Tuesday, February 12, 2002

Fans could flock
to football bonanza

HHSAA's Amemiya helped
make the games a reality

---

By Dave Reardon
dreardon@starbulletin.com

The doubleheader at Aloha Stadium on Sept. 21 could become the biggest high school sports event in state history.

"I don't want to say anything like that, because I don't want to offend the old-timers, but this has the potential," Hawaii High School Athletic Association executive director Keith Amemiya said.

The St. Louis-De La Salle, Kahuku-Long Beach Poly doubleheader is unprecedented.

The event -- featuring the No. 1 and 3 teams in the nation at the end of last season against Hawaii's best two teams in recent years -- could draw more than any other high school event previously held in Hawaii.

The record for a high school game here is when 32,812 attended the 1978 Prep Bowl and saw Waianae beat Kamehameha, 14-6.

"I'll be disappointed if we don't top that because I know that the Red Raider and Crusader Nations will come out in force," Amemiya said.

The event also promises to draw the interest of casual fans, considering the buildup over several years for a proposed St. Louis-De La Salle game. There is also the possibility of the games being televised by ESPN or Fox.

Amemiya and the HHSAA got involved in brokering the event by accident.

In October of 2000, a game for Thanksgiving weekend of that year was proposed. It was misreported on an Internet site that Amemiya had given St. Louis permission to skip the state playoffs in order to play De La Salle in what was an improbable venture, anyway, given the time frame.

When Amemiya spoke with De La Salle athletic director Terry Eidson to clarify the situation, the idea of the HHSAA facilitating a game came up. Eidson wanted to go through the state association because he had been burned in the past by teams from other states pulling out of scheduled games.

Apparently, Eidson had many questions about the Aloha Stadium event's feasibility answered when he visited the facility over the weekend (he came to Hawaii at Amemiya's personal expense).

Mater Dei, a southern California powerhouse, was originally scheduled to be Kahuku's opponent. After it pulled out, Long Beach Poly filled the void.

Amemiya said expenses figure to be in the $100,000-150,000 range, but he hopes to defray much of that with corporate sponsorship.

He said he plans to charge a variable rate for tickets, but wants to work it out so students won't have to pay more than the current $7 flat rate for high school games -- if that.

"We're definitely looking into keeping prices low for high school students," he said. "There is an opportunity to make money here, but above that, we want every high school player and youth league player to get in free or for a significantly lower price. We want to fill the stands and have a lively crowd."

Now that the game that's been talked about locally for years is a reality -- St. Louis and De La Salle -- there's only one problem.

"The remaining loose end is if we can get Cal Lee to stay on one more year," Keith Amemiya said. "I'm going to lobby hard with his boss, his wife Valerie, to let him stay on one more year."

Lee, the winningest coach in Hawaii high school history who stepped down last summer, said he has no plans to return for the game.

But the St. Louis athletic director will be a part of it in some fashion.

"I'm just happy for the opportunity for the players," he said. "I'll help out any way I can."

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