Monday, October 29, 2001
[NFL ISLANDERS]
Hawaii's Itula Mili scored his sixth career touchdown, hauling in a 15-yard scoring pass from Matt Hasselbeck in the Seattle Seahawks' 24-20 loss to the Miami Dolphins. Mili scores sixth
career touchdownNick Abramo, Star-Bulletin
Mili's TD came in the second quarter, cutting Miami's lead to 10-7. A former Kahuku High School and Brigham Young tight end, Mili has two TD receptions this season and six in his five-year career.
Mili had another reception on a pass from Hasselbeck in the game, but the play went for just 1 yard.
Dominic Raiola, Lions: A wedge blocker on special teams, Raiola (St. Louis School/ Nebraska) got a rare chance at returning a kickoff. He collected the ball at Detroit's 29 and returned it 11 yards to the 40 during the Lions' 27-24 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Raiola is also a backup center and long-snapper for the Lions.
Olin Kreutz, Bears: The starting center (St. Louis School/ Washington) and his teammates on the offensive line were instrumental in Chicago's comeback 37-31 overtime victory over the San Francisco 49ers. The line cleared the way for Anthony Thomas to gain 127 yards on 27 carries and a touchdown and for backup quarterback Shane Matthews to complete 25 of 31 passes for 166 yards and three TDs. The Bears' line allowed just one sack.
Jeff Ulbrich, 49ers: The starting linebacker (University of Hawaii) made four tackles with three solos in San Francisco's overtime loss to Chicago. He boosted his season total to 32 tackles with 22 solo stops.
Chris Naeole, Saints: The starting guard (Kahuku High School/Colorado) and his linemates gave up five sacks in New Orleans' 34-31 upset of the St. Louis Rams but also gave quarterback Aaron Brooks enough time to complete 20 of 31 passes for 254 yards and three TDs.
Jason Elam, Broncos: The kicker (Hawaii) was 4-for-4 on extra points and kicked a 50-yard field goal in Denver's 31-20 win over the New England Patriots.
Ma'a Tanuvasa, Chargers: The veteran defensive lineman (Mililani High School/Hawaii) is out for the season with a broken ankle, and Denver tackle Matt Lepsis was fined $15,000 on Friday for unnecessary roughness for rolling on the back of Tanuvasa's leg and causing the injury in the Chargers' 27-10 win over the Broncos last week. Tanuvasa underwent surgery and was placed on injured reserve.
Not in action: Several NFL players with Hawaii connections didn't play yesterday: Mario Fatafehi of the Arizona Cardinals was on the active roster but didn't get in the game. Kaulana Noa of the St. Louis Rams and Adrian Klemm of the New England Patriots were on the inactive list, while Kynan Forney of the Atlanta Falcons had a bye week.
Kimo von Oelhoffen and Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala of the Pittsburgh Steelers play against the Tennessee Titans tonight.