Former Cal and NFL RB CJ Anderson Named Head Coach at Monte Vista HS

Ex-Broncos, Rams and Golden Bears standout was a volunteer assistant for Cal this past year and now gets a shot to run the show at a Bay Area school.

Former Cal and NFL running back CJ Anderson has been named the head football coach at Monte Vista High School in Danville, the school announced via social media on Tuesday.

Anderson replaces Matt Russi, who stepped down after the Mustangs went 0-6 this past season, which was played in the spring.

Anderson played in three Super Bowls and was the Denver Broncos leading rusher in their Super Bowl victory over Carolina following the 2015 season.

Following his retirement after seven years in the NFL, Anderson became a volunteer assistant coach at Cal last October.

Now he becomes the head coach at a Bay Area high school with a rich football tradition.   Anderson has never been a head coach at any level.

The hiring of Anderson comes one month after St. Mary's High School in Berkeley named former Cal an NFL running back Jahvid Best as its head coach.

Anderson had to work his way up at Cal. He played two seasons for the Golden Bears (2011 and 2012) after playing two seasons of junior-college ball at Laney College in Oakland.

He rushed for 790 yards as a senior at Cal, but Isi Sofele was the Bears' primary starting running back that season. 

Anderson was not taken in the 2013 NFL draft, and signed with Denver as a free agent.

He became a starter in his second season with the Broncos (2014) and was selected to the Pro Bowl that year. 

In 2015, he rushed for 720 yards and caught 25 passes. In the Broncos' 24-10 Super Bowl win over Carolina that season, Anderson rushed for 90 yards and scored a touchdown.

Anderson's best season was 2017, when he rushed for 1,007 yards, but the Broncos released him after that season.

He was picked up by the Rams late in the 2018 season and became a force in their run to the Super Bowl. He ran for 123 yards and two touchdowns in Los Angeles' opening-round postseason win over Dallas, but he was limited to 22 yards in the Rams' 13-3 loss to the Patriots in the Super Bowl.

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Cover photo of CJ Anderson during his short stay with the Detroit Lions is by Mark J. Rebilas, USA TODAY Sports.

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