University of Utah quarterback Darnell Arceneaux had a rough season: A concussion and surgeries for a broken index finger and a dislocated shoulder in a six-week span, not to mention his sore back and metal-plated shin.
But Arceneaux, still just a sophomore, came through the injuries with a smile. It's his nature. It's why everybody likes him.Now, though, Arceneaux is hurt in another way, and he's not sure what to do about it.
He's unhappy with local criticism by media and fans of teammates like Ryan Kaneshiro (missed kicks) and Daniel Jones (celebration penalty) and of his coaches, who don't call enough pass plays or don't give the ball enough to Mike Anderson and Omar Bacon or don't call plays to the right receivers or call too many punts to please some people.
It angers Arceneaux that some Ute-watchers don't understand how coach Ron McBride's interest in his players goes beyond the football field to the way they'll live the rest of their lives. He says that when he was in high school, he was going the wrong direction until McBride took an interest in him. "I believe in what he says. If he told me I could jump through a wall, I'd jump through the wall," Arceneaux said.
And now there's a chance he could lose offensive coordinator Tommy Lee, who's the quarterbacks coach, and/or McBride, whom Arceneaux says is the father figure he never had.
Both are interested candidates for the open University of Hawaii coaching job in Arceneaux's hometown of Honolulu, where his mother, brother and grandparents live.
So, earlier this week, when a Hawaiian newspaper asked Arceneaux if he and other Polynesian Utes might consider returning to the Islands if Lee gets the UH job, he said several would think about it. He said if his mother wanted to see him play his senior season at home, he'd think about that, too.
Thursday, at the Dee Smith football complex on the U. campus, Arceneaux said he's probably not going anywhere but to the Mountain West championship next year. "I would never want to leave this place. It's my second home. I've met a lot of good people," he said, especially noting U. professors who try to help players be students and men. He adds that his brother's about to graduate from high school and wants to play for Utah.
But Arceneaux said that if McBride were to take the Hawaii job, he would think about trying to transfer unless a new U. coach came from the current staff, like Fred Graves or Sean McNabb.
If McBride stays and Lee gets the job, Arceneaux says he'd be happy for Lee, whose family is also in Honolulu, but stay with McBride and the Utes.
Arceneaux and other players, he said, are on edge this week wondering just what's going on. Being one of the team leaders since he was a freshman, Arceneaux is learning as much as he can about the coaching situation, and even about transferring, to inform himself and to answer questions other players have already asked him. "I just need to look out for myself and my teammates," Arceneaux said. "A lot of people want to know what's going on.
"I just can't wait," Arceneaux said, "until (McBride) says he's staying."