Poise under pressure, Luke Alexander has Grant in another CIF State final. ‘Cool as ice’
The bedlam amid a sea of giddy Grant Pacers has been contrasted by the Luke Alexander calm.
After each of the last three games ended, teammates threw helmets into the air, coaches high-fived and hugged one another, and others sprinted in circles just because. Off to the side to soak it in was Cool Hand Luke. He is Grant High School’s unflappable senior quarterback, tasked a year ago with leading a veteran core to a CIF State championship, which he did.
Here he is leading the storied Pacers charge again, this time with a lineup of youngsters. Alexander isn’t driving the Grant bus because it takes everyone to make a season like this work, but he has his hands on the wheel and a foot on the clutch, having expertly navigated his team through a season of obstacles and defenses bent on cutting the Pacers in half.
Alexander is as responsible as anyone for the Pacers’ return trip to the CIF final, leading Grant into Friday afternoon’s Division 2-AA championship against Pacifica of Oxnard at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo, though he is quick to remind that he has a lot of help. He points out star receivers Koby Shabazz and Zo Edwards; a star running back in Brandon Lambert; a stout offensive line; and a relentless defense led by rush end specialist Jeremiah Tuiileila, The Sacramento Bee’s Defensive Player of the Year in 2023.
But the guy wearing jersey No. 7 has been the focal point. Defenses have chased him down and knocked him around, but Alexander never wavers. He led the late drives for Grant to get here, first in the driving rain in Stockton where a late drive sealed a 28-21 victory over St. Mary’s in a CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division II semifinal.
Then there was the masterful 98-yard drive engineered by Alexander in the closing seconds to knock off Rocklin 30-28 in the section finals at Hughes Stadium with all of Grant’s home base of Del Paso Heights seemingly in the stands. Last week, it was another road trip and more theatrics. Alexander directed the Pacers down the field late with pinpoint passing to set up the game-winning 25-yard field goal for Jose Romero to upend Bay Area powerhouse Saint Francis in Mountain View in a Northern California final, 32-30.
“Luke turns into Tom Brady in the fourth quarter,” Romero said Tuesday afternoon before Pacers practice. “It’s just awesome.”
Alexander hasn’t just saved the season with his right arm, but he helped save Romero’s soul. Against Rocklin, Romero could not make a point-after kick, undone by the moment and nerves, despite making all six of his field goals coming in. He was capable and he was also human.
Romero redeemed himself with his big boot at Saint Francis, proof that the team did not give up on him and that everyone has a role. Grant players were so ecstatic for Romero that he was hoisted in the air after that game. Teammates and coaches chanted his name. He earned his bus ride back to Sacramento and didn’t have to walk home.
“We were so happy for Jose,” Alexander said. “I loved it.”
Alexander is one of Grant’s great QBs
Grant expected to compete for a third consecutive section and NorCal championship because the Pacers are geared to think big. Coaches liked their chances with Alexander a year older, wiser, stronger. He has flourished the last two seasons under the guidance of quarterback coach Josiah Johnson, who played the position at Sacramento High School.
The 6-foot, 180-pound Alexander has passed for 3,153 yards and 38 touchdowns, and he fires tight spirals short, medium and long. Even after this many weeks, young Pacers still stop and watch Alexander hum passes in practice drills.
Alexander has emerged as one of Grant’s greatest quarterbacks, and that’s a long list. Aaron Garcia set regional passing marks at Grant in 1987 (he’s now the coach at Sacramento’s Destiny Christian Academy). Chad Elliott fired 49 touchdowns with three interceptions in 1996 in leading Grant to a section championship. Kipeli Koniseti led Grant to the 2008 CIF State Open championship with a last-minute drive to beat nationally ranked Long Beach Poly.
Donovan Brown wasn’t the most polished passer, but he was a driving force for Grant’s 14-1 team in 2014. In 2022, Joseph McCray quarterbacked Grant to a CIF state title a year after starting every game in a winless campaign.
Alexander arrived at Grant in the middle of his sophomore season. He was at Folsom, where the Bulldogs had a young quarterback in the making in Ryder Lyons, who has emerged into a 5-star recruit, and decided to transfer to Grant.
“I wanted a chance to play, to showcase what I could do,” Alexander said. “I didn’t know anyone at first and it took a little time to settle in. I found out how big of a football family there is here and how much the community cares. But there was some pressure — ‘McCray led us to a state championship. Can you?’”
Yes he can. Twice.
It’s become the norm for Alexander to host Grant linemen in his family’s Sacramento home, to thank and appreciate the big boys who pass protect. At the Alexander home, there’s a chance for players to soak in an ice bath to recover from the last game, to socialize, to break down film and to eat like there’s no tomorrow.
“He’s our leader,” said Shabazz, Grant’s spectacular sophomore receiver.
Coach Carl Reed said his quarterback “was as cool as ice” against Saint Francis. Alexander isn’t one to show a lot of emotion, but it doesn’t mean he does not care.
He is just as excited and proud about his 4.0 grade point average and his advanced placement courses in government and economics as he is for his team’s football success. He aspires to get into law or journalism after college. And, yes, he’d like to play football in college.
Where is the question. Alexander is blessed with calm and skills to go with perfect grades, but he does not have the biggest body in a sport big on collisions, which explains why colleges aren’t hammering on his door for him to sign a scholarship package. Alexander is still growing. His 6-foot-4 father Steven Alexander played several seasons of minor league baseball.
Alexander missed second half of last season’s CIF final
Alexander is focused on the immediate. He heads back to Orange County following a Thursday morning send-off at Grant to the same venue in which is junior season came to a crushing halt.
Against La Serna of Whittier in the state final, Alexander suffered a helmet-to-helmet hit and was out by the time he hit the turf as he scrambled toward the end zone late in the half. He suffered a concussion and did not play the final two quarters as La Serna grinded out a 21-19 victory.
Alexander wanted to play the second half but was outnumbered and outvoted by his mother, Ester, an emergency room nurse, his coaches, and the CIF trainers on hand. Grant coaches allowed Alexander to remain in uniform in the third and fourth quarters, to feel part of the team, but someone stashed his helmet so he didn’t try to sneak out to the huddle.
“I was trying to convince the CIF and everyone else that I was OK,” Alexander said. “It was the smart thing to not play, but I really wanted to. I wanted another chance, and now we have it. We’re excited.”
Alexander’s excitement was measured in his grins, his nods and his self assurance if not by throwing a helmet into the air.
Grant Pacers (11-3) vs. Pacific Tritons (11-4)
What: CIF State Division 2-AA championship
When: Friday, 4 p.m.
Where: Saddleback College, Mission Viejo
How to watch: NFHS Network