Konawaena (1-0 BIIF, 3-0 overall)
Players to watch: Austin Ewing (QB); Cameron Howes (Skill); Torin Tuppein (DE)
Hilo (1-0 BIIF, 1-2 overall)
Players to watch: Ka’ale Tiogangco (QB); David Pakele (DL); Keaho Kaawa (OL)
When: Friday, 7 p.m. at Julian R. Yates Field
Radio: ESPN 790AM
In 2014: Hilo 39, Konawaena 7
On a night where Konawaena will celebrate its storied BIIF championship history, the present-day Wildcats will be looking to make a statement that they can add another banner to the crowded rafters in Kealakekua as two-time defending BIIF DI champion Hilo comes to town.
The Wildcats (3-0 overall, 1-0 BIIF) dominated Waiakea 57-17 in their BIIF opener. With Kamehameha-Hawaii falling to Kealakehe last weekend, Konawaena is the only remaining undefeated BIIF squad.
The Vikings (1-2, 1-0) put a tough preseason behind them with a 33-16 win against Hawaii Preparatory Academy in their season opener. Hilo racked up 472 yards of offense and did not allow a touchdown until the fourth quarter.
Offense
Papalii on Konawaena: Budding sophomore quarterback Austin Ewing has demonstrated the ability to take care of the football, after three games with zero turnovers. Ewing has thrown for 413 yards and seven touchdowns and is completing about 50 percent of his passes. Ewing has the intangibles that coaches look for and the escapability to extend plays as needed.
The Wildcats will need to run the football effectively to take some pressure off of the passing game. Algene Kelekolio and Micah Laban got an equal workload against Waiakea last week — Kelekolio with 15 carries, and Laban with 14. The duo should carry the bulk of the ground game for the Wildcats, but Cameron Howes and Kayson Mahiai always have the potential to pop a big play on a fly sweep.
Ewing will be looking to connect with his big play receiver Kamakana Ching. Ching has just five receptions this season, but leads the team with 145 yards — a whopping 29 yards per catch average.
Head coach and offensive play caller Brad Uemoto has been thrilled with his depth at the skill positions and it showed against Waiakea. Ewing’s three touchdown strikes in the contest were caught by three different players, and Kelekolio and Laban combined for five scores on the ground.
Against perennial state powerhouses Punahou and Kamehameha-Kapalama, Hilo’s secondary got torched, and with all the weapons Konawaena has in its receiving corps, it could turn ugly. Howes and Mahiai will be running out of the slot, and Tristan Fleming-Nazara at 6-foot-2 is another nice target on the outside to compliment Ching.
The Wildcats offensive line faced a very physical and aggressive defensive front during the preseason against Saint Francis of the ILH. Hilo’s defensive front will be another challenge for the unit that returns only one starter from last year in Zach Kaiwi, but is getting healthier and more experienced as the season moves along.
De Groote on Hilo: For Hilo, a lot will be on the shoulders of Ka’ale Tiogangco. The junior accounted for four touchdowns last week — three passing and one rushing. He churned out an efficient completion percentage by hitting on a variety of short passes, and then took advantage on deep passes when Hawaii Prep defensive backs got a little too aggressive coming up in coverage.
Keaho Kaawa has been his top target. Last week, he hauled in five passes for 164 yards and two touchdowns.
Tiogangco may not have the same success through the air against Konawaena’s speedy secondary, so the Vikings could turn to a run game that combines his dual-threat capability with sturdy senior runner Isaac Lerma and Kahale Huddleston — who is listed as a wide receiver but leads the team in rushing so far this season with 85 yards.
The front seven for Konawaena is very aggressive, and if they do not play sound, assignment defense, the shifty junior Tiogangco could improvise and make a big play.
The Vikings offense will have to improve on their red zone performance and capitalize on opportunities to put points on the board. Against Hawaii Prep, Hilo was turned away multiple times inside the 20. Bad snaps were the culprit, grinding drives to a halt.
Edge: Konawaena
Defense
Papalii on Konawaena: Kealakehe’s front seven did quite the job against Kamehameha last week, it didn’t seem like there would be a comparable defensive front in the BIIF with the quickness and disruptive abilities. But it appears Konawaena has such a front, led by defensive end Torin Tuppein (28 tackles, two sacks) and Austin Santos-Johnson (26 tackles, three sacks). The speed of the Wildcats’ front seven will cause issues for the Vikings offensive line.
