When Fred Lau entered Waverider Stadium last Saturday, he knew Hilo’s quarterback as Drew Kell. After the Waiakea football coach left Kailua-Kona, the Vikings’ signal-caller had transformed into a superhero of sorts in Lau’s mind.
“We have to face The Real Deal,’’ Lau said of Kell when discussing today’s Big Island Interscholastic Federation game between his Warriors (1-1 BIIF Division I, 2-3) and the Vikings (1-1, 2-2).
The contest will follow a 5 p.m. JV contest between the schools at Wong Stadium.
Waiakea will face a Hilo team that comes off a 43-29 loss at Kealakehe. In that contest, Kell completed 22 of 33 passes for 405 yards, becoming the first quarterback to throw for 400 yards in a game since the Waveriders’ Kawai Kanuha threw for 476 yards against Konawaena in 2007.
“He had a quick release and a lot of poise in the pocket,’’ Lau said of Kell, who also tossed three TD passes and two interceptions against Kealakehe. “The (offensive) line gave him a lot of time, and he had pinpoint accuracy.
“We have to cover well and put pressure on him. If he has time, he’s really accurate.’’
Kell missed both of the Vikings’ nonconference games because of a dislocated finger, but Hilo coach Dave Baldwin said he expected a high level of play from the junior.
“He was playing his heart out,’’ Baldwin said. “He was playing at a level he would eventually reach. We didn’t know at what point in the season he would get there.
“We were able to show the league he’s got some potential that met up with his performance. When potential can meet performance, it can lead to special things.”
The person who filled in for Kell at quarterback earlier in the season, sophomore Donovan Kelley, became Kell’s favorite target against the Waveriders.
Kelley caught nine passes for 228 yards, including 79- and 84-yard touchdown receptions on deep balls in which Kelley beat his defender and ran under perfectly thrown balls from Kell.
A week earlier, Kelley proved more of a threat out of the backfield, running for 70 yards on 16 carries in Hilo’s 28-25 win over Keaau.
“Guys around (Kelley) are starting to develop (at running back), and we want to get as many guys on the field as possible,’’ Baldwin said. “We’ve allowed ourselves to broaden his job description.’’
Senior Makalii Kahumoku-Jose contributed five receptions for 108 yards and a touchdown against the Waveriders, and Baldwin said the Vikings might have two more capable offensive weapons in senior Kamu Patnaude and junior Aven Kualii on Friday.
Both players sat out Hilo’s game against Kealakehe because of injuries. In the team’s season-opening 21-18 win over HPA, Kualii ran for 117 yards, while Patnaude caught a touchdown pass.
Regardless of who suits up, Baldwin wants his team to cut down on turnovers after committing four against the Waveriders.
“There were several points that we left on the field, and we’re motivated to finish series and achieve the goal, which is to score,’’ he said.
The Vikings will face a Warriors defense that has allowed teams to move the ball downfield before coming up with timely defensive stops or turnovers.
Like Hilo, Waiakea, which enjoyed a bye last week, will have key contributors returning to the field.
Starting linemen Isaiah Len and Allen Sekona return to a defense anchored by play-making linebackers Suwaiter Poch and Taz Preston.
Lau declared junior running back Devin Preston, who suffered a deep bone bruise on his shin during a 49-28 road loss to Kealakehe two weeks ago, ready to play.
During the BIIF regular season, Preston has rushed for 324 yards and seven touchdowns in the Warriors past three games.
The running back will get plenty of help from senior quarterback Kean Wong, who often makes something out of nothing after pass protection breaks down.
Wong, who has passed for 227 yards and two touchdowns over two games, accumulated more than half of his 48 rushing yards in a 49-28 loss to Kealakehe on Sept. 8 while eluding a pass rush.
For the season, the senior has 140 yards on 25 carries.
One of Wong’s favorite targets, senior Dayton Kiko, can make plays downfield.
“We’re going to have a big challenge to make sure we play fundamentally sound,’’ Baldwin said.
For the most part, senior T’Shaquille Pea and junior Sione Holika helped the Vikings do just that against another mobile quarterback in the Waveriders’ Jordan Cristobal, who gained just 59 yards on 16 carries before breaking free for a 55-yard touchdown run on a designed play with 1 minute, 34 seconds remaining in the contest.
Lau said both teams enter today’s game with the confidence of knowing they could compete with the two-time defending champion Waveriders. On top of that, both squads are determined to play well against their neighborhood rivals.
“For the kids, it’s bragging rights in the town of Hilo,’’ Lau said.
Kamehameha-Hawaii at Ka‘u, 7 p.m. today
The Warriors (3-0 BIIF Division II, 6-0 overall) continued playing solid defense last Friday, trailing HPA 6-3 at halftime before shutting out Ka Makani the rest of the way in a 24-6 victory.
Junior lineman Timmy Burke wreaked havoc in the HPA backfield, and he capped the scoring with a fumble recovery in the end zone for a Kamehameha team that has allowed just 7.7 points per game.
The Warriors handed the offense to quarterback Brandon Howes in the second half after Shaun Kagawa and Micah Kanehailua combined to go 2-of-7 for minus-7 yards.
Howes completed all three of his pass attempts for 26 yards and a touchdown, and Warriors coach Dan Lyons said the performance earned the junior a start against the Trojans (0-3, 0-3).
