Gary Lambrecht, The Examiner
2008-04-21 07:00:00.0
Current rank: Not ranked

BALTIMORE -

During the past four, hectic months, Navy rookie head football coach Ken Niumatalolo has allowed himself a few moments to contemplate the strange path that led to this.

Twenty years ago, he was a backup quarterback at the University of Hawaii, and not too thrilled with an offensive coordinator named Paul Johnson for keeping him on the bench. Niumatalolo also could not imagine leaving his beloved native land under any circumstances.

But Johnson, struck by Niumatalolo’s cerebral grasp of the game in general and the triple-option in particular, successfully urged him to try his hand at coaching. Later, in 1995, as Navy’s new offensive coordinator, Johnson convinced Niumatalolo to follow him all the way to Annapolis to become the Midshipmen’s running backs coach.

Two years later, after Johnson took his first head coaching job at Georgia Southern, Niumatalolo took over the Navy offense and enjoyed some initial success. But by the end of a disappointing 1998 season, he was butting heads with Navy head coach Charlie Weatherbie over matters of philosophy and schemes.

Niumatalolo lost that battle by getting fired. Then, he found his way to UNLV as an assistant.

But back he came to Navy in 2002, when Johnson rejoined the failing program as the head coach and began grooming his old Hawaii quarterback as his successor. Five straight winning seasons, five consecutive bowl games and Commander-In-Chief’s Trophies later, Johnson was off to pursue a national championship at Georgia Tech.

And Niumatalolo suddenly was seated in Johnson’s old chair, with a tough act to follow.

Talk about an unlikely career coming full circle.

 “Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d leave Hawaii. I was coaching Division I football in my home state at my alma mater,” Niumatalolo said. “Then, I never thought I would come back to become a head coach where I got fired. I’ve been humbled by that fact.”

Navy handled the coaching change swiftly and intelligently. For Chet Gladchuk, Navy’s athletics director who waited just 24 hours to name Johnson’s replacement, it was an easy call. Johnson had hired Niumatalolo as his offensive line/assistant head coach, meaning he was grooming the Hawaii native from the start to run the show one day.

 It never occurred to Niumatalolo he was making history by becoming the first Polynesian to run a Division I football program. Then, after he took the job and was beginning to prepare to coach the Mids in the Poinsettia Bowl, the outside world let him know about it.

A flood of calls and e-mails came from Hawaii, along with a proclamation from the governor of Hawaii. It is framed and hanging on the wall next to Niumatalolo’s desk.

“I didn’t really sense it when I first got hired,” he said. “I just looked at myself as a football coach that happened to be Polynesian, not as a Polynesian football coach. I wasn’t until I got all of the calls and e-mails that it really hit me.”

It started to hit Niumatalolo more as he prepared Navy for its eventual, close loss to Utah in the Poinsettia Bowl. Then, as he coordinated the team’s recruiting, monitored players’ off-season conditioning and planned the spring football session that concluded this past Saturday, the weight of the job really settled in.

Niumatalolo is a serene, reserved man immersed in his religious faith. On the practice field or sidelines, he also is a demanding type capable of the occasional, paint-peeling outburst of temper. He knows Johnson’s offense, which will stay intact at Navy, but doesn’t pretend to be as good a play caller. Niumatalolo gave that job to offensive coordinator Ivin Jasper, who he wisely secured before Johnson lured Jasper away to Georgia Tech.

Niumatalolo also is at peace with the black-and-white world he has inherited.

“People always ask me about following Paul, how there must be tremendous pressure,” Niumatalolo said. “This is a bottom-line profession. Ultimately, if you don’t win on Saturdays, you get fired. That’s how simple it is. That’s the truth.”

Gary Lambrecht writes about the NFL, Major League Baseball and college sports. He can be reached at glambrecht@baltimoreexaminer.com.