HONOLULU — Former University of Hawaii coach June Jones, who has emerged as a candidate for the vacant head job with the football program, was to interview virtually for the position on Wednesday afternoon.
That’s according to Rich Miano, the Spectrum Sports football analyst and Jones’ former assistant coach at UH between 1999 and 2007. Miano, once widely considered a candidate for the job himself, has thrown his support behind Jones.
“There’s a Zoom call today with Coach Jones at 1 o’clock, and there’s other people who are being interviewed on the Mainland in-person,” Miano, the director of the Polynesian Bowl high school all-star game, told Spectrum News after a practice at the Kamehameha Kapalama campus on Wednesday morning.
He wasn’t familiar with the format of the interview process and whether UH Athletic Director David Matlin will make the hiring choice himself or with a committee.
Matlin could not immediately be reached via phone Wednesday by Spectrum News, but a source close to the athletic department told Spectrum News that the hire could be made by Friday.
The hiring search process has apparently moved quickly since embattled coach Todd Graham resigned his post last Friday amid a controversy about his relationships with players and cultural fit with the program.
“Both myself and June have been a part of interviews at the University of Hawaii (previously) … so whatever the decision is, I would imagine it’s going to be expedited, but I also think they realize how important it is to make the right choice,” Miano said. “So hopefully this decision will require a thought-provoking process and choose the best candidate.”
There has been some push in the community behind Jones, who guided the program to some of its highest highs. He has been open about his interest in the job.
Former UH quarterback and current Colorado State assistant coach Timmy Chang has also been mentioned as a candidate.
Saint Louis School center Ethan Spencer, who signed his official National Letter of Intent to play for Graham and UH in December, is among the roughly 27 local players participating in the Polynesian Bowl.
“I don’t really pay attention at all the noise going around at UH because I don’t know everything that’s going on, since I’m not there,” Spencer said after Wednesday’s practice. “Stuff that people say … about Coach Graham, I can’t take it seriously because I don’t know what’s going on. But I think once I get there and whoever they’re going to hire next for the head coaching job, I think it’s going to help out the whole state and help out UH football.”
On the word about Jones, Spencer said, “I’ve seen some of the stuff on Twitter about June Jones talking about UH and how he can bring the run and shoot back. … I’ve seen Timmy Chang as well.
“I was obviously still young, but I heard about all the stuff that happened in 2007, and them getting all the way to the Sugar Bowl.”
Jones left UH weeks after the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans on New Year’s Day 2008 and became the head coach at Southern Methodist University. He resigned from the Mustangs program two games into his seventh season in 2014, his last job in college football. He has since had stints in the Canadian Football League and XFL.
In his first season at UH, Jones led UH to one of the greatest turnarounds in college football history, going from 0-12 the year before to 9-4, including a win over Oregon State in the Oahu Bowl.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Saint Louis quarterback AJ Bianco, who had verbally committed to UH under Graham but chose not to sign a National Letter of Intent in December, announced he has switched his commitment to Mountain West Conference rival Nevada.
“Hawaii is my home and will forever be my home but I believe the University of Nevada presents me with the best opportunity to succeed both in the classroom and on the field,” Bianco wrote in a message posted on Twitter.