“Brandon can spread the field, lengthen the field more because he has a little bit more of a live arm,’’ Lyons said.
That doesn’t mean Kanehailua, who has started each of the Warriors’ previous six games, and Kagawa won’t receive playing time under center.
Lyons said Kanehailua, a sophomore, manages the game well and plays mistake-free football — a big reason why Kanehailua and Howes receive the same number of reps in practice.
Also, Lyons said, Kagawa can run a “wildcat-type” of offensive formation the team calls The Ultimate Warrior. In the past two weeks, the senior has scored 58- and 63-yard touchdowns as a running back.
Junior Ina Teofila returned to the lineup after missing a game with a shoulder injury, and he rushed for 114 yards, giving him 432 in his past three games.
In Ka‘u, Kamehameha will face a team that has relied almost exclusively on its passing game. The Trojans, looking for their first points of the regular season, ran the ball just eight times in a 54-0 loss at Honokaa last Friday.
Sophomore Chance Emmsley-Ah Yee has thrown for 212 yards, with sophomore Cy Tamura catching six passes for 87 yards.
Kamehameha has not lost to Ka‘u since its program’s inception in 2004.
Konawaena at Hawaii Prep, 2 p.m. Saturday
Ka Makani (2-1 BIIF Division II, 2-3 overall) comes off a 24-6 loss to Kamehameha in which junior Bobby Lum ran for 133 yards, giving him 343 yards on 38 carries for the season.
However, Ka Makani, which attempted just 12 passes in its previous two regular-season games combined, went to the air 18 times against the Warriors, with sophomore Koa Ellis completing 10 of them for 96 yards.
Senior Mike Nakahara caught his second touchdown pass of the season in the contest.
Last season, HPA held halftime leads in both contests against Konawaena, taking a 21-0 advantage at home and a 14-0 lead on the road.
The Wildcats (3-0, 5-1) rallied to win both contests en route to a BIIF Division II title.
Konawaena quarterback Lii Karratti, who comes off his second 300-yard game of the season, leads a Wildcat offense that averages 56.2 points per game. The junior has thrown for a state-high 1,445 yards and 23 touchdowns with just three interceptions.
Seniors Domonic Morris (18 receptions, 403 yards, nine TDs) and Kenan Gaspar (16 receptions, 424 yards, six touchdowns) lead Konawaena’s receiving corps.
In the backfield, senior John Kamoku has carried the ball just 31 times in five games, but he has scored 11 touchdowns and run for 358 yards.
Kealakehe at Keaau, 3:30 p.m. Saturday
The Waveriders (2-0 BIIF Division I, 4-1 overall) will head to Keaau (0-2, 0-4) in sole possession of first place in the BIIF Division I standings but without the services of yet another major contributor.
Keoni Yates, the team’s starting kicker and free safety, suffered what Kealakehe coach Sam Papalii called a bruised knee after making a 10-yard reception with less than 2 minutes remaining in the Waveriders’ 43-29 home win over Hilo last Saturday.
Papalii said Yates did not suffer any ligament damage and that the junior will miss “a week or two.’’
The Kealakehe coach expects slot receiver Lennox Jones, who leads the team in rushing (450 yards) and receiving (258) yardage, to play after suffering a thigh injury in the fourth quarter of the Waveriders’ win over the Vikings.
Jones, who will assume Yates’ kicking duties, rushed for 145 yards and three touchdowns on just 12 carries in the game, leading a Kealakehe rushing attack that amassed 434 yards.
Senior quarterback Jordan Cristobal attempted just five passes, twice scrambling for runs of 30 yards or more when flushed out of the pocket and finishing with 112 rushing yards.
“We didn’t throw the ball as much, but we felt our run was working, and we felt we could go in that direction,’’ Papalii said. “But we would like more balance.”
Papalii expressed displeasure with a Waverider defense that allowed three pass plays of 50 yards or more against Hilo, including 79- and 84-yard touchdown passes.
Papalii said Kealakehe devoted all of its Tuesday practice time to pass defense.
“We just have to stop the deep ball,’’ Papalii said. “It’s the worst I’ve ever seen at Kealakehe. … We have the athletes to play it, but we have to execute the technique and put pressure on the quarterback.”
The Waveriders must contend with the deep ball against the Cougars, with senior Keha Wong, who threw for 312 yards and four scores in Keaau’s 31-27 loss to Waiakea on Sept. 1.
Senior Johnny Vance gives the team big-play ability as a runner and receiver.
Honokaa at Kohala, 2 p.m. Saturday
The Dragons (1-2, 2-3) earned their first victory of the season last Friday, piling up 175 rushing yards to beat Ka‘u 54-0 at home.
Senior running back Justen Kawamoto carried the ball just three times but scored his third touchdown of the season. He leads the team in rushing with 176 yards, while sophomore Sione Epenesa scored his third touchdown against the Trojans.
Honokaa faces a Kohala (0-3, 0-3) team coming off a 76-0 home loss to Konawaena.
Senior running back Dakota Tolentino has rushed for 55 yards in the Cowboys’ past two games.
Honokaa won both meetings against Kohala last season, winning by a combined score of 112-48.
Follow Joe Ferraro on Twitter (jf_hawaiisports)
