Islanders to Cal Lee will be named head coach of the Hawaiian Islanders arenafootball2 team next week, sources close to the situation told the Star-Bulletin.
hire Cal Lee
The winningest local
high school football coach
is the team's third head man
By Dave Reardon and Nick Abramo
dreardon@starbulletin.com nabramo@starbulletin.comLee, the winningest coach in Hawaii high school football history, declined comment yesterday.
The Islanders have submitted Lee's name to af2 director of football operations Robert Banks for approval, according to a source. The approval is a formality, and the league will interview Lee by phone.
Lee will be the Islanders' third head coach. He will replace Chad Carlson, who took over for Guy Benjamin in the middle of the team's inaugural season last summer.
Islanders officials declined comment, but have a news conference planned for a week from today.
The league's maximum salary is $40,000 for af2 first-year coaches. Second-year coaches are eligible for a 10 percent increase.
In the past, Lee has said he would be able to keep his job as St. Louis School athletic director if he became the Islanders' coach. Last year's inaugural team began practice in February, played its first game in March and the season ran through July.
Although he didn't confirm the hiring, Jerry Kurz of the league office in Chicago spoke about Lee.
"Cal would bring tremendous assets -- a lifetime of coaching and working with kids and a great reputation," said Kurz, an arena football founder who was instrumental in bringing the franchise to Hawaii and who worked as a general manager for the Islanders for the first part of last season.
"I think people would pick up the phone and want to buy tickets if Cal Lee is the coach. I also think sponsor types would pick up the phone and want to be sponsors. He would bring instant quality and credibility."
Kurz doesn't think Lee's lack of experience in the arena brand of football will hinder him.
"He has a great outdoor football mind and could learn it quickly," he said. "I think it would help him if he hired a staff that knows the game."
Carlson led the Islanders to four victories in their final six games on the way to a 5-11 finish. It's not known if he will remain with the team.
The coaching switch is part of owner/operator Kimberly Wang's master plan of organizational changes.
Chris Dey is the team's new general manager, filling a position left vacant when Carlson moved from GM to coach.
Dey is also the president and co-founder of Hawaii Sports Network, which was affiliated with the Islanders last season in several capacities, including the television production for eight home games. HSN was signed on as the Islanders' official management company last month, and that's when Dey became GM.
"Throughout last season, we met with Kimberly and the Islanders' front office and talked about what could be done about us getting more involved," Dey said. "And things have evolved from there."
Carl Vincenti, who was the team's director a year ago (a position above GM), and the team mutually agreed not to renew his one-year contract.
"Carl got us up and running, but he elected to go back to running his own business," director of operations Marci Joy said. "It was a good parting, and he brought us to the level we're at and where we needed to be at for this transition."
Jon Bryan is the new director of sales and marketing, while Angie Youn leaves that post to oversee ticketing and merchandising.
But the biggest change, by far, is the addition of Lee.
Speculation has been rampant about Lee's future, even before he said two summers ago that the 2001 season would be his last as St. Louis coach.
Lee's name has often been linked with coaching openings at the University of Hawaii, especially since June Jones became UH head coach in 1999.
Lee was a regular at Warrior practices last spring, and his brother Ron coaches the UH receivers. Jones has often said Lee would be a welcome addition to his staff. But there were no openings going into this season.
"He's getting bored I guess," Ron Lee said. "If that's what he wants to do, great. Sitting out the summer and the fall, he's probably missing it and wants to get back into it. ... Anyone who coached a long time knows the feeling, can't stay out of it."
Jones declined to comment yesterday.
In 21 years as head coach at St. Louis, Lee led his teams to a 241-32-5 record. The Crusaders won 18 Interscholastic League of Honolulu championships, including the last 16. St. Louis also won 14 Oahu Prep Bowl titles and the inaugural state championship in 1999 under his guidance.
Lee actually had two stints as St. Louis head coach. After a 2-7-1 season in 1972, he was fired as coach, but remained as a teacher. The Kalani High School graduate later served as an assistant for Ron Lee at Kaiser and helped the Cougars win the 1979 Prep Bowl.
He returned to St. Louis as head coach in 1982 and the Crusaders lost more than two games in a season just three times (1982, '94 and '93) during his tenure.
Lee was named the national coach of the year by the National Federation of State High School Associations in 2000 and The Sporting News in 1995.
St. Louis went 10-1-1 last year in Lee's final season and suffered its only loss in the state championship game against Kahuku.
Islanders quarterback Darnell Arceneaux played under Lee in the mid-1990s and led the Crusaders to three Prep Bowl victories.
Lee, who has bachelor's and master's degrees from Willamette University, turns 56 a week from Saturday.
He continues to oversee daily operations of the St. Louis Alumni Clubhouse, from where he co-hosts a weekly radio show about Hawaii high school football. He also recently re-joined the St. Louis staff as special teams coach.
Star-Bulletin reporter Jason Kaneshiro
contributed to this report
Hawaiian Islanders