Jones Agrees To Coach Hawaii

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

December 10, 1998 / 2:49 PM EST / CBS Sportsline

June Jones, the San Diego Chargers interim head coach, has accepted the head coaching job at the University of Hawaii, The Associated Press has learned.

Jones told his players of his decision in a team meeting Thursday morning, a team source said. Jones was to make the decision official after Thursday's practice.

Hawaii officials worked late into the night Wednesday to finalize a contract with Jones, a former Hawaii player and assistant coach.

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The school last week fired Fred vonAppen after he compiled a 5-31 record over three seasons, including 0-12 this season. The winless season tied an NCAA record for the worst single-season mark in Division I-A and is part of an 18-game losing streak, longest in the nation.

Jones became the front-runner to replace vonAppen after Utah coach Ron McBride withdrew from consideration, saying the process was taking too long.

Although the move might seem odd, going from an NFL job to a school that has lost 18 consecutive games, Jones has ties to Hawaii.

He said while he loves San Diego and the situation with the Chargers, he has had a lifelong dream to return to Hawaii, where he played at quarterback in 1974 and served as an assistant coach in 1983.

Even after Jones became a strong candidate for the Hawaii job, the Chargers said they would wait until after the season to decide whether to give Jones their head coaching job on a permanent basis.

Jones is expected to coach the Chargers' final three games.

Jones replaced the fired Kevin Gilbride on Oct. 13. The Chargers are 3-4 since Jones took over and 5-8 overall.

Besides McBride, Hawaii officials also interviewed Southern California defensive coordinator Bill Young and Navy offensive coordinator Ken Niumatalolo, a former Hawaii player and assistant.

Other candidates were Duane Akina, Arizona's associate head coach; Larry Kennan, xecutive director of the NFL Coaches Association; and Cal Lee, athletic director and head coach at St. Louis School, a high school in Hawaii.