New Roosevelt football head coach Alex Melson eager to work with new community

ST. JOHNS – Admittedly, there were some playful boos when Alex Melson first introduced himself to the Roosevelt High School football team.

Being a Grant alum and having coached football in Generals blue for 11 years, three as the head coach, Melson wasn’t surprised and laughed it off.

But after the introductions were over, it was back to work for Melson and his Roughriders squad where the new head coach looks to maintain the success the program has built over the last decade.

“Every time that we played Roosevelt, I’ve always been pretty intrigued by the type of players that they have,” Melson said. “They’ve always been super competitive, they’ve always been super physical and I like that. I like groups of kids that want to compete, that want to show up, even if they don’t have all the resources or all the new shiny things. It’s just about them getting out there and competing.”

Melson was an assistant coach at Grant for eight years leading up to him taking over the program in 2022.

Grant went 14-15 in three seasons under Melson, along with a 13-7 record in the PIL where the Generals shared the league crown in 2022 with Roosevelt and Jefferson.

Melson spent last year assisting in the Clackamas program, which is where former Roosevelt head coach Ryan McCants is now following his final season in North Portland.

Last year, the Riders won the PIL outright for only the third time in program history and the first time since 1995.

Needless to say, there’s a good foundation that Melson hopes to keep stacking onto.

“For me, it’s always really about supporting the kids. That’s why I teach, that’s why I do what I do with the youth and the kids,” Melson said. “Try to be a resource for them, try to build positive relationships that can impact them moving forward. I know after (McCants) leaving that that would be a huge void that would need to be filled. … I’m excited for all those opportunities to get immersed in the community and build up the football program.”

Melson will be the dean of students at Roosevelt next year, which was an important piece in the job search as Melson wants to be in the building helping teach there as well.

The job is about more than winning football games for Melson, who sees how tied into the North Portland area that the football program is.

“I grew up in Portland, but I didn’t necessarily grow up in North Portland or anything like that,” Melson said. “But I’ve always known that they have a real sense of pride in the community and they always kind of rally behind their teams.”

There was plenty to learn from being the head man at Grant as well for Melson. But the biggest lesson he took away from the experience is building connections.

Connecting with the players is the easy part, but it’s about syncing up with the accompanying community and making sure everyone is on board.

“Me coming over here, it’s been really important for me to get in touch with the community, see what our resources are,” Melson said. “One thing that’s going to be big for us is fundraising. What does that look like at Roosevelt? I know it’s gonna look different at Roosevelt than it did at Grant and I know I’m going to have to lean on those resources.

“Just figuring out ways to build the football family outside of the traditional people that are involved with it, get more people into the fold. The more people we have into the fold, more people we have supporting and pouring into the program, the more success we’re going to have.”

As for on the field, the Riders are losing a good chunk of production after a talented senior class said goodbye last fall.

Melson, a defensive-minded coach, isn’t too worried as that physical nature he’s seen from the outside will now be at his hands to structure a new defensive force.

Players like senior Malachi James, senior Jesse Brucato, senior Naheem Campbell and sophomore TyVelle Hill are all returners that Melson expects to make a big impact.

Brucato was an All-PIL second-team D-lineman as well as an honorable mention tight end. Campbell was an honorable mention wide receiver and Hill was a first-team defensive back, the latter of which Melson expects to be more involved in the receiving game this fall.

Roosevelt also added a new quarterback in senior Marlan McCowan from McDaniel, who was named to the All-PIL second team last year.

“We definitely have some guys coming back and I’m really excited for the younger guys because they have a real good group that’s been grinding and working together that’s gonna ensure that our future even after this year is still bright,” Melson said.

Benson is returning to varsity football this year and with the move comes an eight-game PIL slate for the Riders.

Their first game of the season though will be their lone nonleague matchup, a road game at 7 p.m. Sept 4 at Sunset.

After winning the PIL last year and being in the mix the last several years, Melson wants his team to not only repeat as league champs, but look to take that next step in the postseason as well.

“A lot of them want to repeat as league champions, which I definitely think we can do,” Melson said. “But I’m also trying to raise expectations. You guys have been in the mix for league champions every single year the last four years, what’s our next goal? What do we want to do in the postseason? And that’s really where the kids want to kind of elevate to.”