It opened the Big Island Interscholastic Federation regular season last Saturday with a noteworthy victory, beating a Waiakea football team that will likely serve as its biggest roadblock to a third consecutive Division I title.
However, the win came at a price for Kealakehe (1-0 BIIF Division I, 3-1 overall), which will enter Saturday’s home game against Hilo (1-0, 2-1) without one of its most versatile players.
The contest follows a 5 p.m. JV game between the schools.
Kealakehe senior Cyruss Cho suffered a broken clavicle after making a reception against the Warriors, and Kealakehe coach Sam Papalii doesn’t expect him to return this season.
Cho, a hard-hitting safety, entered the season as one of the league’s best defensive backs. But he also became valuable as an offensive weapon in Kealakehe’s past two games.
Cho, who caught a touchdown pass in the Waveriders’ 49-28 win over Waiakea, ranks second on the team in receptions with five.
“He was a tough runner, and he was a fantastic blocker,’’ Papalii said. “He’ll do whatever you tell him to do, and he loved contact. He never shied away from that. We’ll really miss that.”
Because of Cho’s injury, Kealakehe’s two most valuable skill position players will receive more playing time on defense.
Papalii said senior quarterback Jordan Cristobal and senior wide receiver Lennox Jones will play safety along with junior Keoni Yates and junior Kalani Lewi.
Offensively, Cristobal hasn’t thrown an interception in three games, passing for 470 yards and four touchdowns. He’s also been a factor when Kealakehe runs the option, rushing for 204 yards and three touchdowns.
Meanwhile, Jones, who has gained a team-high 305 rushing yards, also leads the team in receptions (18) and receiving yards (252). His ability to make quick cuts has translated into chunks of yards after receptions and made him a factor on misdirection plays.
“He’s not the biggest, he’s not the fastest, but he’s got good instincts,’’ Papalii said. “As a defender, it’s hard to get a clean shot on him. Knock on wood, we hope he stays healthy because he does so much for us.’’
Against Waiakea, Jones made a touchdown-saving tackle on Kealakehe’s kickoff return team.
“He’s might be the best pound-for-pound player I’ve coached — with his play on offense defense and special teams,’’ Papalii said. “Once he puts on the uniform and gets on that field, he does everything 100 percent.”
Another versatile player, Yates, the team’s starting strong safety and kicker, will get more snaps as a slot receiver.
Papalii said running back Kainoa Kipapa may not play because of an ankle injury. If that’s the case, 6-foot-2, 348-pound David Fangupo will take his place.
Fangupo ran for 61 yards and Kealakehe’s lone touchdown in a season-opening 10-3 victory at Kailua on Aug. 10.
Saturday’s game against the Vikings, who come off their first BIIF Division I victory since Oct. 9, 2010, serves as a reunion on several fronts.
Hilo first-year coach Dave Baldwin is the cousin of Papalii’s wife, Candy. Also, Papalii, Baldwin and Waveriders offensive coordinator Steve Cox are all graduates of Interscholastic League of Honolulu football powerhouse Saint Louis.
“I know he’ll have his guys ready,’’ Papalii said of Baldwin. “He’s a Saint Louis grad like myself, so he knows what winning is all about.”
Like Papalii, Baldwin has injuries to worry about.
Baldwin called A.J. Midallia, who suffered a foot injury in the team’s season-opening 21-18 win over Hawaii Prep, a “pillar” of the Vikings’ defense. The first-year coach said the senior safety could return “for the second half of the season.’’
“He was the heart of that defense and played all our special teams,’’ Baldwin said of Midallia. “He was indispensable, and we’ve tried to re-establish that identity on defense.”
Midallia is one of five senior starters out of action because of injuries, leaving Baldwin with just two senior starters on both sides of the ball.
“Overall, we’re just young, and a group of underclassmen have been asked to step up,’’ he said.
Despite their youth, the Vikings have showed Baldwin some character in their two victories, erasing a 12-0 deficit against HPA and beating Keaau 28-25 last Friday in a game Hilo trailed three times.
The win over the Cougars marked Drew Kell’s return at quarterback.
The junior hadn’t played all season because of a dislocated finger, but he completed 8 of 13 passes for 113 yards and three touchdowns.
Sophomore Donovan Kelley, who filled in at quarterback while Kell sat out, was a factor at running back, rushing for 70 yards. Another sophomore, Tristan Spikes, ran for 104 yards.
When asked what the come-from-behind victories meant to the team, Baldwin said he felt good for the many players who endured nine consecutive BIIF losses — seven in the regular season — and 12 straight losses overall.
However, he said the Vikings’ slow starts in games will eventually come back to haunt them, and that’s something he hopes doesn’t happen against the Waveriders.
“We’re outnumbered, we’re outsized, and for the first time as a coach, I can truthfully say this is a David versus Goliath matchup,’’ Baldwin said. “That’s not the kind of team you want to fall behind against. They’re already a formidable foe and an imposing opponent, and we sure hope we can execute better than what we’ve done in the past.”
Since the Vikings beat the Waveriders during the 2004 regular season, Kealakehe has won the past 14 games between the teams.
If anything, Baldwin said, Hilo must eliminate turnovers because Waverider opponents have often paid dearly for miscues this season.
After Waiakea lost a fumble on the Kealakehe 4-yard line last week, Kealakehe promptly marched 96 yards for a touchdown on its next possession.
