HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL
Powerful ILH ready to start
The last of the state's five leagues to begin conference play is firmly entrenched as the best.
The Interscholastic League of Honolulu has long been a force. Two years ago, Kamehameha won the state title. Last season, Punahou pushed Kahuku to the limit in a 28-21 title-game loss.
Iolani, meanwhile, won its first Division II state crown last year. This season, teams are reshaping, rebuilding and still in power. Punahou (No. 1), Saint Louis (No. 3) and Kamehameha (No. 4) give the Star-Bulletin Top 10 poll a distinctly ILH flavor.
Iolani is at No. 7, despite a plethora of first-year starters. Pac-Five (2-1) and Damien (1-1) have fared well in crossover games with the Oahu Interscholastic Association. Pac-Five's only loss came against Division I Campbell, and Damien nearly beat Kailua, another D-I program.
The league slate begins tomorrow when Damien and Iolani battle at Aloha Stadium.
Punahou, back from its stunning 23-16 win over Eastlake (Wash.) at Seattle's Qwest Field, will be resting and catching up on schoolwork. The Buffanblu do not play until Sept. 23 against Kamehameha. The win over Eastlake, ranked third statewide by the Seattle Times and first by SeattlePreps.com, was an absolute confidence boost.
"You can't duplicate the experience in any way," coach Kale Ane said of the game. "It was great for our kids, having to be responsible, fight through jet lag. They had to hurry up and wait. They understood that and didn't complain."
Star-Bulletin All-State receiver Miah Ostrowski will benefit from the break after suffering an ankle injury in the second quarter of the Eastlake game.
"He's off crutches and going to rehab every day," Ale noted.
The ILH scheduling is the same. Each team will play a round-robin format against the entire league, plus an extra game against teams in its division. That means Division I squads Kamehameha, Punahou and Saint Louis meet each other twice. Division II teams Damien, Iolani and Pac-Five face each other twice, as well.
Wendell Look, longtime coach of defending D-II league champ Iolani, knows the chase is wide open.
"Division II is going to be real tight. Damien lost a lot, but replaced their guys with quality. (Kama) Bailey is a lot like (Kealoha) Pilares. Pac-Five has some numbers and size. The running backs add another dimension," he said.
Kamehameha coach Kanani Souza returned from a one-year stint as a graduate assistant at Oregon State. As far as he's concerned, there's no difference between anyone in the ILH.
"With D-I and D-II, I've never felt there was a gap. If there was one, I never noticed it," he said. "Every week will be action packed."
In fact, it's possible for a D-II team to win the overall league title.
Kamehameha will play its fourth nonconference game, an unusually high number -- tonight against Redlands (Calif.).
"The way we are with what we need, we need to play," Souza said. "For this year, a fourth game this early is a positive."
Here's a look at the teams:
Damien Monarchs
Coach: Dean Nakagawa
Returnees: 25
Returning starters, offense: 4
Returning starters, defense: 4
On paper: Gone are several stalwart linemen, including center Eddie Williams. Gone is Star-Bulletin offensive player of the year Kealoha Pilares (1,900 yards). This is a new bunch of Monarchs with a recently-born tradition to carry on. In the tough ILH, that is a lot to ask for.
Sione Tau (6-5, 280 pounds) is the anchor of the offensive line, but has missed one game and a load of practice time due to a chest injury.
The skinny: Kama Bailey (5-8, 165) is the new cornerstone at running back, but senior George Martin can balance the offense with his arm. Martin (5-11, 160) started as a sophomore and brings experience to the field.
Bailey, a converted wide receiver, won't be relegated to the backfield.
Along with Tau, Timo Ulima (5-8, 260) is at center to solidify the offensive line.
Defensively, Haku Correa (6-1, 260) and Lesao Iakopo (5-11, 220) give Damien experience up front. Kenneth Rossi (5-11, 215) has moved from tight end to middle linebacker, and Christian Vasconcellos is another key at safety.
Coach says: "Iolani's getting better every week, and Pac-Five has a stud quarterback and studs all around. I hope we'll be in the mix of things."
