Niumatalolo maintains steady course
Coach stays on even keel despite five-game skid
Anyone who has ever played basketball or tennis against Ken Niumatalolo knows how competitive he is. Niumatalolo hates to lose in anything, whether it’s pickup hoops in Halsey Field House or Monopoly at home with the family.
So it goes without saying that a five-game losing streak is absolutely eating up the 11th-year Navy head coach.
“It’s hard. I mean it’s really, really hard,” Niumatalolo admitted this week. “You don’t get into this line of work unless you’re a competitive person so it’s definitely hard to deal with losing. You just have to keep coming back to work, keep battling and keep fighting.”
Niumatalolo has become accustomed to success during his second stint at Navy, which began in 2002 when he was hired as assistant head coach by Paul Johnson. Beginning in 2003, the Midshipmen posted winning records in 14 of the next 15 seasons.
Navy’s lone losing season during that stretch came in 2011 when the bottom fell out following a heartbreaking overtime loss to Air Force. Quarterback Kris Proctor drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for taunting after scoring in the extra session and the negative yardage led to a missed extra point. Afterward, starting fullback and offensive captain Alexander Teich walked off the field during the playing of the Air Force alma mater.
Teich was suspended and the downward spiral continued until the Midshipmen had dropped six straight. A season-ending loss at San Jose State left Navy with a 5-7 record and ended a run of eight straight bowl berths.
This season has been different with a difficult schedule combined with numerous mental and physical mistakes leading to a disappointing 2-6 record to date.
“This is a fragile deal – sports in general and Division I football in particular. To win is really, really hard and the margin of error is very slim,” Niumatalolo said. “You have to stay the course, keep everything in perspective and find a way to put it together.
“As a coach you have to look at what you’re doing. You have to find ways schematically to help the players, find ways to help them psychologically and confidence-wise as well,” Niumatalolo said. “You have to find a way to learn from the previous game, take away the positives, try to correct the errors and press Today, 3:30 TV: ESPNU Radio: 1090 AM Line: Cincinnati by 13 1/2 Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly, left, greets Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo after last Saturday’s night game in San Diego, Calif. Navy slipped to 2-6 with a loss to the Irish. forward. We haven’t been doing that too well so far this season and that comes back to me.”
Niumatalolo has been in the coaching business for almost three decades now and has experienced losing before. During his first stint at Navy under head coach Charlie Weatherbie, Niumatalolo watched the program backslide following consecutive winning seasons.
Johnson left to become head coach at Georgia Southern and was replaced as offensive coordinator by Niumatalolo, who was fired by Weatherbie in 1998 for refusing to alter the triple-option attack after being instructed to do so.
Navy endured a 2-10 record when Johnson first took over in 2002 while 2011 is the only losing season during Niumatalolo’s 11-year tenure as head coach.
“I think the thing that helps is that we have a strong foundation. If I had not been doing this a long time I might start grasping at different things,” Niumatalolo said. “Of course, you have to recognize that we’re not playing well and look at everything to try to get better. You examine everything, but you also have to stay true to your beliefs.”
Niumatalolo has sought the input of his assistants quite often during the current skid. There have been several lengthy meetings on the third floor of Ricketts Hall as the staff tries discusses what can be done to get Navy on track.
“We spend a lot time in our staff meetings talking about how we’re doing things, making sure we’re getting the best work done, putting the best game-plan together, making sure we have the best players out there,” Niumatalolo said. “People on the outside don’t see all the meetings we have to discuss every single aspect of the program, all the things we do to address various issues. There is a lot of stuff that goes on beyond the scenes that people don’t know about.”
Navy has a pair of veteran lieutenants to lean on during these tough times. Defensive coordinator Dale Pehrson is in his 23rd season at Navy while offensive coordinator Ivin Jasper is in his 19th.
Pehrson is impressed that Niumatalolo maintains an even keel no matter what the current circumstances.
“I think Kenny has been phenomenal. He’s the same person whether we’re winning or losing. He doesn’t change one bit,” Pehrson said. “The foundation is firm here, and it’s the foundation Kenny helped build. That is why he has not wavered.”
That strong foundation extends to the coaching staff, which has been remarkably stable over the years. Jasper and Pehrson are among seven assistants who have been at Navy for 11 years or more.
“I think we have a phenomenal staff that has been together a long time. Everybody understands each other and knows where we need to get. Right now we’re not coaching or playing to the standard and we need to get there,” Pehrson said. “Wehavea lot of positive coaches. Sometimes, they lift me up more than I lift them up.”
When things aren’t going well it’s the head coach who bears the brunt of blame and Niumatalolo accepts that. In a what-have- you-done-for-me-lately type of profession, fans and media can be critical even when you are the all-time winningest coach in Navy history with an 86-54 career record.
“Kenny knows it’s a week to week deal. When you’re winning, everyone loves you. Whenyou’relosing everyone is writing letters and sending emails,” Jasper said. “It’s the nature of the business and we understand that and don’t let it bother us. We’re just focused on trying to help these kids win football games.”
There have been a few times during the losing streak when Niumatalolo was angered by the effort and intensity displayed during a particular practice and lit into the team afterward. However, there have been just as many instances in which he praised the players, which is exactly what happened this past Wednesday when the head coach was very complimentary of the practice performance.
“Kenny gets fiery when he needs to, but at the same time he understands that this is a bottom line profession. It’s all about wins and losses,” Jasper said. “That being said, the most important thing is being good people. You can’t forget that no matter how bad things are going.”
Niumatalolo has reminded the assistants of that very fact in recent weeks and encouraged them to set an example for the players by not getting mad or frustrated.
“As coaches, we’re not used to losing so it’s a real punch to your pride. It hurts, but we can’t get down,” Jasper said. “It’s a tough time so our leadership as coaches really needs to show. We need to stay positive and keep fighting.
“I try to get a great example for the players by not changing, by being myself, by coming out here every single day with energy,” Jasper added. “We joke when we need to joke, laugh when we need to laugh and work when we need to work.”
After dealing with the life-threatening medical ordeal his teenage son went through, Jasper can handle a five-game losing streak. Jaylen Jasper nearly died from cardiac arrest last year and had to undergo a heart transplant.
“I’m always the same whether we win or lose. It’s always on to the next week. I never get too high or too low,” Jasper said.
Pehrson noted the only thing a football coach is programmed to do is to show up at work each day.
“It’s still a job we’re all passionate about. We’re not performing as well as wewouldlike personally and as a team, but wehave to find a way to fight through it,” Pehrson said. “Winning is part of college football and so is losing. You have to turn the page, try to improve on the things you didn’t do well as a coach and work hard to help the team get out of this.”