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Who is Brian Derby more proud of?
Is it his mentees who have gone on to great careers as players, or those who made a bigger mark as coaches?
“Actually guys like Darius (Kila), guys like Kyle Chinen, I get more tickled with that,” he said, referring to the state representative and the Hawaii News Now sports multimedia journalist. “We tell them only a very small percentage of you guys are going to get to the NFL. The goal was always to get them a college scholarship, a free education.”
Of course, we all know that nothing is really free. Sometimes tuition is paid with sweat, and knowledge gained from mentors who have been in their cleats.
The Derby Offensive Lineman Camp was held for the final time Sunday, at Farrington’s Skippa Diaz Stadium. As always when held in Hawaii, it was free of charge, and about 50 youngsters showed up. So did plenty of alumni, and many of the coaches who helped Derby over the years on long, hot Sundays every summer.
His family came, as did friends from his football playing days and firefighting careers. Now he will have more time to enjoy retirement with them, especially his wife, Patsy, and son, Tate.
Kila was there to present Derby with a resolution of congratulations from the state House, and Chinen to document the occasion for HNN. Kila played high school football at Kapolei and Chinen at Mililani. Both used the lessons they learned as kids at the camp to go on to play in college.
Some of Derby’s campers made it to the NFL, like Steelers guard Nate Herbig and Broncos guard Netane Muti. The total number who made the pros is thought to be more than a dozen, but it is difficult to track since the Derby Camp became so popular at its peak that it expanded to Virginia and Oregon.
In Hawaii, sometimes 150 showed up for tutelage.
“I cannot (personally) coach 150,” Derby said, again thanking the coaches who helped with the camp. “But I can watch 150.”
Even if they didn’t go on to play in college or start on their high school team, Derby is proud of them.
“Kids come back as men who are electricians, contractors, to say hello and thanks. They’re providing for their family and they’re good people,” he said. “That’s the most important thing we teach. The rest doesn’t matter if you’re not a good person.”
Gary Loo died June 6. But the soft-spoken retired police officer and football coach was definitely at Farrington on Sunday in spirit. You can’t tell the story of how the Derby camp started without including that of Loo and his son, Keola.
In the mid 1990s, Saint Louis had dominated Hawaii high school football for more than a decade. Gary Loo was a cog in the machine, one of head coach Cal Lee’s assistants as the Crusaders rolled up 14 consecutive Prep Bowl or state championships starting in 1986.
“It was funny,” Derby said. “We were at a UH game, and he says, ‘Hey, can you help my son? He needs technique work.’ I said, ‘Of course.’ I’m always accessible. I never cared where someone was going to school. But I was coaching at Punahou at that time, so it must have taken a lot for a Saint Louis guy to ask me that.”
It wasn’t really what you’d call a “camp” yet, as it started with two coaches and one player.
“Then, remember Lyle Castro? He and another Saint Louis guy joined in,” Derby said.
Word got around, and more players (and some coaches) from all over showed up. Derby was also in mid-career with the Honolulu Fire Department, so he did not always have time to commit to a school team’s coaching staff. But he’d never say no to a kid who showed up for the camp and was willing to listen and put in the work.
“I always had two or three things going on,” Derby said. “If not at the firehouse, I’d be at the football field.”
Keola Loo went on to play at UH and Washington State in the early 2000s, and then a long coaching career that has him now at Utah Tech. Keola’s son, Keala, played linebacker at famed Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, and is headed into his sophomore year as a defensive end at Southern Utah.
Derby, who started three seasons on the O-line at the University of Hawaii after making first-team All-State at Pearl City in 1980, was known for impeccable technique as a football player — and as a firefighter. He retired from HFD as a captain.
“Fire was like playing at UH. You gotta prepare yourself,” he said. “The only difference between college football and fire is if you don’t prepare yourself you’re gonna die. Every fire is different, every accident is different. You beat the fire with fundamentals and experience. My job as a captain was to make sure all my guys got home.”
Derby often mentions Dick Tomey, his head coach at UH who died in 2019, as a continuous major influence on how he lives life.
The deaths this year of legendary head coaches Larry Price, Don Botelho and Larry Ginoza, and a longtime assistant during Saint Louis’ dynasty like Gary Loo, all brought back memories of Hawaii’s unique football history. So did the finale of the Derby Camp.
The good news is Derby will continue to coach offensive linemen, as he has in recent years, on the varsity staff at Kahuku. He also coaches discus and shot put for the North Shore school’s track and field team.
“I’ve been blessed hundreds, thousands of times,” Derby said. “Everyone’s different. You coach ’em hard, then you love ’em even harder.”
