The school’s football program is steeped in tradition. The local newspaper named it the region’s Team of the Decade for the 1990’s and 2000’s. The school has won more games and more championships than any other school in the area, and it’s done it all on what the other (read: whiter) parts of town would call the “wrong side of the tracks.”
No, that school’s not Long Beach Poly. It’s Grant High School of North Sacramento.
On Saturday at Home Depot Center in the Open Division State Championship, the Grant Pacers will represent the whole Sacramento area in what the Sacramento Bee is calling a “historic breakthrough game.”
“Of all the things we’ve done here, all the things we are proud of, this is the pinnacle for us,” Grant coach Mike Alberghini told the Bee this weekend. Coach for the last 18 seasons, Alberghini has led the Pacers to 18 playoff appearances, 15 league championships, and six section championships. “It’s great for the school, the kids, the coaches, and the community that followed us… it’s the reward for all of us.”
Grant High School is located in Del Paso Heights on the North side of the state capital, and the community experiences some of the same problems that West Long Beach goes through. Crime and poverty rule the headlines, and like West Long Beach, high school football is something everyone rallies around.
The school and the team’s racial demographic is majority African-American and Polynesian, as is the surrounding area. Down at 3B’s Barber Shop in Del Paso Heights, the mix of community and football is on display, everyday. The Sacramento Bee’s Joe Davidson put together this insightful article about how Grant alumni and supporters gather to talk Pacer Pride. Now, with this game, the Pacer-for-Life attitude has been lifted to an all-time high. According to Davidson and the community members he spoke to, “Shops will close for the game. Caravans will clog southbound Interstate 5.”
“We’re all scrambling for hotels,” 3B’s owner Sam Kinsey told Davidson. “We’ll take a bunch of vans. Can’t miss it. It’s our real shot at greatness.”
Greatness for Del Paso Heights and the city of Sacramento, it seems, is in the hands of a group of 17-year-old kids.
“Everyone knows that there are bad things that happen around here, that there is crime, but the football team is proof that it’s not all bad here, that there is a lot of good here,” J-Mack, aka Kali doe told Davidson. Kali doe is a Del Paso Heights native who is a local rapper and a regular to 3B’s. “For some of these kids, this is all they’ve got. And this is a lot to feel good about.”
According to some other local writers, this Grant team mirrors its surroundings.
“They’re gritty and tenacious,” Sac Bee’s prep writer Quwan Spears told us. “They’re a lunch pail type team.”
This gritty squad didn’t just come out of nowhere. Two years ago, the Pacers went 13-0, including a 50-0 victory in their Section Championship. However, history repeated itself, and the California Scholastic Federation chose De La Salle to represent Nor Cal in the State Bowl, again.
“It’s the mystique of De La Salle,” says Spears of the Spartans. “It’s all about them up here, but that season got (Grant) some attention. This team benefited from that year. People started paying attention to Sacramento high school football. We’re an unknown entity up here.”
What we do know about the Pacers is that they mirror the Jackrabbits in more than just community dynamics. Both teams are the most athletic in their respective area, and both LOVE to run the ball. Grant running back Devontae Booker has toted the rock 175 times to the tune of 1850 yards and 36 TDs.
So, this weekend, prepare yourself for a clash of two very talented teams. But at the same time, keep in mind that both squads are playing for more than just another ring. They’re playing for all the people who can’t stand on the field with them. They’re playing for their respective communities. Communities that need these kids, perhaps more than the teams realize.