Option disciples square off in rivalry
Army’s Monken, Navy’s Niumatalolo learned trade from Paul Johnson
It was somewhat fitting that Paul Johnson announced his retirement from college football coaching on the same day as the annual Army-Navy press conference.
After all, Johnson’s two most prominent pupils had just spent considerable time talking about his mentoring and how they followed the template he created after being hired as head coaches at their respective service academies.
Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo and Army counterpart Jeff Monken worked with Johnson at multiple schools. Johnson hired both men as graduate assistants at Hawaii and that is when they began to learn the version of triple-option offense he developed.
Monken served as an assistant under Johnson at Georgia Southern then followed him to Navy. WhenJohnson was named head coach at Navy in 2002, he brought Niumatalolo back to Annapolis with the title of assistant head coach.
Johnson transformed a Navy program that had reached rock bottom, compiling 3- 30 record over a threeyear span (20002002). He led the Midshipmen to a phenomenal 43-19 mark and five bowl berths from 2003 through 2007. Johnson left Navy prior to the 2007 Poinsettia Bowl to become head coach at Georgia Tech. The North Carolina native announced his retirement on Nov. 28 with the news breaking shortly after the annual Army-Navy luncheon had concluded.
The next stop for Johnson, who boasts an impressive 189-98 career record as a head coach, could be the College Football Hall of Fame.
Monken was among five Navy assistants who went to Georgia Tech with Johnson. After two years in Atlanta, Monken was hired as head at Georgia Southern and enjoyed a successful four-year run, going 38-16 with three trips to the Football Championship Subdivision semifinals.
When Monken was lured away to Army West Point, there was never any question he would be implementing the exact blueprint Johnson used to turn around Navy.
“Whathedidthere (at Navy), the job he did TV: Radio:
Line: there to take that program from where it was to what it is now, that’s Paul Johnson,” Monken said.
“What he did, I try to model as much as that as wecould whenIcametoArmyandwe are still modeling it after Paul Johnson and what he did. The toughness, the competitiveness, the support system that needs to surround the program in terms of academics and military training, it’s all from him.”
Niumatalolo was a backup quarterback at Hawaii when Johnson was offensive coordinator there and admits he wasn’t so fond of the man so man so much at the time.
“I didn’t like Coach Johnson a whole lot because I wasn’t playing and thought I should have been,” Niumatalolo said. “Despite that, I always had great respect for him as a coach. He was very honest and would tell you frankly where you stood. He’s a straight shooter.”
It was Johnson who suggested Niumatalolo give coaching a try and convinced Hawaii head coach Bob Wagner to make him a graduate assistant. It was basically a three-year course in Coaching 101 for the Hawaii native.
“Coach Johnson was a great teacher. When we had quarterback meetings at Hawaii, he knew how to simplify things and make them easy to understand,” Niumatalolo said. “Paul would take me out to lunch and talk about strategies and schemes. I cannot even quantify how much I learned from him during those early years.”
When Johnson left Hawaii to become offensive coordinator at Navy under head coach Charlie Weatherbie, he brought Niumatalolo along to help install the triple-option in Annapolis.
“I was honored that Paul thought enough of me to bring me to Navy. He needed someone else on the staff that knew the offense and chose me,” said Niumatalolo, who had never lived anywhere except Hawaii. “It was a leap of faith for my wife and I to pick up and move to the East Coast. The only reason I came was because I trusted Paul.”
When Johnson accepted the head coaching position at Georgia Southern, he recommended Niumatalolo take over as offensive coordinator. It did not work out with Weatherbie firing Niumatalolo after two years.
Fast forward a decade and Niumatalolo was once again promoted to replace Johnson, this time as head coach at Navy.
“I wouldn’t be in this position right nowif it wasn’t for Paul,” Niumatalolo admitted. “Paul brought me back here and gave me a lot of responsibility.”
Niumatalolo and Johnson communicated less and less frequently as the years went along, too consumed by running their respective programs to have in-depth conversations. They made sure to speak on the phone at least once a year and routinely texted, but that was about it.
“We haven’t talked a ton over the last decade, which is probably one of my biggest regrets,” Niumatalolo said. “I dropped the ball. I should have made more of an effort to stay in touch with Paul.”
Niumatalolo learned of Johnson’s retirement shortly after returning to Annapolis after attending the Army-Navy media day event at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
“To actually hear that Paul had stepped down was a bit of a shock,” Niumatalolo said. “I’m just happy that he was able to go out on his own terms. Paul is one heck of a ball coach whohasbeendoing it a long time. He’s helped out a lot of coaches and a lot of players.”
Niumatalolo called Johnson late last week to personally congratulate his mentor on an incredible career.
“I think Paul’s body of work speaks for itself. He was successful everywhere he went,” Niumatalolo said. “There are a lot of things that made Paul a great coach. Number one, he is super competitive and a very intelligent individual. He knew this offense inside and out because he basically created it. He knew how to manage a program, how to lead people.”
Johnson’s patented triple-option attack, whichwasuniquebecause the slotbacks were positioned just outside the tackles and just off the line of scrimmage, is still churning out yards and points to this day. Georgia Tech leads the nation in rushing this season with 334.9 yards per game and ranks 22nd in scoring offense with an average of 35.6 points.
Navy led the Football Bowl Subdivision in rushing four of the six seasons Johnson was head coach. In 2007, the Midshipmen averaged almost 400 yards and 40 points per game.
“WhatCoachJohnsondidat Navy in terms of the yards and points he put on the board may never be matched,” Monken said. “That last season we were scoring between 40 and 50 points all the time. I think we punted (24) times in 13 games that year, which is really remarkable.”
Monken said Saturday’s Army-Navy game, in one sense, will be a tribute to Johnson because two of his triple-option disciples will be on opposite sidelines.
“I think Kenny and I have both built our programs based off the model that Paul Johnson created for us,” Monken said. “My personality and style as a coach probably comes as much from Paul Johnson as anybody. I know Paul was a major influence on Kenny as well.”