Stephen Tsai: UH football's 2011 staff one of its best all-time

Jun. 27—It was a magic moment in Moscow, Idaho, on the last Saturday of October 2011.

It was a magic moment in Moscow, Idaho, on the last Saturday of October 2011.

Kenton Chun, an amateur magician, delivered the winning 35-yard kick with 32 seconds left in Hawaii's 16-14 road victory over Idaho. The Rainbow Warriors improved to 5-3 overall and 3-1 in the Western Athletic Conference.

And then—poof !—it all disappeared. UH lost to Utah State the next weekend. And the weekend after that, the Warriors lost quarterback Bryant Moniz for the rest of the season with a broken right tibia. Entering the regular-season finale, the 6-6 Warriors needed to beat BYU to earn a berth in the Hawaii Bowl. They lost 41-20.

The next night, at the end of the team's awards banquet at the Sheraton Waikiki, UH Manoa chancellor Virginia Hinshaw and athletic director Jim Donovan led head coach Greg McMackin into a side room. It would be revealed the meeting concluded with McMackin's "retirement."

The reasons were never clear about the dismissal of a coach who led the Warriors to a 10-4 record and a WAC title a year earlier. There were murmurs about McMackin's leadership and also whisper-whisper talk of a regent who sought a change.

Tony Tuioti was the only assistant coach retained for the 2012 staff. In December 2013, Tuioti's contract was not renewed. He ended up joining the Cleveland Browns as an assistant D-line coach.

In looking back, UH's 2011 staff might have been one of the most iconic in the program's history. It featured Dick Tomey, who at one time was the winningest coach for UH and Arizona ; Mouse Davis, the inventor of the modern run-and-shoot offense, and two future Power Five head coaches.

Here's a look at that 2011 staff :—Greg McMackin, head coach : UH was McMackin's last coaching job in a career that spanned more than 40 years. McMackin died this past Valentine's Day in South Dakota.—Rich Miano, associate head coach : In addition to serving as football analyst for Spectrum Sports, the former 11-year NFL safety is director of football operations for the Polynesian Bowl, runs the GPA Showcase and Hawaii Speed &Quickness, and is a real estate investor.—Cal Lee, assistant head coach : After coaching for 50-plus years—including winning 13 consecutive Oahu Prep Bowls and the inaugural state tournament as Saint Louis' head coach—Lee officially retired from the sport this month.—Nick Rolovich, offensive coordinator : The former UH head coach has an ongoing lawsuit accusing Washington State of wrongful termination when he was dismissed as head coach in 2021 for not complying with a COVID vaccination mandate. Rolovich, who is Catholic, cited religious views in declining the vaccine. Last year, Rolovich was a volunteer assistant at San Marin High in Novato, Calif.—Dave Aranda, defensive coordinator : In January 2020, Aranda was hired as Baylor's head coach. He was the defensive coordinator when LSU won the national championship in 2019.—Brian Smith, running backs coach : Ohio University recently promoted Smith to associate head coach. He also serves as the Bobcats' pass-game coordinator and running backs coach.—Gordy Shaw, O-line coach : In 2018, Shaw retired from college coaching after a four-decade career. He helped out three high schools in 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2022. He moved to Texas in April, and might take a break from coaching this year.—Tony Tuioti, D-line coach : The former UH defensive tackle coached with the Browns, Michigan, Cal and Nebraska before joining Oregon as D-line coach last year.—Mouse Davis, receivers coach : The origin of the run-and-shoot is a cat-and-Mouse debate. But former UH head coach June Jones said Tiger Ellison came up with the four-wide formation as a run-option offense, but it was Davis who implemented the read-and-attack passing concepts. Davis is retired and living in Houston.—Dick Tomey, special teams coach : Tomey, a member of the UH Circle of Honor, died in 2019.—George Lumpkin, director of player personnel : Lumpkin was affiliated with UH for 38 years as a player, coach and administrator. He coaches Kaiser High's defense. The commercial cleaning business he founded is now run by his son.—Ryan Biesemeyer, graduate assistant : He is a private tutor for Ka Boom Preps in Tulsa.—Bianca Tokumoto, director of football operations : Tokumoto was operations manager for Hawaii State Tours until her retirement last year.—Chris Williams, video coordinator : In January, Williams was named head football coach at McKinley High, his alma mater. Williams also works for Adon Renewables, is an agent with SC Realty, and owns faith-based clothing line Steadfast Warriors. He recently started the not-for-profit organization Faith Acts Now. "The acronym is FAN, so we're the FAN Club, " Williams said.—Tommy Heffernan, strength coordinator : The former UH baseball and football player continues to oversee the strength and conditioning programs for the school's 21 sports.—Kyle Kamau, manager : After leaving UH in December 2011, Kamau has worked as an assistant equipment manager with the Houston Texans and Philadelphia Eagles. Since April 2021, he has been the equipment /promotional director for SportStar Athletics.—Jaki (Falch ) Harwell, manager : Harwell is co-owner of the Tanglewood Lodge in Branson, Mo. "Let Al (Ginoza, UH equipment manage ) know I still do a million loads of laundry every day, " she said.—Eric Okasaki, head trainer : In July 2019, Okasaki retired after 43 years with UH, the last 35 as head trainer.