He's 25 years old and has zero coaching experience, but former University of Utah quarterback Darnell Arceneaux is now the head coach at prestigious Saint Louis High School, his alma mater, in Honolulu.
"That's the best job on the Island," said former Utah head coach Ron McBride, now linebackers coach at University of Kentucky and an aficionado of all things related to the Pacific islands and their people. "That's awesome. I was proud of him," said McBride, fired in November after 13 years at Utah.
Saint Louis has been a nationally known program for years, and for Arceneaux to get that position surprised just about everyone.
"People over there have so much respect for him from when he played there. He has the respect of the teachers and faculty. They felt he was the kind of person they want," McBride said of Arceneaux's new employers. "It shows what kind of human being they think he is."
Though Arceneaux has no coaching experience, his younger brother, Anthony, said he has wanted to coach for some time. "Definitely. That's his passion now," said the younger Arceneaux by telephone from Hawaii. Anthony is a former Ute receiver who is finishing his degree at the University of Hawaii.
Darnell, who as a player led the Crusaders to three straight Oahu Prep Bowl titles in 1993-95 and was Honolulu Advertiser 1995 Offensive Player of the Year, was named Monday as coach of what the paper calls the state's top program.
Arceneaux, currently quarterback of the Hawaiian Islanders arenafootball2 team, is in American Samoa this week helping coach at the Joe Salavea Foundation Clinic. Anthony, who is also playing for the Islanders, said his brother had not contacted him this week and did not have his cell phone with him.
Administrators at Saint Louis contacted McBride for his input on coaches a couple of weeks ago, but he had no idea until this week that Arceneaux might be a candidate.
In fact, Arceneaux's name only came up about two weeks ago when outgoing Saint Louis athletic director and former coach Cal Lee, now coach of the Islanders, asked him about taking over, according to an Advertiser article by Wes Nakama.
Lee, brother of former Ute offensive coordinator Tommy Lee, was Saint Louis coach from 1982-99 and won 16 mythical or real state championships.
Saint Louis has been without a coach since April 22, when Delbert Tengan resigned after one year. There were 12 applicants for the job, but Arceneaux was not one of them, Nakama wrote. The Advertiser said the leading candidate turned down the position when an appropriate faculty assignment could not be worked out for him, and Arceneaux was hired.
Nakama quoted Arceneaux as saying he is "grateful to have things pay off for me. (Saint Louis) is a high-profile job, but it's just like the challenge of being the quarterback, and my whole life has been about challenges. It's the right opportunity at the right time. I've always been all about timing."
Arceneaux also told Nakama, "When you're the quarterback, you have to be a coach on the field. It's just that now I won't be able to do things physically to help — I have to do it from the sidelines."
In a story Wednesday, Nakama found reaction around the islands to be positive toward Arceneaux's hiring, echoing McBride's assertions. Nakama quoted other coaches, assistant coaches and players' parents as being in favor.
The Advertiser said Arceneaux may also get a school position in either the athletic or religion department.
Arceneaux has a sociology degree from Utah and quarterbacked there from 1997-2000, sharing the position with Jonathan Crosswhite and T.D. Croshaw in between numerous injuries.
The former Ute played a season in the Canadian Football League and has been working through Hawaii Sports Net's Athletic Prep Academy helping high schoolers find financial support for college. In that capacity, Arceneaux has regularly spoken with one of McBride's daughters, who is in the same line of work, McBride said.
Arceneaux once asked McBride if he could become a graduate assistant for him, but that did not have time to materialize.
McBride has kept up on Arceneaux through his daughter and through Hawaii Sports Net personnel, who have told him, "He's matured a lot" recently.
Arceneaux told the Advertiser he will continue with the on-field system Lee employed for so many years.
Though Arceneaux has no coaching experience, McBride was sure he will do well. "Absolutely. No question," he said. "He has the right personality, and the kids will play for him." McBride said Arceneaux is "one of those kids, that's what he should do (be a coach). He'll be great."
But McBride added, "At this age (25), that's incredible" for Arceneaux to have such a chance.
E-mail: lham@desnews.com