Iolani Raiders
Coach: Wendell Look.
Returnees: 15
Returning starters, offense: 1
Returning starters, defense: 4
On paper: Look's 16th season at the helm will be one of repetition and teaching. Last year's senior group was special enough to lead the program to its first Division II state championship. Linebacker Jon Takamura is gone, as is quarterback Kiran Kepoo and a host of talented contributors.
Even with a group of new starters, the Raiders haven't skipped a beat. They have wins over Radford and Moanalua, and a close loss to OIA Red West favorite Mililani.
The skinny: The Raiders' no-huddle, run-and-shoot system is intact. The receivers are still some of the smallest in the islands, but their technique and speed are unparalleled by most foes. Ryan Dung (6-0, 165) has shown poise and accuracy as a first-year starter at quarterback. Kela Marciel (5-10, 160), a better runner, has been used effectively by Look in certain situations.
Safety Daniel Takami (5-9, 165) has anchored a thin, but resilient defense.
Coach says: "Last year, we had 52 kids, but we're down about 12 kids this year. We expected more kids to come up from our intermediate team, so that was discouraging at first. This team has worked hard, and the kids are getting the job done so far."
Kamehameha Warriors
Coach: Kanani Souza
Returnees: 30
Returning starters, offense: 1
Returning starters, defense: 3
On paper: This team returns a nucleus of talent, particularly on defense. Offensively, they lost All-State wide receiver Aaron Nichols (Oregon State) to graduation.
The skinny: The Warriors have been physically dominant on defense. Taylor Hibbs is an undersized (205 pounds) defensive end who is too quick for most offensive tackles. The senior had three sacks in Farrington's first four plays from scrimmage last week, setting the tone for the front seven. Micah Waiamau and Joshua Manupuna tallied two sacks each in that 7-6 win, and the team finished with a whopping 10 sacks total.
"We're playing with great intensity and passion, but we're not playing good yet," Souza said. "We're allowing people to break our lanes. Fortunately, great effort overcomes a lot of mistakes."
Cornerbacks Andrew Godinet (5-9, 170) and Brandon Hardin (6-3, 185) helped to slow down Farrington's explosive offense. Safety Rykin Enos (6-0, 187), who had a pick against the Governors, anchors the secondary. Linebacker Eugene Naeole (6-0, 185) has been solid in the box.
Souza brought back a few more offensive wrinkles for his program after spending nearly a year at Oregon State. The sets remain the same, for the most part: ace formations with double-tight end sets, occasional slots. However, in earlier games, like a 35-20 win over Aiea, the Warriors were highly unpredictable in play-calling. Against Farrington, with poor field position for much of the night, the Warriors were conservative.
Coach says: "A coach said to me 30 years ago, 'Experience is the greatest of all coaches.' Without it, it's hard to make heads or tails of what you want your team to do. Still, what I'm really excited about is we're playing as a unit."
Pac-Five Wolfpack
Coach: Kip Botelho, third year
Returnees: 43
Returning starters, offense: 9
Returning starters, defense: 10
On paper: The Wolfpack have a different look this year, painting last year's gold helmets white in honor of the Prep Bowl winners of the 1980s. Other than that, the roster is much the same as last year's. That's good news because the squad that was athletic and green is now wiser and experienced.
The skinny: Shandon Augustus had a breakout game against Kaiser, rushing for 176 yards and two touchdowns, and even passing for another score. Last week, it was Jamie Rivera who busted loose with 124 yards on just 15 attempts against Kalaheo.
"We have a solid backup there now," Botelho said of Rivera. Augustus, who has a deep thigh bruise, could return for the league opener next week against Damien. In the meantime, the Wolfpack have been using Jordan Ho-Ching at tailback.
The 6-1, 185-pound senior has been outstanding at wide receiver to this point.
Pac-Five went 2-1 in nonconference play, a good sign for a program that was very young last season. The boost in the ground attack helps highly-recruited quarterback Bryson Beirne. The Arizona-bound senior is coming off a season-ending knee injury that occurred in nonconference play a year ago. Botelho has faithfully stood by his plan to keep Beirne in the pocket to let his backs do the running.
