Jones mum on $1M offer to coach Ga. Tech

By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer

University of Hawai'i football coach June Jones has been contacted about the vacant head coaching job at Georgia Tech, according to people familiar with the situation.

The school is offering a six-year contract that could pay more than $1 million annually, including bonuses, according to sources.

Jones said he has no plans to leave Hawai'i.

"If I were contacted, I would not tell (reporters)," Jones told The Advertiser, adding, "My plan is to stay here."

Jones later told other news organizations that he had not received any offers from Georgia Tech but refused to comment further.

Jones' agent, Leigh Steinberg, said he has been contacted by Georgia Tech intermediaries, but neither he nor Jones has had any formal discussions with them.

Steinberg said Jones' success at UH "will attract programs from across the nation. He will get offers this year and throughout the future from collegiate and professional programs."

Steinberg also reiterated Jones' commitment to UH, saying, "Hawai'i is where his heart is."

"He's been very clear in his commitment to the state of Hawai'i," Steinberg said. "He is in the place he would like to be. He would like to continue coaching in Hawai'i for the rest of his professional career. He believes there's a unique spirit there. He's found a peace that would be hard to replicate any place else."

UH permission not sought

Sources said Georgia Tech officials called Jones on Wednesday afternoon. UH athletic director Hugh Yoshida said Georgia Tech did not seek UH's permission to speak with Jones.

"My understanding is that he has not been contacted by anyone at Georgia Tech," said Don Murphy, head of Na Koa, the football program's booster club. "And that comes from him. He told me that today. ... We were just talking about how rumors are flying around."

The Georgia Tech job has been vacant since George O'Leary resigned to accept the coaching job at Notre Dame. Five days after taking the job with the Fightin' Irish, O'Leary resigned when it was uncovered that he lied about his academic and athletic background.

Steinberg is seeking a contract extension for Jones, who has two years remaining on a five-year deal he signed with UH in December 1998.

After the Warriors went 9-4 and won a share of the Western Athletic Conference title in 1999 — Jones' first season at UH — the school's Board of Regents extended his contract by five years.

But Jones did not sign off on the extension and believes he has two years remaining on his contract.

Jones seeks extension

Jones earns a base salary of $150,000. He also receives $100,000 annually from Na Koa and $70,000 annually in appearance fees for his television and radio shows. Only the base salary, which is paid by the UH athletic department, is guaranteed.

"We're in conversations with Leigh," Yoshida said. "With all contract issues, my lips are sealed."

Yoshida said Walter Kirimitsu, chief of staff for the UH system, is representing the athletic department.

"I would say that June Jones is the greatest coach in the history of Hawai'i, and if there is any kind of community effort to keep him here, I would want to be a part of it," said Walter Dods, chairman and chief executive officer of First Hawaiian Bank.

"I'm convinced that UH will do whatever we can to keep him here, and that it would be very detrimental to the program if we lost him," Murphy said. "Look how far the program has come. He's got all the right ideas, the right attitude. He's done a lot for the program and for the state.

"You can read his quotes and talk to him. He says as long as things go well, that they keep going in the direction UH is going, I think we're going to have him here for a while."

UH linebacker Keani Alapa said, "I'll trust he'll make the best decision. I'm pretty sure he'll stay. We'll see what happens."

In a request to Yoshida three weeks ago, San Diego State asked for permission to discuss its vacant coaching position with Jones. But Jones declined to meet with San Diego State officials.

Jones was the San Diego Chargers interim head coach in 1998 when he signed with UH.