SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sacramento State Director of Athletics Mark Orr announced Alonzo Carter as the program's 14^th head football coach.
 
"We are thrilled to welcome Alonzo Carter as our next head football coach," Orr said. "Coach Carter is a proven leader who has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to developing student-athletes on and off the field. His history of success in recruiting, constructing teams, and producing results at all levels of football makes him an ideal fit for Sacramento State. We look forward to welcoming him and his family back to his native Northern California and having him as part of the Sacramento community for years to come."
 
Known for his recruiting ability and deep roots in Northern California, Carter is coming home and most recently served as the assistant head coach and running backs coach at the University of Arizona. Additionally, he has experience as a head coach at the high school and junior college levels.
 
"Being named the head football coach at Sacramento State is truly an honor and a dream fulfilled," Carter said. "I want to thank President Luke Wood and Athletics Director Mark Orr for giving me the opportunity to return to Northern California and lead this program. Every stop in my career has prepared me for this moment. Sacramento State deserves a program built on discipline, effort, and pride. We're here to raise the standard and represent this University the right way."
 
Carter has spent the past nine seasons working under Brett Brennan at San Jose State and at the University of Arizona. He joined the Spartans football coaching staff in January 2017 as the running backs coach and added the duties of assistant head coach in 2021. After a successful run at SJSU which included three bowl appearances, he joined the Arizona staff prior to the 2024 season.
 
This season, the Wildcats went 9-3 in the regular season and will play in the Trust & Will Holiday Bowl on Jan. 2. The team rushed for 2,143 yards and 20 touchdowns and was led by Ismail Mahdi who had 826 yards and four scores. That effort helped Mahdi earn all-Big 12 Conference honors.
 
In his role as assistant head coach, he aided in the administration of the program, led practices and meetings in the head coach's absence and represented the team at campus and community events.
 
During Carter's final season at San Jose State (2023), running back Kairee Robinson finished second in the Mountain West Conference with a career-high 1,194 rushing yards and led the conference with a career-high 18 rushing touchdowns.  
 
Carter's running backs played a large role in helping the Spartans go 7-1 overall in 2020, win the Mountain West title and end the season ranked 24^th in the AP Poll. The San Jose State backs averaged 4.5 yards per rush and became one of the first two teams in NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) history to complete a season without losing a fumble by a ball handler on offense, defense, and special teams.  
 
As a head coach at Contra Costa JC from 2010-16, Carter led the team to four conference titles and a pair of bowl victories. In 2012, his team won the Bay Valley Conference, he was named the league coach of the year as well as the CCCFA Region II Coach of the Year. He added a second BVC title the following season and then won Pacific 7 Conference titles in 2014 and 2015. The team advanced to win the Living Breath Foundation Bowl in 2012 and 2014.
 
Prior to that position, Carter was the head coach at McClymonds High School in Oakland, Calif., for seven years (1999-06) where he won three CIF Oakland Section titles. He was also the head coach at  Berkeley HS for three seasons (2007-09) and the head track and field coach at McClymonds High School for 13 years. Overall, he owns a 129-69-3 record as a head coach.
 
During the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic and up to the start of the delayed season, Carter became a national figure through his West Coast Zoom clinics — weekly sessions involving hundreds of football coaches. Rooted in listening, learning and networking, he relied on his professional connections and hosted engaging ZOOM calls lasting up to seven hours, either once or twice a week. For his use of the Zoom technology platform, he received a 2020 Zoomtopia award for innovation — emphasis on diversity: bridging the divide. 
 
In August 2020, he was named to the National Coalition of Minority Football Coaches (NCMFC) executive committee. The organization's goal is to identify and groom coaches of color and create a list of coaching candidates for upward mobility. The NCMFC recognized his organizational commitment through his recruitment of more than 100 new members, providing mentoring, and mock interview sessions with its MVP Advocate Award for 2020. Since August 2020, he assisted 26 NCMFC members that advanced to coaching positions of greater responsibility or visibility. 
 
Carter was inducted into the African American Ethnic Sports Hall of Fame in 2001, and the Contra Costa JC Hall of Fame in 2025. He holds coaching certifications from the American Football Coaches Association, the California Interscholastic Federation and the California Community College Athletic Association. Carter was selected to participate in the Bill Walsh NFL Diversity Coaching Fellowship program in 2017 with the San Francisco 49ers. 
 
