After nine years at his dream coaching gig, the era of Amosa Amosa as Campbell football coach has come to a close.
Amosa got the news Tuesday, stepping down after Campbell athletic director Sam Delos Reyes indicated that the program “will go in a different direction.”
The Sabers, who finished second in the OIA Blue (Division I) during the regular season, lost to Farrington in the league playoffs. Campbell reached the semifinals of the D-I state tournament, falling to ‘Iolani, and finished the season 7-5.
Amosa’s career record is 56-41, all at Campbell. Delos Reyes was not available for comment.
“I’m so blessed. I’m at peace,” Amosa said on Tuesday afternoon. “I have no regrets. I’d like to hope we left the program in a better state and took it to a new level with our campus and our community.”
He had the chance to tell his team Tuesday afternoon before the news broke. They met in the gym.
“It’s beautiful what the kids did. They did the haka for me, one last time,” he said. “I got to hug them and give them advice. When one player goes down, the next one carries the torch. I’ll be gone, but they will keep their heads up and continue to work hard, work with their new coach. I don’t want any of them to get down. I always talked to them every day, always told them how much I appreciate you, how much I love my job, because the day might come when I’m not the coach.”
His wife, Akemefe, took the news harder than he did.
“She said, ‘Wow’ and started crying. She was surprised, but it’s OK. I respect what (Delos Reyes) wants.”
In an age of win-at-all-costs culture, Amosa is a throwback.
“I would never tell people I came to Campbell to win championships. I’d like to win championships, but I want to build them,” he said.
The DOE protocol of year-to-year hiring and rehiring of head coaches meant Amosa always knew the day might come.
“I never took it for granted that I’ll be the coach forever. Every year, I’m wondering if I’m coming back or not. I tried to tie everything to our school. The last nine years, we’ve done our best to have an honest, fair and positive program,” he said. “We eliminated most of the bad things in the early years with parents. We wanted to give the kids a place to excel and have fun.”
Despite the change — technically, Amosa stepped down once he was told he would not be retained — he expects bigger things for the Sabers in the future.
“It’s up to the AD to evaluate after each season. I said, ‘I’ll step down and allow you to get a new coach.’ I didn’t want anything negative. I’m so thankful he hired me to coach. I still believe he’s doing a great job,” Amosa said. “I did my best every year with our kids. I apologize if we didn’t reach expectations. I respect what Sam wants. Who knows, maybe the next person will take it to a new level.”
The former Campbell football and basketball standout — he was a baby-Barkley post scorer for the Sabers — played football at Hawaii, and then began coaching after graduating from college. His road began at ‘Iolani, when then-Raiders offensive coordinator Dan Morrison was looking for a line coach. Then he moved on to Aiea as a longtime assistant and offensive coordinator to Wendell Say. Returning to his alma mater was a dream come true for the Ewa Beach native.
Amosa is a teacher at Campbell and will continue at his job. But the camaraderie of his staff will be missed.
“Some programs change coaches every year. Our staff, 80 percent has been there from the beginning. We’re proud of what we did, one of the few teams that practiced together, the varsity with the JV, working together on the same offense and same defense,” Amosa noted. “That’s a big part of our success.
“I’d like to thank our staff, our kids, the school and the community. Our alumni treated me really good. I’m very thankful to them. They were part of our success. That’s why I love the game of football. There are so many lessons for life. This was a great opportunity to give back to our community.”
He’s keeping the door open for other coaching opportunities.
“My wife said, ‘I know coaching is in your blood,’ so I feel in my heart I’ll have other opportunities to coach again,” he said. “Some people tell me I’m too nice off the field, but that’s the way my dad raised me.”
