Cal Lee lands a new job as a concussion educator

If you’ve been hearing about Cal Lee’s new job, it’s probably speculation he’s going to be a high school head football coach again.

But that’s not happening, according to Lee, who headed up the most dominant dynasty in state history at Saint Louis. The former University of Hawaii assistant said he plans to continue as defensive coordinator at Kalani, his alma mater, this fall.

"Everybody’s calling me and telling me I’m going to Kamehameha," Lee said. "But I’ve had no contact and I haven’t applied."

Lee DOES have a new job, but it’s not in Kapalama. He’s a program assistant with the state’s concussion management program.

"We thought about him because of his influence the past 30 years on sports in Hawaii," said Nathan Murata, a UH professor who is co-director of the program. "He’s clearly a person who can potentially draw constituencies to come hear about the importance of these issues."

The program is a joint venture of UH and the state department of health. Murata and Lee said it is focusing on youth leagues this year, and especially on parents.

"Often the symptoms don’t show until hours or even days later. Sometimes the parents see and the coaches don’t, that’s why parents have to be aware," Lee said.

"Sometimes, he seems fine. Then a couple of hours later …"

Lee rattles off symptoms: irritability, headaches, nausea, decreased balance, fatigue, sensitivity to light or noise, unusual sleep patterns.

The state’s high school athletic programs have made significant progress in concussion awareness, protocols and treatment in recent years. But younger athletes are exposed to head injuries, too.

And there are no trainers for most youth leagues. It’s just not possible.

"Our target right now is for the young ones, age 4 to 14," Lee said. "About a year ago a guy told me about a player from Kalani Pop Warner who got a severe head injury and went into a coma. He was playing tackle football. You know how old? Five. You gotta be kidding me. What?"

Ross Oshiro, the program’s co-director from the department of health, joined Lee and Murata in a presentation at Kuhio Park Terrace last month to coaches from the Big Boys youth football organization.

"When you show them a film about a kid who can’t walk, can’t talk, it hits home," Lee said. "But we’re not trying to scare them away."

Lee said during his sophomore year at Kalani in the early 1960s he blacked out during drills, and his next memory was sitting in the locker room after practice.

He said competitive tackle football "isn’t for everybody," but he’s still a proponent of contact sports and believes the potential benefits outweigh the risks.

"You have to have good coaches, trainers and awareness," he said. "Our angle is to educate parents so they can see signs and symptoms."

Youth groups interested in a presentation on concussion awareness can contact Murata at 956-3807.

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Reach Dave Reardon at dreardon@staradvertiser.com or 529-4783 or on Twitter as @dave_reardon.