June Jones’ arrest: Why was the longtime college football and NFL head coach detained on Saturday?
The former head football coach of the University of Hawaii, June Jones, got arrested by the Honolulu Police on suspicion of driving under the influence. He was driving along Kilauea Avenue and Waialae Avenue when he got stopped by the police. He has since been released on a $500 bail.
Speaking on the arrest, Jones said:
“I was speeding and got stopped. I was coming from eating dinner. That’s all I need to say right now.”
Recall that earlier, on June 16, the former head coach of the West Virginia Mountaineers basketball team, Bob Huggin, was similarly arrested for drunk driving. He thereafter announced his retirement from coaching.
June Jones’ coaching career highlights
Jones' long coaching career has spanned both college football and pro football in the NFL and other alternative leagues. His career started in 1983 as a graduate assistant at the University of Hawaii. He proceeded to the Houston Gamblers of the defunct USFL where he worked as the wide receivers coach.
He moved from Houston to the Denver Gold as an offensive coordinator. His first NFL appointment came in 1987 as the quarterbacks coach for the Houston Oilers. A move to the Atlanta Falcons followed. There, he came in as assistant head coach in 1991 before a promotion in 1994 to head coach.
In three seasons with the Falcons, he led them to a playoff appearance and finished his tenure with a 13-19 record. He joined the San Diego Chargers as a quarterbacks coach in early 1998. After their head coach was fired, Jones filled in as the interim head coach for 10 games, winning three.
He got appointed as the head coach of the University of Hawaii-Manoa football team. He led the team to a joint Western Athletic Conference championship, putting together a 9-4 record in the 1999 season. He became a Hawaiian hero as a result.
He departed Hawaii in January 2008 with a 76-41 record, which includes four wins out of six bowl appearances. He accepted an offer to coach the SMU Mustangs. He remained at SMU until 2014 when he stepped down from his role due to personal issues.
He has had stints at high schools, the CFL, and the XFL in roles other than the head coach after his departure from SMU.