Griffin Alstott taking a different track to his father's alma mater

ST. PETERSBURG (FOX 13) - There's an iron bond and mutual respect between Mike Alstott and his son Griffin. They have leaned on and learned from each other. From day one, Griffin has been the quarterback in many ways at Northside Christian High School. He's the one that handed dad the ball asking him to run the program.

"He started in his first year going 0-10 and we've made the playoffs the last two years," said Griffin. "It's just amazing what he's done with this program. The kind of guys he's brought together. He started a great thing here."

Griffin his heading into his senior high school season. He and his father know their time is limited and they're enjoying every minute together.

"It's gone by in a blink of an eye," continued Griffin. "I feel like yesterday I was a freshman, just getting here. It's gone by so fast. I've just been trying to enjoy every minute of it."

"It's going to be a sad day," said Mike. "It's going to be a blink of an eye and he's going to be going off to college. It's going to be really, really, different because I've never coached at any level. Baseball or football that he hasn't been a part of. It's going to be very weird, but at the same time I have a lot of great kids here that I want to help get to college. I will miss my buddy."

Mike gets emotional, but at the same time swells with pride knowing where his son is heading to his alma mater, Purdue.

"It's so sweet," said Mike. "It's really special. It really is. To be able to go back to the stomping grounds and be able to see your son play on the field where everything pretty much started at."

Mike has prepared his son well to be successful at Purdue, but Griffin knows it's up to him to create his own legacy.

"I try to go out and make a name for myself," said Griffin. "I can't always live in his shadow, but everything he's done has opened a lot of doors for me. I just have to step through them and make a name for my own."

Griffin isn't alone. He's one of a bunch of Buccaneer sons that have all come of age at the same time ready for the next level.

"It just means I have a lot of gray hair," joked Mike. "Seeing my other teammates' sons being successful and doing some great things, it's very, very, cool. If it came full circle they're all at the Buccaneers someday, that would be awesome."