Waimea grad Apilado is Raiders’ football coach

LIHUE — Three years ago, Jason Apilado applied to be the head football coach at Kauai High School.

He applied again when the position became vacant, and he got the job this time. He was hired earlier this month after former coach Derek Borrero stepped down following the end of this past season.

It’s quite the leap for Apilado. His only prior coaching experience was at the community level as he was involved in local youth football and baseball associations.

But his aspirations are just the same at the high school level — to get his athletes to succeed on and off the field. It’s work that he says is a labor of “love.”

And he says he’s got big shoes to fill because Borrero left the program after just winning a Kauai Interscholastic Federation title. But it’s a challenge, Apilado says, he won’t shy away from.

Apilado sat down with The Garden Island at Kauai High School and talked about his experiences coaching youth, how he believes it will transcend to the prep level and why he’s so passionate about coaching.

So before we get into it, can you give us a breakdown for your coaching history?

So prior to coaching, basically, just typical guy. Just worked and worked and worked. Got involved in coaching with my second son. He was 7 at the time. The youth baseball league needed some coaches over here, the Lihue Baseball League. I got involved and immediately found that this was something that, I think in life in general, that I was missing. I genuinely found after that first season many years ago that it rekindled a joy, an actually enjoyment, in sports itself. Baseball and football being two of my favorite sports. That was back in 2007, and I’m still involved today. Worked with all the different divisions, if you’re looking at the baseball side, ranging from ages 7 all the way to pre-high school, which is 13.

Two years after that in ’09, I got involved at the entry level for Pop Warner football, which is the Mitey Mite division. That’s the 7-, 8- and 9-year-olds for full-contact football. I got involved with that, of course with my son, but also a bunch of the kids in the community. I became a part of the Lihue Pop Warner Association as well as a coach at that time. A year after that, I got involved in the administrative side as part of the Lihue Pop Warner board from 2010 — so, I doubled that year as a coach and also as the vice president of the board — all the way until now.

I — since because of this role, the enormity of the role as the head varsity football coach — I went ahead and relinquished that role. I’d like to think I left the association in a good place, with new people that were up and coming and willing to be involved at that level. So, I left the position and resigned quietly.

Can I assume you’re a Kauai High alum?

No. Interestingly enough, I’m an ’89 graduate of Waimea High School, which makes for interesting stories of course. I played a couple of seasons for them. I was fortunate enough to be in the span of the years between ’86 and ’88. I was part of two championship teams. Really good experiences coming out of the Waimea High School football system.

No coaching experience prior, but I did help with my home association at that time, which was the Kekaha Pop Warner Association. I was, pretty much you could say, an assistant coach for a couple of years but nothing serious. … After those couple of years from Kekaha, I relocated to Lihue with my kids. We’ve been here ever since. Over 20 years already in Lihue.

Why did you want to be the head coach here?

To give you a little insight, being at the community level for so long — I started in those years in ’09 and 2010 — if you look at the time scale, and a lot of these kids in the Lihue community, I’ve had a hand in coaching, with my staff, these kids all the way until they came up to the high school level. As coaches and myself, we made it a goal to hopefully continue on our work with these kids.

Three years ago when Coach Borrero came back to coach the team, I was one of the applicants at that time. Coach Borrero got the job, which to me was a great move because he’s got all that experience. A lot more high school experience than I do. Basically, I took that as a learning lesson and went right back to where I was at at the community and just continued to do my work.

A lot of these kids have already played with each other or against each other. I think that’s a beautiful thing. With this island being so small, everybody knows each other. Now, we’re at the stage where we’ll see if all those years of our work and commitment, and all those things us as coaches try to put into these kids, is going to come full circle. I’m pretty excited.

My thing is, when kids play for me, I always tell them at the beginning of every season however long it is, “You’re going to become my kid. All of you that are playing for me, you’re going to be like my kids. You’re going to be treated exactly like family. You guys are going to be disciplined exactly like you were my kids.” The standards are pretty high, so hopefully everybody will adhere to it. I think if we do that, we’ll be fine.

What was going through your head when you were formally offered the job?

I was encouraged by some coaches that have been here before to apply. Had to update my resume from the first go-around when I applied for the position. Turned it in. Got the call from our AD (Keli’i Morgado), and could not believe it.

I envisioned a lot (coaches) that get this position would have many more experience, per se. Like the Coach Borreros, Coach (Jason) Caldeira at Waimea or Coach (Philip) Rapozo at Kapaa. They’ve got a bunch of years on me already. Me coming in at the community level, for me to get my head wrapped around this whole thing was pretty tough. When I got the news, (I was) happy in one respect and shocked in the other. But I’m very happy with the decision that was made and looking forward to the challenge.

Coming up from the community level, do you feel there’s a steep learning curve?

