LIHU’E — He came, he conquered, he kicked some butt! No, we’re not talking about June Jones’ latest appearance on Kaua’i. We’re talking about a previous appearance — in June of 1999. That’s when he came to the Kaua’i Marriott
LIHU’E — He came, he conquered, he kicked some butt!
No, we’re not talking
about June Jones’ latest appearance on Kaua’i.
We’re talking about a
previous appearance — in June of 1999.
That’s when he came to the Kaua’i
Marriott and foreshadowed the eventual University of Hawa’i football success
story by talking about high-minded, positive and inspirational themes.
Sure
enough, Jones, in his first year as coach, got the UH football wheels spinning
even faster than his own predictions.
Jones was back at the Kaua’i Marriott
on Tuesday night as a guest speaker at the Kaua’i Chamber of Commerce quarterly
meeting.
A few of the stories he told were the same as before, and most
were different, but the message was crystal clear: have a goal, stick to your
guns, get everybody involved, and execute it.
Jones spoke about a talented
Atlanta Hawks basketball team in the early 1980s that had uncanny team unity.
But the team fell apart, Jones said, because the management didn’t understand
just how special the team unity was and destroyed it by making trades late in
the season.
“The management totally underestimated the importance of team
unity,” Jones said. “From the top down, they weren’t on the same page, and they
were defeated from within.”
Jones told of ways to make even the less-noted
players feel special.
Take the case of special teams.
“When a player on
special teams makes a big hit, we may show the film of it the following week,
but we also have a camera pointed at the bench that will show the players’
reaction to the hit,” the coach said. “And the player who made that hit will
see his teammates on the sidelines jumping up and down and getting excited and
inspired.
“Do the things that inspire each other,” Jones added as a bit of
advice for the Chamber members. “And surrender the me for the we.”
He says
confidence must start from the top and be unwavering.
“You need to create
an atmosphere of trust and honesty,” he said. “I have players come to me all
the time and ask why they’re not playing. I look them right in the eye and tell
them that they’re not good enough. But I also tell them what they can do to
improve and to be ready when and if they’re needed.”
Jones said leaders
must also be passionate about what they do, and they must have great
discernment with the ability to envision what others don’t see.
He added
that leaders must also be quick to take the blame and be good listeners and
servants.
“In one game, there was a time when we should have gone for two
points after a touchdown, but went for one instead. It was a mistake and I know
which coach was responsible for that, but when the press questioned me after
the game, I said “I screwed up.”
Many things Jones has put into his
playbook have come from his players. He listens to what the players have to say
about certain situations and incorporates their good ideas.
Jones called
last season “a miracle” and said things like that can only happen “when you
work together, sacrifice for each other, play at the heroic level and have no
limits.”
At the beginning of his talk, Jones noted there were more people
in attendance this time than last June.
At the end of his talk, Jones
received a standing ovation.
