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Currency on the Rise for Paopao
by Mike Beamish, Vancouver Sun
July 20, 2007
Joe Paopao entered the CFL in 1978 when the Canadian dollar was almost
on par with the Yankee greenback. In the intervening years, the
Loonie's ups and downs mirrored Paopao's whipsawing fortunes as a
player and coach. But both are making a comeback. The Canadian dollar
reached a 28-year high this week, and Paopao, 53, returned to be
inducted into the Lions' Wall of Fame on Thursday with Lynn (Lefty)
Hendrickson and the 1985 Grey Cup champion team.
Q: You were fired as the Tiger-Cats' offensive co-ordinator almost a
year ago. Does it feel a little ironic to be returning to BC Place to
see them play, knowing the Hamilton situation appears to be no more
promising?
A: The fact the Lions were playing the Tiger-Cats is coincidental.
Football is a tough business. Everybody goes through tumultuous times.
Only the equipment guys and the trainers go on and on. If you get
knocked down, the sin is if you stay down. I've learned not to take a
firing personally, to pick myself up and go to work someplace else.
The bills keep coming, I have a family to provide for, and the
unconditional love of my wife and family is what's most important.
Q: When you were the Lions offensive co-ordinator, you slept on a cot
at the training facility in Surrey, saving rent money so your kids
could remain in San Diego and graduate with their friends. What was
that like?
A: I had the biggest apartment in the Lower Mainland -- sauna,
whirlpool, racquetball courts, TVs everywhere. And I could study film
until 1 a.m. Kato's mom [equipment trainer Ken Kasuya] provided some
meals. When I look back, I don't ever want to do that again. But
that's how it was when the Canadian dollar was worth 60 cents. It
didn't go very far in the States, with a wife and four kids living at
home.
Q: Dennis McPhee, the Ti-Cats' ex-defensive line coach, now head coach
at the University of Waterloo, hired you in March to be his offensive
co-ordinator. How different is it going to be, going from the CFL to
the CIS?
A: Actually, my first job in football was in college. I coached the
quarterbacks and receivers at MiraCosta College, north of San Diego,
after I graduated from Long Beach State [Paopao was inducted into
State's Hall of Fame last year]. But I still wanted to play football.
I tried out at a Lions free agent camp at Golden West junior college.
Bob Ackles liked me and signed me. I owe my career in Canada to Bob.
Q: You've been a head coach with the Lions and Ottawa Renegades and
coached with the Eskimos and Blue Bombers. Though the Lions were 5-13
under your watch in '96, the team went through four ownership changes.
You personally had to max out your credit card to pay an outstanding
$25,000 hotel bill. How did you manage?
A: It was just one of those situations that made you laugh. You just
had to fight the negativity and go about your business with the
attitude that, every day, I can make a difference.
Q: Tell us about your latest head coaching assignment, with the Halton
Invictas of the Ontario Varsity Football League.
A: My youngest son Carson, who's 16, was in his second year of junior
football. For personal reasons, the head coach quit and, well, these
kids needed somebody. I said, 'Okay, I'll be the guy,' even though I
was footballed out. Kelly Wiltshire was the defensive co-ordinator,
Hank Ilesic coached special teams. Ron Lancaster Jr. was the offensive
co-ordinator.
Q: With a coaching lineup like that, you must have been a powerhouse.
How did the team do?
A: We finished the season 0-8. It was a new experience for me. We had
to forfeit a game because not enough kids showed up. That didn't
happen in the CFL.
Q: Your coaching career was one of "grace under pressure."
But the
story got out that you refused to acknowledge a rival coach or allow
your players to line up for the customary handshake after you lost a
junior game 72-0. Why?
A: We were down 49-0 at the half and the point had been made. But he
wouldn't put in his third or fourth string players. He kept his first
stringers in there, and it was bombs away right to the end. I don't
respect what he did. We're teaching kids sportsmanship and life
values. I made a bonehead decision, and I apologized later. But I've
never been so upset. We're not just trying to teach football. It's
just a game. We're trying to create better citizens in this world. |