Continue reading...
Is it his mentees who have gone on to great careers as players, or those who made a bigger mark as coaches?
“Actually guys like Darius (Kila), guys like Kyle Chinen, I get more tickled with that,” he said, referring to the state representative and the Hawaii News Now sports multimedia journalist. “We tell them only a very small percentage of you guys are going to get to the NFL. The goal was always to get them a college scholarship, a free education.”
Of course, we all know that nothing is really free. Sometimes tuition is paid with sweat, and knowledge gained from mentors who have been in their cleats.
The Derby Offensive Lineman Camp was held for the final time Sunday, at Farrington’s Skippa Diaz Stadium. As always when held in Hawaii, it was free of charge, and about 50 youngsters showed up. So did plenty of alumni, and many of the coaches who helped Derby over the years on long, hot Sundays every summer.
His family came, as did friends from his football playing days and firefighting careers. Now he will have more time to enjoy retirement with them, especially his wife, Patsy, and son, Tate.
Kila was there to present Derby with a resolution of congratulations from the state House, and Chinen to document the occasion for HNN. Kila played high school football at Kapolei and Chinen at Mililani. Both used the lessons they learned as kids at the camp to go on to play in college.
Some of Derby’s campers made it to the NFL, like Steelers guard Nate Herbig and Broncos guard Netane Muti. The total number who made the pros is thought to be more than a dozen, but it is difficult to track since the Derby Camp became so popular at its peak that it expanded to Virginia and Oregon.
In Hawaii, sometimes 150 showed up for tutelage.
“I cannot (personally) coach 150,” Derby said, again thanking the coaches who helped with the camp. “But I can watch 150.”
Even if they didn’t go on to play in college or start on their high school team, Derby is proud of them.
“Kids come back as men who are electricians, contractors, to say hello and thanks. They’re providing for their family and they’re good people,” he said. “That’s the most important thing we teach. The rest doesn’t matter if you’re not a good person.”
Gary Loo died June 6. But the soft-spoken retired police officer and football coach was definitely at Farrington on Sunday in spirit. You can’t tell the story of how the Derby camp started without including that of Loo and his son, Keola.
In the mid 1990s, Saint Louis had dominated Hawaii high school football for more than a decade. Gary Loo was a cog in the machine, one of head coach Cal Lee’s assistants as the Crusaders rolled up 14 consecutive Prep Bowl or state championships starting in 1986.
“It was funny,” Derby said. “We were at a UH game, and he says, ‘Hey, can you help my son? He needs technique work.’ I said, ‘Of course.’ I’m always accessible. I never cared where someone was going to school. But I was coaching at Punahou at that time, so it must have taken a lot for a Saint Louis guy to ask me that.”
It wasn’t really what you’d call a “camp” yet, as it started with two coaches and one player.
“Then, remember Lyle Castro? He and another Saint Louis guy joined in,” Derby said.
Word got around, and more players (and some coaches) from all over showed up. Derby was also in mid-career with the Honolulu Fire Department, so he did not always have time to commit to a school team’s coaching staff. But he’d never say no to a kid who showed up for the camp and was willing to listen and put in the work.
“I always had two or three things going on,” Derby said. “If not at the firehouse, I’d be at the football field.”
Keola Loo went on to play at UH and Washington State in the early 2000s, and then a long coaching career that has him now at Utah Tech. Keola’s son, Keala, played linebacker at famed Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, and is headed into his sophomore year as a defensive end at Southern Utah.
Derby, who started three seasons on the O-line at the University of Hawaii after making first-team All-State at Pearl City in 1980, was known for impeccable technique as a football player — and as a firefighter. He retired from HFD as a captain.
“Fire was like playing at UH. You gotta prepare yourself,” he said. “The only difference between college football and fire is if you don’t prepare yourself you’re gonna die. Every fire is different, every accident is different. You beat the fire with fundamentals and experience. My job as a captain was to make sure all my guys got home.”
Derby often mentions Dick Tomey, his head coach at UH who died in 2019, as a continuous major influence on how he lives life.
The deaths this year of legendary head coaches Larry Price, Don Botelho and Larry Ginoza, and a longtime assistant during Saint Louis’ dynasty like Gary Loo, all brought back memories of Hawaii’s unique football history. So did the finale of the Derby Camp.
The good news is Derby will continue to coach offensive linemen, as he has in recent years, on the varsity staff at Kahuku. He also coaches discus and shot put for the North Shore school’s track and field team.
“I’ve been blessed hundreds, thousands of times,” Derby said. “Everyone’s different. You coach ’em hard, then you love ’em even harder.”
Continue reading...
