LOS GATOS — Some memories don’t fade away.
So it was that Los Gatos High School, on Friday night against Pittsburg, rechristened its traditional “Pink Out” game as the Allan McGurk Memorial Cancer Awareness Game. Because to those at Los Gatos, McGurk’s memory must live on.
“He was our longtime freshman head coach who had battled (colon) cancer prior to coaching,” Los Gatos coach Mark Krail said. “The cancer had a period of remission, and then it came back. And the second time, it took his life.”
McGurk coached the Wildcats’ freshman team for the last time in 2022, then had to step away from coaching to battle lung cancer.
“That’s when he started his second battle, if you will,” Krail said. “He fought hard for a couple years, and then finally…
“Cancer doesn’t slow down all the time. Sometimes it does, but not often.”
McGurk died this summer after a long, hard-fought bout with the disease. He was 54.
“He was just a great guy,” Krail remembered. “He was a great inspiration to our kids. His messaging and his influence was bigger than X’s and O’s, and he was loved. Our seniors were his last team that he coached here. So they were all very, very close to him, and tonight was a special night in that regard. We did well by honoring him tonight.”
McGurk’s family traveled from Utah to witness the festivities at Helm Field and take in the tribute from those in attendance. Players on both teams wore pink socks and other accessories to honor his memory.
“He lived out here, and in his final days, his sister and family were out here, and they saw the love that our community showed Allan,” Krail said. “Hundreds of kids going to the hospital to visit and say their goodbyes. And it was really a difficult time.
“It was over the summer, and the family was blown away. Because being in Utah, you don’t know the impact that you have on kids, and it really warmed their heart to see the impact that Allan had on our community and our kids.”
Los Gatos’ players past and present attended McGurk’s memorial service adorned in their Wildcats jerseys.
“It was a tough time, but it was a real celebration of his life,” Krail said. “And it’s important to us that we keep his name in the forefront and promote his legacy and the way he did things, because he was very beloved by all of our players, for sure. And it wasn’t just the great players. It was No. 49 on the roster of 50 that he loved. He made every kid feel important and feel a part of what they were doing. So it was a big loss for us. It really was.”
Senior lineman Garrett Bertsch, a Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo commit, said McGurk, a former lineman himself, nurtured a longstanding love of the game early in his high school career.
“He was one of the greatest inspirations,” Bertsch said. “He taught me what football was all about. Football is a tough sport. You could really get down on yourself, feel not motivated. But every day, he came with a positive attitude, and it really brightened my day and made me want to keep playing football on and on.”
Since it his freshman year, Bertsch has worn No. 54, the same number McGurk wore in high school.
“Every time I put on the jersey, I think about him, and I want to do my best for him,” Bertsch said.
McGurk bestowed fellow senior lineman Nathaniel Vorobeichik his “Vorby” nickname, which has stuck for all four of Vorobeichik’s years at Los Gatos.
“No one in my family ever played football,” Vorobeichik said. “The only reason I ever joined was because my friends were doing it. He was my first coach I went to, and he always made me feel included.
“When I first joined, I wasn’t that good. I didn’t know what I was doing. What really stood out to me is no matter how good you were or how much you’ve played before, he always helped you no matter what. He would always bring a smile to your face, even if you were having a rough day.”
Vorobeichik said he was able to share those sentiments with McGurk before he passed and attend his memorial service.
“I wasn’t able to visit him,” Vorobeichik said. “But I did text him and I told him how much he meant to me, and I got a message back.”
Krail has a deeply personal history with cancer. His father, Robert, died in 2006 at the age of 69 after battling lung cancer.
That experience motivated Krail to start a nonprofit called Coaches Against Cancer, which has raised significant money over the years since its founding.
“We supported Allan while he was in the middle of his fight,” Krail said. “It’s a bittersweet organization, because you’re helping people, but you’re also right in the middle of a lot of people fighting cancer, so it’s tough. But if we can brighten a person’s day for a short time while they’re fighting, or be supportive while that fight’s going on, it’s all worth it.”
Coaches Against Cancer has raised nearly seven figures since its inception, according to Krail.
“We’ve been able to help quite a few people and families,” Krail said. “It was the saddest day of my life, and my dad fought for five years. So then after your mourning and your grief, then it’s like, ‘What can I do to make some good out of this?’ So that part feels good.”
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