The562’s coverage of Long Beach Poly is sponsored by Bryson Financial
Friday was a historic day for Long Beach football. Antonio Pierce, a Compton native who played high school ball at Paramount, college ball at Arizona, and pro ball with the Giants and other teams, became the first former Long Beach or Moore League football coach to become the head coach of an NFL team. Pierce was hired by the Las Vegas Raiders on Friday as they removed the interim head coach tag and made it official; Pierce had been the team’s interim coach since Halloween.
Pierce was the head coach at Long Beach Poly from 2014-2017, going 35-11 on the field but also forfeiting four games. The Jackrabbits made the CIF-SS Division 1 semifinals in his first year and the D1 quarterfinals in his fourth year. Pierce departed the Jackrabbits for Arizona State, where he rose through the ranks while also recruiting several Poly alums, including current Raider Jack Jones.
“It’s a special place and the kids are great, the best thing about Long Beach Poly is the student-athletes, they’re incredible people,” said Pierce on the day he announced he was leaving. “Watching those kids go to college, seeing families smile on signing day, I’ll never forget that.”
He famously shut down the Jackrabbits JV program as a form of protest against LBUSD admissions policies that he said were overly restrictive of Poly, citing the falling number of players in the program. Asked about what advice he’d give to his predecessor (which ended up being current coach Stephen Barbee), Pierce said:
“It starts with the district and administration being supportive. You’re in the lowest income area of any school in Division 1, and you have to deal with a lot as a result—raising money, getting community involvement if you want to remain competitive.”
Pierce’s hiring continues a long-standing history between Poly and the Raiders, whose previous owner, Al Davis, was in love with the fabled speed of Poly athletes. Davis had recruited Poly athletes as an assistant at USC, and when he bought the Raiders continued to feel that Poly players were faster than any other in the nation, leading him to take flyers on several Poly free agents or unsigned draftees.
When Pierce picked up Jones this year, Jones became just the latest in a long line of Jackrabbit Raiders, and Pierce and Jones have now officially been coach and player at the high school, college, and NFL level, a unique circumstance that drew several TV broadcast features this year.
As another odd local coincidence, the two Poly coaches who came before and after Pierce–Raul Lara and Barbee–are both big Raiders fans as well.
“A huge congratulations to Antonio Pierce on being named head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders,” said Barbee after the hire was official. “The road from 1600 Atlantic to the NFL is the most traveled and we are proud to be able to see him represent Long Beach Poly football and succeed on the biggest stage possible.”
Imitating Pierce’s now-famous locker room victory celebrations, Barbee added, “Rrrrrrraaaaaaaiiiiiiderrrrrrrrrs.”
