University of Hawaii athletics, already hobbled by previous administrative and financial woes, was hammered again this week with the dismissal of two basketball coaches and the disqualification of its star player as an extensive investigation by the NCAA swirled around them.
The what, when and where — head coach Gib Arnold and assistant coach Brandyn Akana were terminated this week, and forward Isaac Fotu was suspended — are clear enough. But exactly why this is happening will remain murky until the NCAA releases its findings on alleged violations by UH.
For his part, Arnold maintains he’s done nothing wrong and asserted that he’s being fired "without cause," since there has been no official word from the collegiate athletic association.
UH officials could have been hoping that their decision to move now might mitigate any repercussions of the ruling.
But even without that prospect, the growing cloud that hung over Arnold in particular needed to be dispelled; the furor had created a distraction to the detriment of the program.
Ultimately, then, UH acted correctly by putting the program quickly on a path toward resolution. The players need to focus on their upcoming exhibition game Nov. 6, and the season ahead.
The selection of the new acting coach, Benjy Taylor, seemed a sound choice for the team’s immediate needs, players with whom he is familiar. However, Taylor — who was the one to reveal this week that Fotu had been deemed ineligible — has to demonstrate leadership in helping the players and program shake off the sense of upheaval and pull together. That’s his primary objective now.
The fans, and surely the community at large, have to hope that when all the clouds clear, UH can successfully appeal the disqualification and Fotu can resume his season play. If any misdirection of the program is officially found, the professionals at the helm should be the ones who bear the brunt of any penalty.
Of course, the public already has a glimpse at what’s going on behind the NCAA curtain, and it doesn’t look promising. Earlier in the investigation process, UH turned in a report to the association about an incident from Jan. 9. According to information obtained by the Star-Advertiser under the state’s open records law, the university reported that "a men’s basketball coach submitted an altered document that was essential for admissions purposes."
Looking beyond the impact on player Fotu and the rest of the team, the fact that UH is once again firing managers and paying off expensive contracts is simply galling. It seems former UH-Manoa Chancellor Tom Apple did everyone a favor by not signing off on Arnold’s full three-year contract renewal before his own sudden departure in July.
Arnold, who was about to enter the fifth season as head coach, was re-upped only through June 30. His salary for the 2014-2015 season is $344,000, and he will be paid off in a lump sum. Both he and Akana will be officially employed through Jan. 26; Akana will get no compensation past that date.
Although Arnold’s short-term renewal blunted the budgetary hit, he came close to being cleared for a richer contract; the outcome for taxpayers could have been worse. By now, those taxpayers have to be feeling disgusted that top-tier hirings at UH end so badly, so often.
"These painful but critical steps are being taken in an effort to strengthen our athletics program and to do right by our student athletes and students in general," athletic director Ben Jay said in a statement.
Apple’s successor, Manoa Chancellor Robert Bley-Vroman, added his commitment "to setting the best possible examples for our players not only on the field of sports but in life."
The administrators calling the shots now are saying the right things, at least. In the coming weeks and months, they must be held to these promises.
