New Lead Jackrabbit

Long Beach Polytechnic High School has sent more players to the NFL than any other high school in the country, sending over 60 throughout the history of the school. Gene Washington, Tony Hill, Mark Carrier, Leonard Russell, Willie McGinest, Marcedes Lewis, Winston Justice, DeSean Jackson, and Jurrell Casey are a few of the former Jackrabbits that found success in the NFL. It just seems fitting that a former NFL player coaches future NFL players. This past week, former Washington Redskins and New York Giants middle linebacker Antonio Pierce was hired as head coach at Long Beach Poly. Pierce may not have played high school football at Long Beach Poly but he played at nearby Paramount High. He grew up in the area. He knows the lives led by the Jackrabbit football players.

While Antonio Pierce has a strong football background and may have been something of a coach on the field, he has no coaching experience. His free youth camps in the Long Beach area have been a popular draw for several years. He may already know some of the players that he'll be coaching. The shoes that Pierce will be stepping into at Long Beach Poly will be hard to fill. Raul Lara won a school-record five CIF titles in his thirteen years as the Jackrabbits head coach before stepping away in December. Before Lara, Jerry Jaso won four Section championships. Pierce is following the two winningest coaches in school history. Pierce is the team's first hire from outside the program since Troy Winslow was named head coach in 1971. Pierce was hired over current Poly assistants Jeff Turley and AJ Luke.

Sources say that Pierce will bring in his own staff, but also retain some of the current assistants. That plan might include Luke and defensive backs coach Doc Moyle to remain a part of the program. As always, there will be football talent at Long Beach Poly. Defensive back Iman Marshall is an All-American candidate. Running backs Jeremy Calhoun and James Brooks, linebacker Omari Lyles, and defensive lineman Joseph Wicker are likely make Antonio Pierce a happy first year head coach.

Antonio Pierce's lack of head coaching experience, the Jackrabbit's powerful football tradition and history of hiring within the program have some people a little skeptical of this hire. His NFL playing experience, Super Bowl ring, and national fame make this a flashy hire but wins and titles are all that really matters at Long Beach Poly. It's also not helping that Pierce plans to continue working as an analyst with ESPN. So, he'll be bouncing back and forth between Long Beach and Bristol, CT throughout the football season. One thing that always struck me about Antonio Pierce, the football player, was his serious, business-like nature and on-field leadership. I don't think that he'd be jumping into high school coaching without a serious commitment to it. If I was a Jackrabbit, I'd follow Antonio Pierce.