RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Islanders quarterback Darnell Arceneaux tried to work his way past the Blizzard's Robert Garth in the fourth quarter of last night's arenafootball2 game at Blaisdell Arena.
Islanders freeze The Green Bay Blizzard learned last night what Hawaii high school coaches have known for a long time: Give a Cal Lee team time to make adjustments at your own peril.
Blizzard in
Lee’s opener
Hawaii's arena football team
stops expansion Green Bay in the
first game of the new seasonBy Dave Reardon
dreardon@starbulletin.comThe Blizzard, making their arenafootball2 debut, took the early lead against the Hawaiian Islanders at Blaisdell Arena. But the Islanders, with some stout defense and timely offensive playmaking, rebounded from a nine-point, first-half deficit to win Lee's first game as a pro coach 48-37.
"There are a lot of different aspects than regular football, but I'm getting the hang of it," said Lee, who got some advice from longtime friend and arena football guru Mouse Davis, who was by his side during the game. (Davis came close to becoming Lee's offensive coordinator, but declined. He is here to visit Lee and Hawaii coach June Jones.)
A crowd of 2,247 saw Darnell Arceneaux -- who played for Lee at Saint Louis School in the 1990s -- pass for four touchdowns, including three to Nian Taylor.
Taylor, who also played defensive back, received the game's Ironman award and caught four passes for 94 yards.
RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
The Islanders' Isaac White tried to bring down the Blizzard's Robert Garth last night in the arenafootball2 opener.
Arceneaux, who also ran for a TD, said he couldn't let Lee's first game end as a loss.
"He's the guy who put me on the map, gave me my opportunities," said Arceneaux, who was voted the game's MVP. "So I played extra hard. And we knew being behind five points or whatever that early wasn't going to worry us."
Arceneaux got off to a slow start, but made the plays when he needed them. The Islanders -- who were outgained 288 yards to 244 -- led 42-30 with 4:53 left after Josh White's 4-yard TD run, and the Islanders appeared to have the game locked up when the defense stopped the Blizzard on their next possession.
But Green Bay got the ball back on a fumble and scored on Nick Johnson's 43-yard pass from Ryan Aulenbacher. The Islanders finally wrapped it up with four seconds left on Arceneaux's 13-yard TD pass to Taylor.
"We need to put teams away a little better once we get up on them like that," Lee said.
The Islanders' defense stiffened after a shaky start, too. Former University of Hawaii and Damien standout Eddie Klaneski was a half-step behind the Blizzard receivers early, but he got better as the game went on, and made a big tackle for loss deep in Hawaii territory in the third quarter.
Defensive lineman Morrie Roe also played big; he was in on two sacks, including one for a safety, and was selected the defensive player of the game. Taulia Lave also got a sack, for 10 yards.
"I think we must be the most in-shape team on Earth," Lave said. "But I was getting tired at the end. I just figured if I'm tired, they're tired, too."
And Channon Harris, a former UH wide receiver, still knows how to play DB. He batted away a 2-point conversion pass by Aulenbacher with 7:54 left in the game.
"We made a small adjustment on our pressure package on defense at halftime," Lee said. "(Assistants) Doug Semones and Darren Hernandez did a tremendous job. My coaching staff kind of guided me."
Harris' play came after Aulenbacher's 9-yard TD pass to Johnson made it 35-30.
Green Bay led 12-9 at the end of the first period, scoring on touchdown passes of 12 and 16 yards from Aulenbacher to Eric Mahlik and Terry Foster.
The Islanders got a 39-yard TD pass from Arceneaux to Darrell Jones and a 25-yard field goal by Kimo Naehu, his first of two.
Aulenbacher completed his first eight passes for 96 yards, and ended up 21-for-33 for 267 yards with four touchdowns. But Blizzard coach Jose Jefferson went with Ramon Robinson at quarterback in the second quarter.
"Hawaii played a great game, getting the momentum back," Jefferson said. "I probably made a mistake changing our quarterback for a time, but I needed to see what both could do."
The Blizzard did not run the ball until six plays into the second quarter, when Foster followed a wall of blockers into the end zone from 3 yards out. After failing on a 2-point conversion, Green Bay led 18-9 with 10:12 left until halftime.
Tyree Kellogg intercepted Arceneaux's long pass for Jones on the next play and Green Bay took over at its own 2. But Roe sacked Robinson in the Blizzard end zone for a safety three plays later.
Arceneaux tried to go long again immediately, and this time he hit a wide-open Taylor for a 45-yard touchdown. Naehu's extra-point tied it at 18 with 5:50 before intermission.
Green Bay drove to the Islanders' 3 on its final possession of the half, but settled for a 20-yard field goal by Matt Swartz with 40 seconds left in the second quarter to retake the lead at 21-18.
That margin was short-lived, as the Islanders grabbed a 25-21 halftime lead via Arceneaux's connection with Taylor twice -- for 24 yards with nine seconds left and then a 12-yard TD on the next play.
The teams traded field goals on their first possessions of the third quarter, with Naehu hitting from 38 yards and Swartz from 24 (after Klaneski's 5-yard tackle for loss of Tim Bailey pushed the ball back to the Islanders' 8).
Then Taylor returned Green Bay's kickoff to the Blizzard 15. Three plays later, Arceneaux scored the Islanders' first rushing TD of the season, diving over tacklers at the goal line at the end of a 7-yard run. The Islanders led 35-24 after three quarters.
The Islanders play at Quad City on Friday and at Bakersfield on April 19. The next home game is against San Diego on April 26.
At Blaisdell Arena Islanders 48, Blizzard 37
First Quarter
Blizzard (0-1) 12 9 3 13 -- 37 Islanders (1-0) 9 16 10 13 -- 48
Blizzard -- Eric Mahlik 12 pass from Ry Aulenbacher (kick failed).
Islanders--Darrell Jones 39 pass from Darnell Arceneaux (kick failed).
Blizzard -- Terry Foster 16 pass from Aulenbacher (kick failed).
Islanders--Kimo Naehu 25 field goal.
Second Quarter
Blizzard -- Foster 3 run (pass failed).
Islanders -- Morrie Roe safety.
Islanders -- Nian Taylor 45 pass from Arceneaux (Naehu kick).
Blizzard -- Matt Swartz 20 field goal.
Islanders -- Taylor 12 pass from Arceneaux (Naehu kick).
Third Quarter
Islanders -- Naehu 38 field goal.
Blizzard -- Swartz 24 field goal.
Islanders -- Arceneaux 7 run (Naehu kick).
Fourth Quarter
Blizzard-- Nick Johnson 9 pass from Aulenbacher (pass failed).
Islanders -- Josh White 4 run (Naehu kick).
Blizzard -- Johnson 43 pass from Aulenbacher (Swartz kick).
Islanders -- Taylor 13 pass from Arceneaux (kick failed).
RUSHING-- Haw: Arceneaux 6-21, Josh White 3-25, Chris Paogofi 4-13, Vai Notoa 1-(-4). GB: Terry Foster 2-8, Tim Bailey 1-(-5), Ry Aulenbacher 1-(-5).
PASSING-- Haw.: Arceneaux 9-21-1-180. GB: Aulenbacher 21-33-0-267, Ramon Robinson 4-9-0-35.
RECEIVING--Haw.: Nian Taylor4-94, Darrell Jones 5-86. GB: Nick Johnson 8-103, Robert Garth 6-62, Terry Foster 4-61, Tony Ebeling 3-22, John Duginski 1-26, Eric Mahlik 1-12, Tim Bailey 1-9, Dustin Sagedahl 1-7.
Hawaiian Islanders