"Coach knows I want to do more," the 6-foot-2, 215-pound slinger said. "But I know where he's coming from."
The defensive unit has gotten steady play from linebackers Adam Hom and Jordan Minashima, and defensive end Matt Tamashiro, a third-year starter.
Defensive linemen Aaron Tipoti (6-3, 230), Jeremiah Onosai (6-3, 240) and Alika Vaiese (6-1, 265) have been hampered with injuries. All three are expected to return soon.
Coach says: "Anybody, I think, can beat anybody."
Punahou Buffanblu
Coach: Kale Ane
Returnees: 28
Returning starters, offense: 6
Returning starters, defense: 2
On paper: The Buffanblu are unbeaten in three games though nearly every key starter from last year's magnificent defensive unit has graduated.
Offensively, the Buffanblu are highly explosive. Brett Kan (6-2, 193) is back at quarterback in the run-and-shoot, but Punahou is flexible enough to use offset-I sets and take advantage of any defense's weak spots.
Miah Ostrowski (5-9, 175) is one of the state's top receivers, but suffered a low-ankle sprain in last week's win at Eastlake (ranked No. 3 in Washington state).
The skinny: Manti Te'o's decision to return to Punahou is a big one. He played intermediate ball at Punahou, went back to Kahuku for his freshman season, then realized he missed the Buffanblu. At 6-1, 210 pounds, he starts at outside linebacker and makes plays from sideline to sideline, but his best position is probably running back, where the Buffs are loaded. Bulldozing Kainoa Carlson and shifty Dalton Hilliard line up in the backfield.
Another "X" factor is River Kim, who has been nursing an injury. He came up with several key receptions in the state tourney, and is one of the most accurate place-kickers in the state.
Defensively, Ane won't have the same flexibility to adjust and tweak his calls on the fly without last year's experienced seniors. Cornerback Dane Ishikawa and inside linebacker Adam Morris are the lone returning starters to the unit. Defensive end J.J. Autele (6-1, 230) patrols the edge.
Coach says: "(Defensively), it takes time, but we had a lot of great competition. Our kids have grown up quick. We've had more turnovers than we'd like (on offense), but that's part of the risk with our offense."
Saint Louis Crusaders
Coach: Delbert Tengan
Returnees: 43
Returning starters, offense: 3
Returning starters, defense: 6
On paper: The graduation of quarterback Jeremiah Masoli makes an impact, but the Crusaders are too balanced to be overly affected. Safety Manoa Latu (6-0, 188) was brilliant last year as a sophomore, and the front seven are among the best in the state, a dynamic mix of speed and size. Linebacker Jacob Barit (6-2, 215) is one of the top recruits in the state, and defensive end Solomona Aigamaua (6-3, 205) have been steady.
Saint Louis shut out one of the most explosive offenses in the OIA, Leilehua, two weeks ago. Cornerbacks Jeffrey Kahler (5-9, 165) and Todd Nakano (5-10, 162) have three interceptions combined.
Offensively, the Crusaders show signs of moving the ball consistently. Chase Alcott (5-5, 146) is perhaps the fastest receiver in the ILH. Ana Tuiasosopo (5-10, 304) and Tui Tuiasosopo (6-0, 283) anchor the line.
The skinny: Micah Mamiya (5-7, 150) is making the adjustment from backup to starting quarterback. A committee of talented running backs has helped Mamiya, who has been fairly effective, if inconsistent. This is still one of the most creative coaching staffs in the state, and that helps in the always-brutal ILH.
The spread option attack, with occasional misdirection, has been effective at moving the ball between the 20s.
"With the bye this weekend, we're hoping to sharpen up," Tengan said. "We've been putting drives together, but bogging down in the red zone."
The backfield consists of speedy, scatback types, and no true bulldozers. Defense and special teams -- place-kicker Kenton Chun has been consistent -- will carry the Crusaders for now.
Coach says: "You never want to be in a position where you're always trying to outscore the other team."