HUB GOODWILL SENIOR BOWL

1 more for the seniors

WEST: Discipline doesn't stop for exhibition game

>> EAST: Stars will go as hard as the rules will allow

By Paul Honda
phonda@starbulletin.com

THEY HUSTLED in from near and far, for good reason.

After all, not everyone gets to work with some of the state's best players and coaches at Aloha Stadium.

The West squad has begun its second week of preparation for the 15th Annual HUB Goodwill Senior Bowl, which kicks off tomorrow at 7:30 p.m.

15TH ANNUAL HUB GOODWILL SENIOR BOWL

Who: East vs. West, Oahu's top senior football players
When: Kickoff at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow, with pre-game festivities beginning at 7
Where: Aloha Stadium
TV: OC-16
Internet: www.starbulletin.com
Tickets: $5 (children 6 and under get in free)

The West team, a blend of players from public and private schools, has the benefit of an all-star staff of coaches. Sean Saturnio of Waipahu is the head coach, which means discipline is paramount. So is love.

On the squad's mission statement, core value No. 1 (out of 14) says: "Love our players as people first, and as athletes second."

On the list of player expectations, six in all, one reads, "Honor the team, not yourself."

West offensive coordinator Nolan Tokuda of Leilehua plans to implement the mission statement into his program.

"This is about character-building, just like Coach Sean said," Tokuda said.

For the players who travel farthest, the game is a treat, as well. Nanakuli's Aaron Watson made the trek for all four of last week's practices.

"Everybody goes real hard," the 6-foot-3, 395-pound offensive lineman said.

Twice, the team went at it in full pads, he added. Watson's older brother, Keala, plays defensive line for the University of Hawaii, but Aaron expects a different course for himself.

"Mostly, I'm hearing from D-III schools," said Watson, who carries a grade-point average of 3.9.

The West team has players from the Oahu Interscholastic Association's west-side schools, of course, but includes the westward teams of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu -- Kamehameha, Damien and Punahou.

Punahou's players, who get out of class at 3:30 p.m., were hustling into the stadium as practice began. The cross-section of talent will make for interesting matchups tomorrow. Some players from the two leagues have never met on the gridiron, while others will have familiarity.

For quarterback Kali Kuia, learning Tokuda's playbook is a challenge.

"We're using maybe only 30 plays out of 100," the Aiea quarterback said. "There's gonna be some option for Brad."

Brad would be Kapolei's Brad Padayao, who has drawn interest from Air Force, which runs a flexbone option. Kuia is familiar with prolific passing attacks, but sees a difference in Tokuda's schemes.

"It's really precise routes with quick reads," he said. "We could still go deep. It depends on what he wants."

For better or worse, Kuia and Padayao won't have to deal with blitzes, which are outlawed in the Senior Bowl.

"That's kinda good, but there's also going to be more coverage," Kuia noted. "We've got a talented group of receivers, so we'll see."

Conditioning is always an issue with exhibition games, particularly for players who have not been on the field since the end of the regular season a month ago. "You run on your own, so I run after practice," said Kuia, an elusive scrambler. "There's not a lot of time."

Waianae safety Junior Faliuga plays basketball, so he's remained mobile. The prospect of facing East quarterbacks Kiran Kepo'o (Iolani) and Stanford Leti (Moanalua) is quite a task.

"Kepo'o is good. When we scrimmaged against them, we got smashed," the 6-1 195-pounder said. "He can run, too."

Kepo'o will likely avoid scrambling too much, but at 220 pounds, he's a load to bring down. Leti, arguably the toughest option quarterback in the state, is no fun for a defense to face, either.

Faliuga may prefer to see Leti.

"He's a running quarterback, so we can hit him," the Searider said. Leti helped lead Moanalua to a Division II state-tournament berth, but Moanalua and Waianae never met this season because the Seariders are in Division I.

Tokuda, meanwhile, planned to trim the offensive package even more.

"It's not like with our program (at Leilehua), where players get the playbook and learn it in JV," said Tokuda, who is looking forward to incorporating Kapolei's talented skill-position seniors -- Padayao, running back Radford Raquedan and slotback Jon Santiago.

The West features two more outstanding speedsters in Kamehameha receiver Aaron Nichols and Damien running back Kealoha Pilares.

"Nichols is better than Chustin," Tokuda said, referring to Leilehua's former All-State wide receiver Chustin Senas, who did not play this season.

"Pilares is unreal. He's the best athlete out here," he said of the scholar-athlete. Pilares is weighing scholarship offers from Boise State, Air Force and Hawaii.

The squad of 50 was selected from a field of 140 nominees.

West roster

No. Name School Pos.
1 Kekoa Perbera Mililani RB
2 Michael Smith Mililani WR
3 Jon Santiago Kapolei SB
4 Aaron Nichols Kamehameha WR
5 Mike Sipili Damien DL
6 Sean Felise Waipahu LB
7 Gabe Montero Mililani DB
8 Gerritt Vincent Kamehameha LB
9 Chris Dickerson Mililani DB
10 Russell Wantowski Radford DL
11 Brad Padayao Kapolei QB
12 Andrew Blue Pearl City QB
13 Guyes Galdeira Leilehua LB
14 Siavalua Faliuga Waianae DB
15 Kali Kuia Aiea QB
16 Jay Angotti Punahou DB
17 Sam Higgins Punahou DB
18 Winni Gapuz Damien DB
19 Kennedy Orteza Leilehua DB
20 Kapena Fonseca Aiea LB
21 Kealoha Pilares Damien RB
22 Jordan Apduhan Mililani RB
23 Guy Cantrell Leilehua WR
24 Lahaina Olsen-Kuroda Aiea SB
25 Alex Daniels Radford RB
26 Trevor Maldon Radford DB
27 Alvin Foster Waialua RB
28 Isiah Smith Campbell RB
30 Drew Ueno Kamehameha DB
32 Radford Raquedan Kapolei RB
42 Mana Lolotai Kamehameha LB
44 Jonathan Puletasi Waipahu LB
50 Shannon Saili Waipahu DL
51 Kapono Rawlins-Crivello Kamehameha DL
55 Ben Kahalehoe Kapolei DL
56 Cody Kekipi Punahou OL
58 Po'okela Ahmad Kapolei LB
60 Travor Grace Punahou OL
63 William Keliikoa Waianae OL
65 Ramsey Feagai Radford OL
70 Aaron Watson Nanakuli OL
72 Eddie Williams Damien OL
74 Ikaika Rodenhurst Kamehameha OL
78 Bronson Tiwanak Damien OL
80 Christian Mendez-Claudio Leilehua WR
90 Jon Overton Punahou DL
91 Chris Iosefo Leilehua DL
94 Lolomana Mikaele Damien DL
95 Justin Hunt Aiea DL
98 Alasi Toilolo Kapolei DL


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