Darrin Chiaverini
Story and Photos by Jerry Soifer
You may have had a double-take spying a college football coach playing a neighborhood pick-up game in Corona’s Brentwood Park during the height of bowl season.
But former Corona High, University of Colorado, and NFL receiver Darrin Chiaverini has never forgotten where he came from.
Now the head coach at Northeastern State University in Oklahoma, Chiaverini took a break from the recruiting wars to gather family and friends for a friendly game at the park last Saturday.
Playing quarterback, Chiaverini threw the ball to an assortment of receivers, including his son, Curtis, and Mario Guzman, who made a spectacular catch under guard from brothers Nathan and Nevin Lopez. Their father, Mikey, is a Corona police officer and a former championship wrestler at Corona High.
Others present included Darrin’s brother, Ryan Chiaverini, Brian Rios, Joe Montes, and Victor Ramirez.
Noting that the family has moved 20 times in its football odyssey, Darrin’s wife, Shannon, watched from a park bench.
Besides appearing in the film “The Longest Yard,” Chiaverini has been an assistant coach at his alma mater Colorado, Texas Tech, and UCLA. Before accepting the top job at Northeast Oklahoma, he led Chaffey College to an undefeated season in 2023, named the American Metro Conference Coach of the Year.
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