End Of An Era

It may have been announced six months ago but it's still hard for me to believe that Bob Ladouceur is no longer the head football coach of De La Salle High School. As numbers meant nothing to him it's no surprise that Ladouceur retired just short of a milestone with 399 career wins. In January, he said that "it was just the right time." It was the right time for him to step down and it was the right time for his replacement, Justin Alumbaugh. "I would probably still be coaching if I didn't have the perfect guy to take over." De La Salle's offensive line coach and a former player, Alumbaugh was picked by Ladouceur 15 years ago.

399-25-3 career record
National record 151-game winning streak, 1992-2003

I first became aware of Bob Ladouceur and the De La Salle High Spartans around 1990 when they were in the middle of a winning streak that would end at 34. Pittsburg High School, led by future Cal defensive end Reagan Upshaw, defeated De La Salle in the 1991 North Coast Section championship game, 35-27. That loss was the last time that the Spartans would lose a game in the '90s. They wouldn't lose another game until 2004. Before De La Salle went on their 151-game ride the previous top winning steak was 72. Incredible. The Spartans haven't lost to a northern California opponent since that loss to Pittsburg in the 1991 NCS championship. Ladouceur averaged less than one loss in each of his 34 seasons as head coach. De La Salle is a machine.

Bob Ladouceur isn't leaving the school or the football program completely. He'll continue to teach religious  studies and plans to coach in some capacity. He said that he'll likely work with the lower level programs as well as the varsity team. He will be there to assist Alumbaugh. Not to meddle. I would question the intentions of some coaches that have built an incredible program, a dynasty. Many can't step away from their baby. I completely believe Ladouceur when he says that Justin Alumbaugh will have complete autonomy. I never felt that Bob Ladouceur was driven by success, by records, by numbers. Retiring at win 399 is an indication of that. It's what has always intrigued me about the coach and his program. His goal was to get his players to be better than they ever thought that they could be. That they were better together than they ever could be on their own. Ladouceur had several players make their way to the NFL. Since retired players Amani Toomer, Aaron Taylor, and Doug Brien. Active players D.J. Williams, Maurice Jones-Drew, Derek Landri, Jackie Bates, and T.J. Ward. Those were the exception. For the most part, Spartan players were smaller and less athletic than their opponents. Yet, they always won. Their advantage was execution and teamwork. De La Salle would play any team, anywhere. Southern California, Hawaii, New Jersey, Ohio. Any team. Anywhere. I think that teams were shocked when they saw big, bad De La Salle for the first time. They may have even laughed. This slow, little team has no chance. Four quarters later, they were believers. De La Salle is for real.

When asked about the highlights of his legendary coaching career, Ladouceur didn't mention any titles, wins, or records. "The high points are all the relationships I've developed with the coaches that I work with. They are my best friends." John Madden puts Bob Labouceur in the elite, bay area coaching class with Bill Walsh, Tony LaRussa, Don Nelson, and Jim Harbaugh. It's not often that a high school coach is grouped with professional Hall of Famers but Labouceur was an extraordinary coach. De La Salle will carry on. The football team will continue to win. This is a testament to the program that Bob Ladouceur built.