Wilton meets mentor McGown
By Cindy Luis
Star-BulletinPROVO - It was a meeting of the minds, today's match between the Hawaii and Brigham Young men's volleyball team. Very similar minds. The Mountain Pacific Sports Federation playoff pitted long-time friends Mike Wilton and Carl McGown on opposite benches at the Smith Fieldhouse. It was student versus teacher in a game to see how much the pupil had learned and how well the mentor had taught.
"I know I would rather not coach against him," said Wilton, Hawaii's coach. "And I know he feels the same thing. But we'll go at each other for all we're worth. "I'm really pulling for him to win a national championship and he wants that for me. But (today) it's all-out warfare."
The two met at Brigham Young in the mid-1970s, when Wilton was working on his masters degree and McGown was his thesis chairman. But they had been long-acquainted with each other's reputations, as Wilton began playing volleyball at Church College of Hawaii (now Brigham Young-Hawaii) the year after McGown left his position as athletic director at the Laie campus.
"John Lowell took over as coach after I left and I heard about Mike from him," said McGown. "I knew what a wonderful volleyball player he was, a guy with a really good hops who was one of the reasons they won the national championships (1971-72). "He came to BYU for his master's and also played on my club team. His thesis was entitled "The Effect of Depth Jumps on Vertical Jumps." It was an analysis on what the Russians were doing with plyometrics, how the leg muscles lengthen on the downward jumps before they contract on the way back up. Very much a springboard effect."
McGown has shared the ups and downs in Wilton's life, including one of the all-time low points. After Wilton was let go as women's coach at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, he ended up living with McGown for two months in 1990, helping him with the newly formed Cougar men's collegiate volleyball team as a volunteer assistant coach while loking for a new job.
"I was there as a friend, and for whatever else he needed," said McGown.
Wilton needed a coaching job but didn't get one. He returned to Hilo, working in a lumber yard until the Hawaii job opened up in 1993.
The success Wilton has had with the Rainbows doesn't surprise McGown. What did surprise the BYU coach was that Wilton had considered leaving Hawaii for the newly created full-time assistant's job with the Cougars.
"As much as I would have liked to have him back as an assistant, it was surprising he'd leave a program that could put 10,000 fans in the seats and gets the attention it gets," said McGown. "But Mike has a lot of high standards and if they (the UH athletic department) weren't doing things for their coach who was having such success, I understand why Mike might consider leaving."
Wilton made the decision to stay at Hawaii but, he said, it was a tough choice. A number of factors came into play, including watching his young granddaughter, Taylor Cabbab grow up.
"I had no ego problem with being Carl's assistant," said Wilton. "We enjoy each other's company immensely and can converse for hours. I come up every summer to help with his camps and we spend long hours on his deck, watching the Provo River flow by, and hardly talking about volleyball at all."
There had been speculation that Wilton would replace McGown at BYU if the latter had accepted either the head or assistant coach's job with the U.S. men's national team. There's still talk about whether Wilton might take the job when McGown, now 59, retires in six years.
Regardless, there will still be a Wilton here next year. Mike Jr., a senior at the University Lab School, has committed to the Cougars.
"That was totally Mikey's decision," said Wilton. "He fell in love with the place a couple of years ago and has been lobbying me to move the family here since. Playing for BYU is a dream come true for him.
"I'm happy Carl will be his coach. I know he'll challenge Mikey, teach him well, be there for him. Carl is a real good coach and it's a no-brainer that he's been as successful as he has been.
Today, the friends saw who had the better team on the court.
1997 UH Men’s Volleyball
Schedule and Record
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