 and Yolo is 5.6, meaning high schools within those boundaries can start official outdoor practices Friday, if their districts and principals approve.
Alberghini and Grant athletic director Carl Reed are hopeful, as are scores of student-athletes they mentor and coach. The decision is out of their hands. They still need approval from Twin River Unified School District, which has other pressing issues, such as trying to get kids back on campus after almost a year of distance learning.
SFL schedule — without Grant
The Sierra Foothill League, the section’s powerhouse conference that includes Grant, Del Oro, Folsom, Rocklin, Oak Ridge, Granite Bay and Whitney released its schedule Monday. Grant is not in that mix..
Reed said, “I’m awaiting word from our district to go (football wise), and if we do have football, we will have an independent schedule, outside the SFL. I didn’t want to hold up the rest of the league with our uncertainty.”
Reed added, “I didn’t want to start handing out helmets when we aren’t even sure what’s going to happen yet. We’re dependent on state numbers and district approval. Our district has been supportive in a lot of ways. I’m not mad. There’s no one to blame here. Everything revolves around football. As a coach, I love that, but as AD, I can’t stand that. I want all sports on board.”
Reed paused and added, “Will Grant play football this spring? I can’t guarantee it, but if we’re cleared and we have a plan in place for mandatory testing, we’ll do everything we can to make it happen. Everybody’s working hard but some still blame the schools, the CIF, the district. Man, I know how much pressure people are under.”
Alberghini said of a spring schedule, “if it’s just a few games, it’ll be fine. I’d like to see the kids play. They want to play, to have an opportunity, especially the seniors.”
As far as the SFL schedule, Alberghini said it can be tricky with multiple counties, which the SFL dips into: Sacramento, Placer and El Dorado. He also touched on the larger issue.
“To be politically correct is more important than to be selfishly satisfied,” Alberghini said. “I’ve thought a lot about this. If we have a spring season, what if someone gets sick, something happens? It would be tough. We can only do the best we can.”
Coach Al going strong at 75
Alberghini said he has helped coach a local team in a club league, meaning a team not affiliated with a high school
“It’s worth it,” he said of kids playing any ball at all. “I know the importance of sports for kids. It’s nice to see the fulfillment of something people need.”
Alberghini said he is going strong at 75. He has no plans to give up coaching. He had his first COVID-19 vaccine shot and awaits the second. He will remain in coaching because of those rewards.
“Being around kids is so therapeutic, and I’ve spent my whole life doing it,” Alberghini said. “Besides, (my wife) Mary goes along with it. Gets me out of her hair for a couple of hours every day.”
The Bee will break down more on the return of football and prep sports, including logistics, scheduling challenges and why some schools may opt out of spring football.