GBI Magazine

"He's just been a blessing here and a huge encouragement to the kids and the staff in general." Northside Christian athletic director Raul Hernandez on Coach Mike Alstott that stoked his desire to stay a bigger part of the game, albeit on the sidelines. When Griffin was about 10 — one of three children, he'll be a freshman at Northside this fall — Alstott tried his best to be like any other parent, quietly watching from the sidelines. "I had my lawn chair and on the first day of tryouts with my son, then the second day, third day, and I got upset. People don't know how to coach," said Alstott, who was at Purdue in April for the Boilermakers' spring game. "It was in a situation where I'm like, 'I have to go out there for the kids.' So I (started) coaching, I think, 9- and 10-yearolds, and one thing led to another (and I ended up at Northside) and I can't believe this has happened." The relationship has been a good fit. Although Northside Christian finished winless in 10 games in Alstott's first season, the program has nowhere to go but up. In the four years prior to Alstott's arrival, the Mustangs went 14-27 and, before last season, the school had less than 20 players on its varsity roster and it didn't field a junior varsity team. The notoriety of hiring a former Buccaneer — and Alstott is one of the most beloved in the Tampa Bay area — brought plenty of media attention to the small school. Not only that, but students became interested in playing football, too. "We always struggled with getting a healthy amount of kids to come out and play," Hernandez said. "… When Mike came, the interest immediately from the kids took off. We had 35 to 40 come out for spring football and also in the fall. So the increase in numbers were the immediate impact right away. And we also saw kids in the middle school get excited about football as well, and the numbers in the football program in the middle school also grew to 40. "So that was an immediate impact and even though we went 0-10, I think he did a great job of laying a foundation of what to expect as far as the work ethic is concerned, changing the culture and getting the ship going the right direction." Alstott brought an impressive résumé to Northside Christian. In four years at Purdue, he rushed for a still-standing program-record 3,635 yards and had 39 touchdowns, while being named the Boilers' MVP in three consecutive seasons. In a dozen years at Tampa Bay, he was an atypical fullback, rushing as a feature back as much as blocking for others. There, he rushed for 5,088 yards, was a six-time Pro Bowler and scored a touchdown in the Bucs' victory in the 2002 Super Bowl, remaining the lone Boilermaker to score a rushing touchdown in the Super Bowl. He was eligible for Hall induction in 2013 but did not make it on the first ballot. TWIN CITY DODGE CHRYSLER JEEP RAM 650 Sagamore Parkway South Lafayette, IN 47905 See the 2011 Jeep Wrangler! 800-562-4581 twincitysuperstore.com Gold & Black IllustrateD • volume 23, issue 5

• Cover