After 52 seasons coaching high school football, Al Fracassa won't stop down.
He's stepping up.
The legendary coach from
Brother Rice (Bloomfield Hills) in Michigan told a group of players, parents and administrators at a team banquet last week that he's up for year No. 53, the Detroit News reported over the weekend.
"I'm going to give it another go," he told the newspaper.
Why not? Brother Rice (10-4) is coming off yet another state title, the school's seventh and his ninth.
He's coached 44 years at Brother Rice and recorded a 404-119-7 record during his entire 52-year career. Brother Rice defeated Lowell 24-14 in the Division 2 state finals last month.
Fracassa, 79, entered the 2011 season ranked No. 8 among current coaches in career wins. He was voted the NFL High School Coach of the Year in 1997. He said practice is his favorite time.
"I love it more than the games," he told the Detroit News.