Jay asking tough questions as he aims to bring change

One night recently toward the end of a typical 15-hour work day, Ben Jay strolled around the soccer practice field at the University of Hawaii.

"As I did that, more and more it became clear to me we could turn that field into a field suitable for (intercollegiate) competition. There’s enough space there and it would be affordable," he said. "I want to get (soccer games) back on campus. Why do we go all the way to the other side of the island?"

It’s a real question, not rhetorical. Jay concedes he doesn’t know all the answers less than two months into his tenure as UH athletic director.

But he also understands that, ultimately, he is the one expected to provide those answers. And many of the questions are riddles in a department addled by shrinking resources, eroding facilities and shaky morale.

Soccer on campus is one of Jay’s many ideas to improve things, short- and long-term.

The answer to his question is pretty simple: There is none — no good reason to expend time and resources transporting the team the half hour (on a good traffic day) and 17 miles to Waipio Peninsula Soccer Park and then back when there’s a suitable field at UH.

But it will take an initial investment to make the campus field game-ready. This is a good idea in a long line of projects and proposals. However, it is behind others more pressing.

Jay said the biggest priority now is shepherding completion of the renovation of Ching Field by the end of 2013 or jeopardize NCAA certification due to gender equity issues.

No one who has lived in Hawaii long is surprised this project that was scheduled to be done in 2011 has been delayed to this extent. That’s the kind of mind-set Jay said he wants to change.

"I ask why things take so long, and I’m told it’s the Hawaiian way," he said. "That’s not a good answer."

THE HONEYMOON period ended for some UH fans last month with his first tough call, the emotional issue of team nicknames.

He’s had time to settle in and begin to learn the lay of the land.

"Now it’s about execution," Jay said.

Three-pronged execution.

His strategic plan is coming into focus. He is formulating what he calls a "sensible" budget and he has a long list of facilities improvements.

Sometimes, as Jay is seen staring at a lower campus building with a frown, he looks like someone who bought a car without taking it for a test drive. He learned the infrastructure was in bad shape during his whirlwind job interview tour in December. But more surprises keep popping up, even for someone who has more than 30 years of experience with athletic facilities.

Recently, it was the women’s aquatics locker room.

"It’s just one year (since renovation), and the condition is atrocious," Jay said. "There aren’t enough drains and that causes rusting, and the drain covers were not designed properly, which makes them difficult to clean and maintain."

He has also expressed disgust with the overall decay of offices and meeting rooms.

"We won’t have wallpaper falling off the walls anymore," he said. "Not just for us and our staff, but we host outside groups, and it’s embarrassing. And of course, recruiting. This is what happens with lack of money, lack of staff, lack of maintenance. We’ve just fallen behind. And we’re trying to recruit elite athletes? It’s amazing we get such good kids."

It’s clear staff cutbacks and other resource limitations have had a negative effect.

"We’ve been asking our remaining people to do much, much more with less. That’s tough on the morale of the staff," Jay said. "On the positive side, I believe my staff believes there’s hope. Most of all we have to stop accepting mediocrity and regain the confidence of the public."

He regularly solicits input from staff.

"You can always answer him honestly. You’re not gonna get ‘I’m from the Pac-10 and Ohio State so I know more than you,’ " a veteran UH athletic department employee said. "He really cares and he’s conscientious. He may ruffle some feathers along the way, but his goal is to make the product better, all for the better. I’m impressed."

SOME OF the problems seem like little things, but they are things that matter and there are lots of them. The rims in Gyms 1 and 2 and Klum Gym, where the basketball teams often practice, are 2 inches lower than they are supposed to be, because of overuse, Jay said.

That brings us to another of his ideas, which is to renovate Klum Gym into a practice facility for the basketball and volleyball teams.

"Let’s bring new life to a historical building. To me there’s enough floor space there to make it work," he said. "Rather than building new, there are facility renovations we can do that bring immediate impact."

When the new softball stadium goes up eventually, Jay plans to "build it around the current seating sections."

An on-campus football stadium would be great, and a newcomer might ask the same question Jay posed about soccer. The difference is there is no relatively quick fix and Aloha Stadium is the only suitable venue in the state for UH football.

But Jay is in talks with stadium manager Scott Chan about closing down sections of the 50,000-seat facility so UH’s bill for staffing and other game-day expenses will be smaller — until the time comes when, he hopes, the Warriors can at least come close to filling the place again.

"That’s an idea we’re discussing and looking at doing," Jay said. "But only for now."

That is a short-term tactic to preserve some resources. Strategically, Jay must position UH so it has a chance to survive a probable college athletics apocalypse that will leave out many midmajor programs — and that’s one key reason why the football team will rarely, if ever, play FCS opponents in the future. Continuing to schedule schools like Lamar and South Alabama won’t look good come judgment day.

"He’s got a lot of cleanup to do and he’s on it, but that doesn’t keep him from looking ahead," said another longtime athletic department staff member. "Another thing I like is that he’s decisive. We haven’t always had that here. It’s probably an advantage that he’s not from here. He’s not beholden to anyone, doesn’t have to feel like he owes anything to any special interest groups."

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