I don’t think it’s going to be a steep learning curve. Logistics, language, play calling might be a lot faster at this level. I get that. Bigger kids. Faster, stronger. … Since getting the approval for the job, the many talks, many study sessions, preparing my systems and my theories to being current and what’s being run here — I’m not that far off. So, learning curve? Yes. If it’s a problem? No, absolutely not.

Are you an offensive or defensive guy? How would you describe yourself as a football coach?

That’s a tough one to answer. I love the game entirely. I think my point of views, as far as being a coach, is a lot different than some other peers that I’ve watched coach and how they approach things. Game-wise, I think I’m more on the offensive side of the ball. Defense, I believe that’s where I think I’m going to have to step my game up, brush up and learn.

That’s one thing that’s important, too. As a coach, I think every year or every season or every group that you have, I think you learn a little bit about yourself. I think if I shut myself down and only stick to the ways that I know, then I’m not going to be successful. So, learning, the door is open. I’m absorbing a lot of things as I can just to make sure my ideals and my strategies mesh well what we’re going to do, what we’re going to take on, at the school.

But in a nutshell, offensive side, that’s probably me. But how I approach things, I think, is more important at this point right now. With being a new hire, I think the Xs and Os are probably going to come second. I think it’s more or less getting in at the top floor and re-establishing myself with these young men. And women, if we do have women athletes that are going to play.

When you say that you treat your athletes as if they were your own kids, where does that come from?

We could spend hours talking about that stuff. As I say, everybody’s got a different path. Everybody’s story is different. Everybody’s motivation for coaching is different. I think at that time, when I got into coaching, there was a rough patch in my personal life. I went through a pretty bad divorce at that time. Of course, those things are never easy. Emotionally and mentally, those things take a toll on you. But the one common denominator I think my ex and I got correct is the kids.

Regardless of whether my son was on my roster, it became apparent that the one important thing, the one important ingredient, are the kids you’re affecting. Putting my time into the kids and caring for them, not only about how they played but about everything they do, even at that level we were very involved with making sure the kids were academically fit.

Coaching gave me a different aspect. It’s where you learn to be unselfish. You put your aim on everything that you do. You’re always under the spotlight. You’re shielding kids and making sure that they move in the right direction. You try your hardest to keep them away from all the things that can drag them down. … But to make sure these kids are being taught just the simple things that will make life a lot easier for them — making good decisions, staying true to yourself and your friends, having respect and pretty much just loving one another.

People laugh at me. Not too many people use the word “love.” They don’t understand that. When I talk to my kids, it’s important. “Look, man. When we’re on the (field), you got to protect each other and you got to push together to get the ball across the goal line.” … You got to care about this guy next to you, this guy next to you and this guy behind you. All of that is bounded by love. If you don’t love what you do, then you shouldn’t be out here.

Do you feel pressure to be immediately successful considering that Coach Borrero just won a KIF title last season?

I think yes and no. I think it’s a two-part answer. I think yes because, I’ve chuckled with Coach Borrero, I told him, “Man, I got really big shoes to fill.” I got a lot of respect for him. He’s a great motivator. Really, really good with the kids. I’ve had experiences when he wasn’t at the high school level. I hired him as a coach, to come down to coach the older division at the Pop Warner level. He came back down to give his time.

Watching him work with the kids and being right below him, I really respected the guy. Big shoes to fill with the championship? Sure. I get that. But if I’m afraid that? Of facing that challenge? No. It’s all going to depend on how well we prepare, how hard we train, getting the kids dialed in mentally and physically. But also, football’s an emotional game. We know that. Highs and lows. To get their emotions dialed in, and also their hearts. For any individual, if their heart isn’t in it — if you can’t get that to happen — then that’s going to be difficult to climb. But if I’m afraid or if I’m worried about winning the championship? If I’m afraid of that pressure? No. I welcome it.

Is there anything else you’d like readers to know about yourself?

Bottom line is this: I’m very, very proud and truly blessed to be given this opportunity to become the head coach of the program. I just want everybody to know, bottom line, this decision for me to become the head coach of the program — it’s not about me. It’s not about what’s in the past. It’s about keeping the program alive and strong and positive, and keeping the kids on a solid, straight path to achieving whatever they want, whether it’s just football or getting them beyond high school and getting them to the next level — which is their education, which is important.

Pushback, we’re going to get that. That’s fine. But know that this staff, it’s a new beginning for us. If we’re getting pushback, you can believe we’re going to push even harder to excel. It’s a driving motivation factor for us … but we embrace it with love and humility, and we’re just going to move forward.

Pushback? Why do you think that is?

More than likely, I think, it’s because I’m the quote-unquote new guy. But in everything — new job, anything new — you’re new once. My intention is I’m going to stay true to my convictions and my word that we talked about today, and we’re going to get these kids to shine. That’s what we’re going to do.