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Wednesday, July 12, 2000
ESPN magazine
turns to ‘prophet’
for profile of
Rainbow football
A reporter is expected to
By Dave Reardon
meet coach June Jones for
a special preview issue
Star-BulletinUniversity of Hawaii football coach June Jones was scheduled to be interviewed today by a writer from ESPN The Magazine.
Eric Adelson, who is in town this week, has been assigned to write a feature story on the UH program for publication in the national magazine's Aug. 21 college preview issue.
The UH story will be the issue's only one profiling a specific college program, other than preseason Top 25 teams, Adelson said.
"We always have a theme, and this year it's 'The Edge,' " Adelson said. "Hawaii fits that because it's on the geographical edge of the college football universe, and the college football experience is totally different here. And it doesn't hurt that June Jones has turned the program around."
Adelson, a senior reporter who has been with the biweekly since its inception 2 years ago, spent yesterday touring UH's facilities and talking with players, assistant coaches and sports information director Lois Manin.
So far, he said, the conversation usually comes back to Jones, who received national coach of the year honors after taking a team that went 0-12 in 1998 to 9-4 last season in the biggest turnaround in college football history.
"I heard him called a prophet today," Adelson said. "There have been coaches who have been the story and that causes resentment. That doesn't seem to be the case here. I find it stunning that in one year he became the most popular person in the state.
"It's a very interesting storyline. Why did he come back from the NFL? I think he saw potential, that it wasn't the Bad News Bears, but a team with talent but also with psychological problems. Players said they weren't playing to win, but just to survive."
Adelson will hold an Internet chat at espn.com tomorrow at 9 a.m., Hawaii time. He welcomes discussion about UH football.
He also invites conversation about the Rainbows and college football in general at eric.adelson@espnmag.com.
UH Athletics
Ka Leo O Hawaii