“It’s a team you can’t make mistakes against or they will capitalize on them,’’ Baldwin said.
Ka‘u at Honokaa, 7 p.m. today
The Dragons (0-2 BIIF Division II, 1-3 overall) look to get back on track after falling to Kamehameha-Hawaii 19-15 at home last Friday.
Senior Justen Kawamoto leads Honokaa’s ground game with 139 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries in his past three games. Sophomore Sione Epenesa has added two rushing TDs.
Junior linebacker Wayne Vaoga and the Dragons defense will face a Ka‘u (0-2, 0-2) team that had minus-59 yards rushing in an 86-0 loss at Konawaena last Saturday.
Junior quarterback Chance Emmsley has thrown for 92 yards in the Trojans’ past two games.
Honokaa beat Ka‘u by a combined score of 111-6 in the teams’ two games last year.
Hawaii Prep at KS-Hawaii, 7:30 p.m. today
The Warriors (2-0 BIIF Division II, 5-0 overall) played without leading rusher Ina Teofilo last Friday, but do-it-all senior Shaun Kagawa picked up the slack offensively, rushing for 128 yards and two scores in a 19-15 come-from-behind win at Honokaa.
Kamehameha coach Dan Lyons said Teofilo, a 198-pound junior who ran for 351 yards and two touchdowns in the Warriors’ previous two games, will play today after sitting out a game with a shoulder injury.
Teofilo will resume being a workhorse running back, running behind a stout line headed by 278-pound senior center Kennon Quiocho. That doesn’t mean Kagawa, who also plays wide receiver and linebacker, won’t get his hands on the football in the backfield.
“Ina coming back just balances us out,’’ Lyons said. “One of our objections in each game is to get Shaun touches because he has the ability to make big plays.’’
Kagawa showed that big-play ability against the Dragons, running for a 58-yard go-ahead touchdown with 9 minutes, 22 seconds left in the third quarter.
Defensively, junior Timmy Burke, a disruptive linebacker who often makes tackles behind the line of scrimmage, and Jairah Chun-Lai head a defense that has allowed just 12.5 points per game.
Kamehameha will face Ka Makani (2-0, 2-2), which comes off a 52-6 win over Kohala.
HPA’s traditionally strong running game churned out 586 yards in two regular-season games this season, with Bobby Lum rushing for 210 yards and four touchdowns on just 16 carries, running behind a line anchored by 6-2, 275-pound junior tackle Keenan Greenbaum and 210-pound senior center Kaimi Stevens.
Senior Mike Nakahara and junior Kellen Gillins have added 104 and 100 rushing yards, respectively.
Ka Makani has made big plays on special teams, giving the team good field position. Stevens returned a kick 68 yards, and junior Joey Kailimai ran one back 67 yards. Junior Blake Hooser returned a punt 71 yards for a score against the Cowboys.
Defensively, sophomore Nicolas Palleschi leads HPA with 11 total tackles, while sophomore Koa Ellis and junior Joshua Ching each have 7 ½ tackles.
Senior defensive end Eigoro Akai has recorded six tackles, a sack and an interception.
Last spring, HPA graduated a host of players who now compete collegiately, but Lyons said he expects a competitive contest.
The teams split their two-game series last season, with Ka Makani ending the Warriors’ 15-game BIIF winning streak with a 27-24 home win on Oct. 1.
“We will never look beyond HPA,’’ Lyons said. “Historically, they get better as the season goes along.’’
Konawaena at Kohala, 2 p.m. Saturday
In their home opener, the Cowboys (0-2 BIIF Division II, 0-2 overall) face the unenviable task of derailing a Konawaena team that has outscored its opponents 221-42 during a four-game winning streak.
The Wildcats (2-0, 4-1) come off an 86-0 home win over the Trojans — Konawaena tied the BIIF single-game record for most points scored by one team in a game — in which many of the starters played only a half.
Quarterback Lii Karratti leads the state in passing yards (1,142) and touchdown passes (17). Three of his teammates have already scored five touchdowns or more, with senior running back John Kamoku rushing for nine, and senior wideouts Domonic Morris and Kenan Gaspar catching six and five touchdown passes respectively.
The Wildcats lost strong safety Austin Denis for the season last week after the senior broke his left leg while chasing after a loose ball. Konawaena coach Cliff Walters said sophomore Koa Basque will fill in for Denis, who had been enjoying a stellar season that included a blocked punt return for a touchdown, three sacks and an interception.
“He’s a linebacker, but he has good speed,’’ Walters said of Basque, the team’s second-leading rusher behind Kamoku. “He’s fairly aggressive, and he’ll be that strong safety.’’
Walters said juniors Isaiah Basque and Jordan Miyahira-Young will also receive time at safety.
Konawaena faces a Kohala team that dressed just 22 players in a 52-6 road loss to Hawaii Prep last Saturday.
Cowboys coach Reginald Tolentino, who will have 24 players suit up against the Wildcats, said he likes his team’s running game but wants to see better pass protection for freshman quarterback Kainalu Emeliano-Solomon.
The first-year coach would also like more pursuit on defense.
“Everybody has to swarm and get to the ball,’’ Tolentino said. “There were a whole lot of solo tackles (against HPA).’’
Konawaena has a nine-game winning streak against the Cowboys.
For live updates on Friday’s Honokaa-Ka’u game and Saturday’s Kealakehe-Hilo game, follow Joe Ferraro on Twitter (@jf_hawaiisports)