Konawaena has playmakers at every level, and averages of 10 points and 101.7 yards allowed per game are a testament to that. Coach Uemoto has praised defensive coordinator Kalae Lee, who has been busy tutoring a new set of inside linebackers to replace 2014 playmakers Tate “Baba” Hing and Bubba Ellis-Noa, and the new starters Phillip Grace and Logan Canda have performed admirably thus far.
Despite losing starting corner Luca Vartic — who transferred to Saint Louis — there is optimism on the back end mainly because many of the talented offensive skill players will pull double duty in the secondary. Howes (21 tackles, two sacks, five passes defended) leads the unit and will play a big role in run support and making sure Hilo receivers don’t get open over the top for big plays like they did against Hawaii Prep.
De Groote on Hilo: The Vikings defense surely didn’t come away from Waimea happy after giving up two late fourth quarter scores to Ka Makani. But for most of the day, that defense stood firm.
Even in games against top ILH competition in the preseason, the Hilo defense wrapped up, and proved to be a good tackling team. Against Hawaii Prep, Viking linebackers Rylen Kaniaupio and Wela Mamone swarmed to the ball and combined for 16 tackles.
The Wildcats have a bevy of weapons to put up points, and have nearly doubled their point output every week, so limiting momentum-swinging plays will be key for Hilo. Against Punahou and Kamehameha-Kapalama, the Vikings allowed four scoring plays of over 45 yards.
An interesting matchup to watch will be in the trenches between experienced Konawaena center Kaiwi and disruptive All-BIIF defensive tackle David Pakele.
Edge: Konawaena
Special teams
Howes is a multifaceted player for Konawaena on special teams. He will handle a variety of duties, from returning kicks, to punting. While Howes is an obvious weapon in the return game, his rugby style punts could give Hilo a headache in the field position battle. Ewing has taken over PAT duty, hitting on eight of nine this season.
Hilo’s Kalehaila Tolentino-Perry showed off some of his leg with a 29-yard field goal against Hawaii Prep. The Viks “muddle huddle” could also be key to punching in a few two-point conversions.
FINAL
Papalii: Konawaena 34, Hilo 17
De Groote: Konawaena 35, Hilo 20
OTHER BIIF GAMES
Kealakehe at Honokaa (Friday, 7 p.m.)
The defense is the motor for Kealakehe and set up multiple scores last week in a 22-20 comeback against Kamehameha-Hawaii.
The Kealakehe offense hit its stride late, with sophomore quarterback Anthony Trevino and running back Riggs Kurashige leading the way.
The Dragons had a tough first half against Keaau, but pulled away behind senior quarterback Nainoa Falk, who led the team on four second-half touchdown drives in the 36-20 win. The Honokaa first-team defense also flexed its muscle, collecting nine sacks and holding the Cougars to negative rushing yardage.
The Dragons will be on their home turf, but the Waveriders will be their stiffest test so far.
Papalii: Kealakehe 42, Honokaa 7
De Groote: Kealakehe 35, Honokaa 10
Keaau at Hawaii Prep (Saturday, 2 p.m.)
Ka Makani acknowledged that it may take some time to find its offensive identity, and have only managed three touchdowns in two games this season — all coming in fourth quarters.
Hawaii Prep has tried out multiple players under center, but senior Justin Perry and sophomore Kekoa LeBlanc have seen the most time. Out of the triple option look, Perry’s quickness allows him to pick up solid gains, although he is most dangerous from the slot. LeBlanc — who entered late in the game against Hilo — capped a three of three passing performance with a 24-yard TD pass to Perry.
Anthony Palleschi has been a spark plug for Hawaii Prep on both sides of the ball. He leads the team in rushing with 131 yards, and has been the centerpiece of the defense.
Keaau has not had much to cheer about in recent years, and 2015 is shaping up to be another tough year for the Cougars. However, a positive takeaway from the BIIF opener was that the Cougars managed to score touchdowns on offense, defense and special teams.
Papalii: Hawaii Prep 30, Keaau 10
De Groote: Hawaii Prep 35, Keaau 7