June Jones emphatically rejected what he apparently considered an insulting offer to return to coaching at Hawaii.
“No coach in their right mind would accept!” Jones tweeted Friday after turning down the job with the Rainbow Warriors, where he won a school-record 76 games from 1999-2007.
Jones, 68, has not coached in the collegiate ranks since 2014 but had expressed an interest in returning to Hawaii following the resignation of Todd Graham earlier this month.
Jones gave a lengthy explanation on Twitter to explain his decision to turn down an offer made by Hawaii athletic director David Matlin.
“I am still interested in this job for the people of Hawaii but the job offered to me today there is no way I could accept the conditions offered me,” Jones wrote in one post. “No coach in their right mind would accept!”
“Dictating who can be on my staff and only 2 year contract..What recruit would come if I was here for 2 years???” Jones wrote in another post. “..this has never been about money-but it is about giving me the ability to turn our program around and not have people tell me who is on my staff or how to coach my team.”
Matlin, who told ESPN he later extended Jones’ offer to three years, issued a statement Friday night.
“I understand that there has been a lot of support for Coach Jones this past week, but he has declined our offer,” Matlin said. “I respect his decision and we need to move forward in our search. At the end of the day, we couldn’t agree on a succession plan that I felt was important for our student-athletes and supporters of Rainbow Warrior football.”
After compiling a 76-41 record with six bowl appearances (four wins) at Hawaii, Jones posted a 36-43 record with four bowl appearances (three wins) at SMU from 2008-14. He has since coached in the CFL and XFL.
He also was head coach of the Atlanta Falcons from 1994-96.
According to ESPN, other candidates under consideration at Hawaii include former Rainbow Warriors quarterback and current Colorado State receivers coach Timmy Chang, UCLA defensive assistant Brian Norwood and former Hawaii offensive coordinator Brian Smith.
Hawaii was 11-11 in two seasons under Graham, including 6-7 in 2021.
