Players facing waiting game for coach

Steve Guiremand

Thursday, Nov. 19, 1998 | 10:50 a.m.

They came from places like Honolulu, San Diego and Clifton, N.J., to play for Jeff Horton.

Now key members of Horton's last two recruiting classes, both ranked highly by the nation's top recruiting services, find themselves nervously waiting to see just who will be the man who will coach them during the rest of their careers at UNLV.

It isn't unusual for players to talk about transferring under such circumstances. Although some players are taking a wait-and-see attitude, it appears most of the key underclassmen plan on sticking around UNLV despite Horton's firing on Monday.

"I've got to see who the new coach is and what he's like," said true freshman defensive end La'anui Correa, who has nine tackles, including four for losses, in eight games this year and figures to be an impact player in the Mountain West Conference before he's done. "It will probably be a big change for me because I'd have to show my talents all over again for the new coaches. But it's too much of a hassle to transfer. I'm going to stick it out right here."

Correa's former prep teammate at perennial prep powerhouse St. Louis High in Honolulu, redshirt freshman inside linebacker James Sunia, said he's also staying put.

"I'm staying here and going to play the rest of my years here," Sunia, who has a team-high 105 tackles and should make some freshman All-American teams, said. "I want to stay and try and turn this program around."

The team's top young offensive prospect, wide receiver Duane James, also said he planned to stay.

"As far as I know, I'm sticking around," James said. "I like it here and I like Las Vegas. I like the people here. I think most everybody will probably stay."

"I made a decision to come here and I'm going to stick to it," said highly-touted freshman running back Joe Haro, who shunned schools like Syracuse and Indiana to play for Horton. "Sure I'm disappointed that Coach Horton is leaving. He was a big reason I came here. But we have to take what comes our way."

Haro said the incoming freshman class, arguably the school's best in over a decade, has become like a family.

"I've really become close to some of the freshmen I came in with," Haro said. "A lot of us have talked and we want to stick with it. We want to help turn this program around. It can only go up."