June Jones praises plans for XFL’s return

X might mark the spot again for June Jones.

The former University of Hawaii head football coach is expected to be part of the anticipated resurgence of the XFL, a designed-for-TV, pro-football league that already has had two short-lived incarnations.

This time, actor and former wrestling star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is an investor in a group that has agreed to pay $15 million to buy the XFL. A bankruptcy judge will review the bid at a hearing on Friday. On April 13, the XFL filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy following the abbreviation of a 10-game season to five weeks because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

An element of the proposed sale is the assumption of the contracts. Jones is owed another season on a two-year contract to serve as head coach and general manager of the Houston Roughnecks. Of the eight teams, the 5-0 Roughnecks were the only unbeaten one when the season was suspended.

The new buyers’ options appear to be paying out the coaches’ contracts at a discounted rate or retaining the coaches and then renegotiating new terms. “That’s why I think they’ll just pick up the contracts rather than pay us and start over,” said Jones, who is agreeable to returning to the XFL. “For sure. It was fun.”

Jones and Johnson were part of a project in 2005. Johnson was the narrator and Jones was a featured personality in “Polynesian Power,” a documentary that detailed the rise of Polynesian players in American football. The documentary followed the careers of former UH football players Pisa Tinoisamoa and Isaac Sopoaga. Johnson, who played college football at Miami, is a McKinley High alumnus.

Jones praised the Johnson’s group’s plan, which calls for a bubble format similar to the one used by the NBA during the pandemic.

A proposal would have the training camps opening in December, with league play in the spring.

The XFL was launched in 2001, but lasted only one season. It was resurrected this past year, with Vince McMahon as the owner and primary investor.