Carter graduated from Cal State East Bay with a degree in African American studies in 2016. He was a member of the Pioneers' football and track and field teams while the school was known as Cal State Hayward. Carter is the father of four children: Alonzo Carter II, Alona Carter, Anthony Carter, and Kennedie Carter.
 
COACH CARTER FILE

• 247sports.com Mountain West Recruiter of the Year (2019) 
• CCCAA Coach of the Year (2012, 2014, 2015) 
• Alameda Contra Costa Area League Coach of the Year (2009) 
• Named the East Bay Coach of the Year (2001, 2005, 2006)
• Contra Costa Hall of Fame, Class of 2025
• Head coach at Contra Costa College (2010-16)
• Went 47-27 and won four conference titles
• Head coach at Berkeley HS in Berkeley, Calif. (2007-09) 
• Head coach at McClymonds HS in Oakland, Calif. (1999-06) 
• Won four league championships and three Oakland Section titles in eight seasons

 

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING

"I have known Coach Carter for 25 years, and he is a tremendous leader of men. He brought an incredible amount of experience, leadership, and energy to our programs at both San Jose State and Arizona. I am grateful for his invaluable contributions over the last nine years. I love Coach Carter, and I am excited for what he will bring to Sacramento State, its football program, and its community."
- Brent Brennan, Head Coach, University of Arizona
 
"I've known Coach Carter for much of my coaching career, and he has consistently created opportunities for coaches to connect, grow, and mentor one another. I've watched his leadership elevate talent on the field, but what truly stands out is his mastery in mentoring young people off the field. Coach Carter emits positivity and joy to everyone around him, and I am honored to call him both a great friend and mentor."
- Kalani Sitake, Head Coach, Brigham Young University
 
"Coach Carter is a true leader of men. Our relationship spans more than 20 years, and he has been a valuable mentor in my growth as a coach. He has won at every stop, and that success will continue in Sacramento. As a native of the 916, I can't wait to see him build my hometown into a powerhouse."
- Jamar Cain, Defensive Line Coach, Denver Broncos
 
"Hiring Alonzo Carter as head coach is a home-run hire. I've known Alonzo since 2000, and while he's a great football coach, he's even more impressive as a developer of men on and off the field. He truly cares about his players as people first — academically and personally — before worrying about football. That's why he has been successful everywhere he's been. Sacramento State has hired someone the entire campus will be proud to call 'Coach.'"
- Jon Embree, Assistant Head Coach, Miami Dolphins
 
"Sacramento State has made a phenomenal hire in Alonzo Carter. In 2021, during one of the toughest times in our country's history, Coach Zo launched the West Coast Zoom Clinic, bringing hundreds of coaches together nationwide. He is a bridge builder, a visionary, a developer of talent, and a leader of men. He has excelled at every level — from high school to junior college to the highest levels of college football — and I have no doubt he will continue to excel as a Division I head coach. I'm honored to call him a big brother."
- Willie Simmons, Head Coach, Florida International University
 
"Sacramento State has hit a home run hiring my friend Alonzo Carter. He did an outstanding job as a head coach for many years, can coach at any level, and knows how to relate to people — especially young men — while winning with class. Alonzo is a builder of both men and programs. He also launched a Zoom initiative that helped minority coaches across the country, which I had the privilege to participate in many times. Like everything he touches, it was pure gold. I can't wait to watch my friend do his thing."
- Mack Brown, College Football Hall of Fame Coach, Former Head Coach, Texas & North Carolina
 
"There is no coach who has had a greater impact on my life, and the lives of so many of my friends, than Alonzo 'Zo' Carter. Whether as a player or a person, no matter where you begin your journey with him, Coach Carter elevates your abilities, strengthens your belief, fuels your enthusiasm, and expands your understanding of what you're truly capable of. I'm excited to see Sacramento State flourish under his leadership. Get ready."
- Nnamdi Asomugha, Former NFL All-Pro Cornerback

"I'm confident Coach Zo will do an outstanding job at Sacramento State. He has tremendous leadership qualities and is a proven winner. He connects with people and gives so much of himself to the young men in his program to ensure their success — both in football and in life. Zo also embraced the opportunity to serve as an executive committee member of the National Coalition of Minority Football Coaches, which I founded in 2020, and he has been a tremendous asset in advancing better hiring practices across the country. I'm truly happy for him and for Sacramento State."
- Coach Mike Locksley, Head Coach, Maryland; President & CEO, National Coalition of Minority Football Coaches