Saturday, June 2, 2001
[ UH WARRIOR FOOTBALL ]
UH coach gets Once all the dots are connected for University of Hawaii assistant coach Vantz Singletary, the picture revealed may be a sideline job in the National Football League.
NFL internship
Hawaii's 'Lean' Vantz Singletary
will add 'Mean' Joe Greene to his
long list of mentors this summerBy Paul Arnett
Star-BulletinAt least that's what Singletary hopes as he prepares for his fourth summer internship in the NFL. The third-year coach for the Warriors recently learned that he had been selected by the Arizona Cardinals and the Philadelphia Eagles to take part in the two-week program.
"I decided to go with the Arizona Cardinals," Singletary said yesterday. "The defensive line coach there is ("Mean") Joe Greene. Talk about learning from the best. I feel so blessed to be in this position."
According to Singletary, each NFL team receives about 300 applications from coaches all over the country. Being selected by two is quite an honor for Singletary, whose first contact in the NFL was through Mike Singletary of the Chicago Bears in 1993.
His NFL Hall of Fame uncle introduced him to Dave Wannstedt, who introduced him to Mike Ditka, "who gave me an internship with the New Orleans Saints in 1998," Singletary said.
"And before that, I was in Tampa Bay in 1996 with Tony Dungy and with the San Diego Chargers last year. I equate these jobs with being like a graduate assistant in college.
"You need to know what you're doing, that's true. But no way could I get these jobs without the connections. When I fill out a resume, I can put down June Jones, Coach Ditka, Coach Dungy, my uncle. It opens a lot of doors for me."
Despite all the insider trading, Jones was still surprised to learn Singletary had landed not one, but two opportunities. He didn't hold out much hope because the selections are often political.
"June is vacationing in San Francisco," Singletary said. "And when I called him to give him the news, he was very surprised and happy that I got this shot to work with an NFL team. That's my dream, someday, to coach in the National Football League."
The Houston native likes to tell stories about his famous uncle, who caused young Vantz to cry when he left for Waco, Texas, to play for the Baylor Bears.
"I didn't want Mike to know I was going to miss him, so when my grandmother asked me what was wrong, I told her Mike hit me in the stomach," Singletary said, then laughed at the memory. "He of course denied it, but at least I didn't have to say why I was really sad."
These days, sadness is rarely a part of Singletary's routine. He is 10 months into a diet that has allowed him to shed nearly 100 pounds. The anniversary of this lifestyle change will be in early August. He can't wait to step on the scales the first day of fall camp to see where the numbers land.
"It's a complete change for me," Singletary said. "Where I used to read Sports Illustrated, now I'm looking over magazines and books about fitness or how to cook food to stay healthy.
"Most people on diets like mine last about six months before they gain all the weight back. With all the weight equipment and bikes around me, and these great doctors and trainers, there's really no excuse (for falling off the diet)."
A side benefit for Singletary was a commercial for Subway sandwiches. He said he's as physically fit as he can remember and even has his wife dieting with him. As he put it, "The Lord has been taking care of me."
So have all those connections. After his first year with the Warriors, Singletary thought long and hard about returning to the Lone Star State. But American Football Coaches Association director Grant Teaff -- who coached Mike at Baylor and met Vantz when he was in the fifth grade -- convinced Singletary that Hawaii was the place to be.
"And he was right," Singletary said. "When I get back from the internship, I look forward to fall camp. If we can stay healthy up front this year, I look for some good things to happen. We'll be better. It's just a matter of coaching them and getting them comfortable in our system."
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