Antonio Alfano (born November 10, 2000) is an American-Canadian professional football defensive tackle for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL).
| No. 99 Edmonton Elks | |
 Alfano with the Edmonton Elks in 2024 | |
| Born: | November 10, 2000 Livingston, New Jersey, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Career information | |
| Status | Active |
| CFL status | National |
| Position(s) | DL |
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) |
| Weight | 285 lb (129 kg) |
| College | Lackawanna College |
| CFL draft | 2024, round: 8, pick: Supplemental |
| Drafted by | Edmonton Elks |
| Career history | |
| As player | |
| 2024–present | Edmonton Elks |
Early life
editAlfano was born on November 10, 2000, in Livingston, New Jersey. Raised in Rahway, New Jersey, Alfano attended the local public schools through eighth grade before enrolling at Bergen Catholic High School.[1] He transferred to Rahway High School in his hometown, before moving from Rahway to the Avenel section of Woodbridge Township, New Jersey, and transferring to Colonia High School in New Jersey.[2][3] As a senior, Alfano was a 5-star recruit and the fifth-ranked overall player in the class of 2019, and was named to the All-American team by MaxPreps.[4] He received scholarship offers from Alabama, Notre Dame, Florida State, Florida, LSU, USC, Miami, Ohio State, Penn State, Rutgers and others.[5]
College career
editAs a freshman at Alabama, Alfano was absent from class and practices in September for unspecified reasons, though Alfano's father tweeted that his absence may have stemmed from Alfano's grandmother, who had been in ill-health at the time.[6] Alfano entered the NCAA transfer portal on September 13, 2019, and Colorado Buffaloes head coach (and former Alabama Crimson Tide defensive backs coach) Mel Tucker announced that Alfano had transferred to Colorado on November 4, 2019.[7] Alabama head coach Nick Saban addressed Alfano's time with the team by saying Alfano, "basically quit."[8] He did not play any games for the Crimson Tide.[9]
Buffaloes head coach Mel Tucker had previously recruited Alfano to Georgia, where Tucker was the defensive coordinator at the time.[10] One month after Alfano officially enrolled at Colorado, Buffaloes head coach Mel Tucker left the program to take the same position at Michigan State University, while Alfano's position coach at Colorado, Jimmy Brumbaugh, also left the program the same week to take a coaching job at the University of Tennessee.[11] On May 29, 2020, it was reported that Alfano was no longer enrolled at Colorado and no longer a member of the football team.[12] As of August 19, 2020, Alfano was reinstated to the football team.[13][14]
Without playing a game at Colorado, Alfano transferred to Independence Community College, but also never saw game action. After a year out of football, Alfano joined Lackawanna College in Pennsylvania where he played in five games, recording 14 tackles, eight tackles for loss, four sacks, one pass knockdown and one forced fumble.[15]
Professional career
editThe Edmonton Elks drafted Alfano in the 2024 CFL supplemental draft.[16] He obtained Canadian citizenship via his mother who is from Toronto but was not able to formally acquire it in time to be eligible for the 2024 CFL draft.[17]
References
edit- ^ Tufaro, Greg. "Top national football recruit transfers to Rahway from Belic", Courier News, August 11, 2017. Accessed November 13, 2019. "Alfano attended Rahway public schools for nine years before enrolling at Bergen Catholic as a high school freshman."
- ^ Hunt, Todderick. "Breaking: N.J.'s top defender Antonio Alfano transferring from Rahway to Colonia for senior year", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, February 23, 2018. Accessed November 13, 2019. "Top defensive end Antonio Alfano will transfer once again after moving to Rahway from Bergen Catholic last fall. This time, he'll go to Colonia (N.J.) following a change of residence from Rahway to Avenel -- a move that gains him no athletic advantage."
- ^ VanHaaren, Tom (November 5, 2019). "Ex-Alabama D-lineman Antonio Alfano going to Colorado". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
- ^ Kratch, James (September 13, 2019). "Alabama's Antonio Alfano, 5-star recruit from N.J., enters transfer portal". NJ.com.
- ^ Hunt, Todderick (February 23, 2018). "BREAKING: N.J.'s top defender Antonio Alfano transferring from Rahway to Colonia for senior year". NJ.com.
- ^ Sallee, Barrett (September 13, 2019). "Antonio Alfano, the top-ranked player in Alabama's 2019 recruiting class, enters the transfer portal". CBS Sports.
- ^ Sallee, Barrett (November 4, 2019). "Ex-Alabama five-star defensive lineman Antonio Alfano transfers to Colorado". CBS Sports.
- ^ VanHaaren, Tom (October 16, 2019). "Source: Alabama's Antonio Alfano in transfer portal month after dad's tweets". ESPN.
- ^ Graham, Pat (November 8, 2019). "After 5-game skid, Colorado needs to win out for bowl berth". Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 9, 2019.
- ^ Corcoran, Tully (November 5, 2019). "Antoni Alfano Is a Big Get, But There Is a Red Flag". Sports Illustrated.
- ^ Munsterteiger, Adam (February 13, 2020). "CU defensive lineman Antonio Alfano makes statement on Instagram". 247sports.com.
- ^ Sallee, Barrett (May 29, 2020). "Colorado DL Antonio Alfano, former five-star Alabama prospect, no longer with Buffaloes program". CBS Sports.
- ^ Hauser, Jeff (August 20, 2020). "Colorado Buffaloes Football: Antonio Alfano reinstated from suspension". The Ralphie Report.
- ^ Howell, Brian (August 19, 2020). "CU Buffs' Antonio Alfano reinstated from suspension". BuffZone. Retrieved August 19, 2020.
- ^ "Edmonton Elks select DL Antonio Alfano in CFL supplemental draft". 3Down Nation. May 21, 2024. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
- ^ "Elks select Antonio Alfano (DL) in the Supplemental Draft". Edmonton Elks. May 21, 2024. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
- ^ "Elks select defensive lineman Antonio Alfano in CFL supplemental draft". Global News. May 22, 2024.