“I walked into the room, and I’ve been in the same auditorium for eight or nine seasons before I got here. I’ve never seen that kind of emptiness in a team’s eyes in that room,” Rolovich told CoachingSearch about his first team meeting. “My plan went (away) at that point. I felt sorry for them a little bit, the look in their eye.
“I told them coaching changes are hard. It’s a team that’s going to have a majority of local kids. That’s not natural for local boys here, to show that emptiness. I told them my observations. I told them, ‘Guys, that’s not how this is supposed to be. I understand it’s hard. But we’re going to have fun doing this. We’re going to work hard and accomplish the goals we want.”
Rest of article:Three coaches were retained from the previous staff. Tight ends coach / special teams coordinator Jake Cookus stuck out to Rolovich for how he incorporated the Hawaiian culture into the special teams. Despite the 3-10 record, the Warriors were No. 31 in FootballOutsiders.com's special teams efficiency.
You’ve seen teams bring out a sledgehammer or something similar. But Cookus uses an ancient Hawaiian weapon, including real shark teeth.
“I saw that and said, ‘This guy gets it,’” Rolovich said of Cookus. “I didn’t know Jake. But I told him to stick around a week to get to know each other. … I remember (Nevada coaches) saying he’s very sound when we played them. That stuck with me.”
http://coachingsearch.com/article?a=Haw ... uy-gets-it