Out-of-State Ideology Forced Tim Mills Out of Junior College Job : Ex-Don Coach Fills Two Roles for Outlaws

Tim Mills often works 15 hours a day filling the dual role of assistant coach and director of scouting for the United States Football League’s Arizona Outlaws, but he’s not complaining.

Frankly, he’s just happy to be working.

In March of 1982 Mills unexpectedly resigned as football coach at Rancho Santiago (formerly Santa Ana) College after leading the Dons, who were 1-7-1 the year before he arrived, to four successive winning seasons.

But it wasn’t because he had a other offers.

A 27-12-1 record and three wins in four tries over rival Fullerton College were Mills’ accomplishments at Rancho Santiago, but they weren’t enough to satisfy the Rancho Santiago Community College District Board of Trustees, who asked Mills to step down.

The reason? It was Mills’ philosophy to recruit out-of-state players because he believed the Rancho Santiago district, composed of 13 high schools, could provide him with neither the quality or quantity of players necessary to turn the Dons’ struggling program around.

The board members at first approved of Mills’ philosophy, but eventually came to insist that he use only local players or resign.

Mills refused to comment on why he was leaving when he stepped down more than three years ago, and it’s still difficult for him to talk about it. After three years, he still is bitter about what happened.

“Wouldn’t you be, if you spent five years of your life building up a winning program, and then, overnight, it was all taken away from you?” Mills asked.

“When I was hired in 1978, I was given the ultimatum to either win in three years or be fired, and I felt the only way to win was to bring in players. At first, I had the blessing of the board to recruit, but over the years, that changed and so did the guidelines under which I could coach. I think what has happened since I left has proven me right.”

Under Mills’ direction, the Dons were 7-3 in 1978 and 1979, 6-3-1 in 1980 and 7-3 in 1981. Mills’ replacement, Dave Ogas, has used local players almost exclusively and hasn’t had a winning season in his three years as coach.

Rodolfo Montejano, a Rancho Santiago Community College District trustee since 1967, admits the board changed its stance on recruiting out-of-state players after Mills had been on the job.

“When we hired Tim, our top priority was to turn the football program around,” he said. “We had been losing and we wanted a winner. But, after a while, then we asked ourselves, ‘At what price do we want a winner? Do we want to exclude using players within the district just to win?’

“My postion has been that we should use in-district players for all of our sports, because the college is for the benefit of taxpayers in this district. We wanted to win, and appreciated Tim making the program a winner, but winning was not our only goal.”

Mills, 38, also remains angry with Fullerton Coach Hal Sherbeck, whom Mills claims helped change the board’s position with allegations of recruiting improprieties.

“I was too stupid to realize it, but beating Fullerton three times was probably my downfall,” Mills said. “Hal Sherbeck was not used to losing to anyone, especially us, so he started speaking out against us with innuendoes about using illegal players and illegal recruiting.

“Sherbeck is one of the most powerful people in community colleges, and he got people to raise questions about us, even though we never had to forfeit a game and were never penalized for doing anything illegal. I respect him as a coach, but because of what he did, I can’t respect Hal Sherbeck as a person.”

Sherbeck refused to comment on Mills’ charges, and Montejano said Sherbeck had nothing to do with the Rancho Santiago board changing its policy on recruiting.

Mills had the option of staying at Rancho Santiago as a instructor, but in the summer of 1982, he joined the Rams as an assistant to Jack Faulkner, administrator of football operations. It was the first of four career moves in three years for Mills.

Faulkner helped get him a job as an assistant coach with the USFL’s Oklahoma Outlaws in 1983, and then Mills came to Arizona last year when the Outlaws and Arizona Wranglers merged.

“I was very fortunate to get the job with the Rams,” Mills said. “It gave me a break to get where I am now, because it gave me professional experience.”

After his year with the Rams, Mills briefly worked as an assistant to Curly Morrison of the Los Angeles Express in early 1983 before being hired as an Oklahoma assistant coach. When Mills came to Arizona, he was put in charge of coaching linebackers and scouting.

With all the financial difficulties the USFL has encountered, it’s still questionable whether or not the league will resume play in the fall of 1986--or ever. But Mills has no intentions to move on.

“The Outlaws have been loyal to me, and I’m going to be loyal to them,” he said. “If the league doesn’t survive, then there’s a chance we could play in the NFL, so I’m not too concerned.

“I’ve enjoyed my time here in Arizona, and I hope we can play in the fall of ’86. I’ve had the chance to work with a coach like Frank Kush, and that’s something you can’t trade for money.”

However, Mills does admit that if the right community college head coaching job became available, he might be interested.

“Since I left Santa Ana, I had a chance to coach at Arizona Western in Yuma and at Pasadena City, but the situations weren’t what I was looking for,” he said. “But, if one of the Orange County schools had a vacancy, I’d consider leaving the pros.”