Vladimir Kubr is good enough to play at most Division I men’s volleyball programs.
The 6-foot-3 setter is the only senior who will be recognized tonight on senior night after No. 2 Hawaii finishes the regular season hosting No. 18 Cal State Northridge at Bankoh Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.
He has only played in three matches over two seasons with the Rainbow Warriors playing behind junior Tread Rosenthal, who is one of eight semifinalists for the AVCA National Player of the Year award.
Maybe that would encourage some to transfer out of the program, but once the Pepperdine alum got the opportunity to come to UH, this is where he was going to finish his career, regardless of playing time.
“Since I kind of envisioned in my head that I would play for this team, it would be a perfect end for my college career to end on this team as well,” Kubr said Tuesday. “I got into volleyball because I watched Jakob Thelle on Spectrum, so looking at the Stan, being like, ‘Wow, this is what volleyball can be,’ maybe I can come here. I kind of envisioned it a little bit.”
Kubr, who grew up in Torrance, Calif., played one season at El Camino College and then spent the next two years at Pepperdine.
Knowing the Rainbow Warriors had a freshman setter in Rosenthal, Kubr didn’t care that it might be hard to get on the court during matches.
He redshirted last season and appeared in three matches in January against Rockhurst and Roberts Wesleyan.
He put both of his serves in during a match against Rockhurst and dug up a ball that resulted in a large standing ovation from the rest of his teammates on the sideline.
“It means the world to me, to be honest with you,” Kubr said. “I can’t add anything more than that. It just means the world. My father has always told me if you can count the number of friends you have on one hand, you’re good. Your life is good. I don’t have enough fingers for 19 at all. I love my team very much.”
Hawaii coach Charlie Wade says he has a plan to get Kubr playing time this weekend when the Rainbow Warriors (24-4, 7-1 Big West) look to secure the No. 1 seed in the Outrigger Big West Men’s Volleyball Championship next week in Irvine, Calif.
Hawaii needs just one win, or one Long Beach State loss against UC Irvine, to secure at least a share of the regular-season championship.
Wade has dealt with players contending for playing time at most positions all season. He’s never once fielded a complaint from Kubr.
“He’s really just a great dude and a special guy,” Wade said. “I think we’re all going to miss him just for his character. His work ethic, you know, just one of the all-time great team guys. He’s a pretty good player. He just doesn’t get to show up in front of the crowd too much, but he goes hard every day in practice and he will be missed.”
Kubr only knows how to go hard.
The son of a stuntman and actor, Mark Kubr, Vladimir appeared in his first movie as a young child, the original “Iron Man.”
His dad, who was a stunts performer in the first “Iron Man” movie, portrayed Prisoner in “Iron Man 2” and Ponytail Express in “Iron Man 3.”
“The scene in particular (in “Iron Man”) was fighting against (Obadiah Stane), the main villain on the highway scene and (Obadiah) picks up this SUV, right?,” Kubr said. “There’s a family of five and there’s a little kid in the car in the car seat in the middle. That’s me. It was 2 a.m. when we were shooting and they had to lift up this car, maybe 15, 20 feet in the air, so it’s slanted and you’re looking straight to the ground. They had to keep waking me up because I was a little kid and it was bedtime. Jon Favreau, the director, was like ‘this kid is asleep right now.’ Everyone was kind of like freaking out … and my dad slowly walked away trying to disconnect himself from the situation.”
Kubr was quite young to remember all of that, before he pointed out that he doesn’t.
“No, my dad keeps (telling) me,” he said.
Vladimir Kubr has worked on multiple movies since and hopes to continue his career once the season is over.
“Nothing really planned right now. Hopefully I can continue the career and I have some other things possibly lined up as well,” he said.