Waiakea was supposed to operate the run-and-shoot under new offensive coordinator Kai Ako, who played at Saint Louis back in the day when quarterbacks, like Timmy Chang, filled the sky with entertaining touchdown strikes.
But on Saturday, the Warriors played pure smash-mouth football — Kahuku style — to pummel Keaau 42-6 in a BIIF Division I showdown at Ken Yamase Memorial Stadium, dominating on both sides of the ball.
Waiakea (1-1 BIIF, 1-4 overall) bulldozed for 349 yards and four touchdowns on 31 attempts for a whopping 11.3 yard per carry average.
The Warriors passed just five times. Gehrig Octavio went 1 of 3 for six yards and Makoa Andres was 0 for 2.
That meant everyone at Yamase stadium knew a Warrior would be running the ball the majority of the time. And still, the Cougars (1-1, 1-1) couldn’t stop the avalanche despite loading the tackle box.
Waiakea’s line (Isaiah K-Aloha, TJ Higashida, Thomas Pakani, Sultan Jerome and Anthony Benevides) won the battle at the line of scrimmage, often run-blocking an eight-pack of Cougars backward.
Octavio weaved his way for 179 yards, including 128 in the first half, on just 11 attempts.
Andres ran over Keaau for 106 yards and two TDs on eight carries while Austin Deperalta added 52 yards on 10 attempts.
On defense, the Warriors, led by linebacker Brandon Stewart, held the Cougars to 53 yards on 34 carries, a 1.6 yard average.
When Keaau quarterback Caine Lunsford went back to throw, he was under relentless pressure. PJ Matsuura and Benevides recorded sacks. Lunsford was 5 of 7 for 42 yards, including just three yards in the first half.
The Warriors ran a split-back offense with Chayson Stanton as a blocking fullback. Andres crossed to the right, and Deperalta zipped to the left.
It was a simple blocking scheme and it worked like a charm.
When the Cougars tried to flood a running lane, Octavio went read-option and used his vision and cutback ability to make the visitors pay with quick bursts on the ground.
In the first quarter, Waiakea had golden field position after a short Keaau punt, and Octavio scored on the first play, a 21-yard run when a gap wasn’t filled.
Then the Warriors capitalized when a Cougar penalty put the ball near midfield. Two plays later, Octavio scored again on a 38-yard scamper when his line blew up Keaau’s gap containment.
In the second quarter, Chris Mamone gave the Keaau faithful reason to cheer when he scorched Waiakea’s kickoff coverage for 57 yards. However, the Cougars manged only three yards on the ground.
Keaau went for it on fourth down, Lunsford managed three yards, and the ball went back to the Warriors, who routinely got stops on first and second down. The Cougars rarely had an answer when they were stuck in third-and-long situations.
Waiakea took the ball on that failed fourth-down attempt and marched 71 yards to score. Octavio capped the four-play drive with a 31-yard touchdown run.
Andres scored on a six-yard run near the end of the second quarter, and a penalty pushed the PAT attempt to the 19-yard line. That worked out well because it was good field-goal practice for Michael Scott, who nailed the PAT kick from 26 yards out for a 28-0 cushion.
One of Keaau’s weak spots is a lack of a good kicker and punter. The opposition pretty much always gets prime field position on kickoffs and punts. Next to turnovers, field position is something coaches have high on their priority lists.
To start the third quarter, the Warriors received and started at their 46-yard line. They welcomed that short field and scored five plays later. Andres crossed right, his line blocked down, and he scored on a seven-yard run for a 35-0 lead to start the mercy-rule running clock.
On the kickoff, Keaau’s junior lightning bolt burned Waiakea’s coverage team again. Mamone spotted an opening down the sideline and raced for 54 yards to the 18-yard line. Kaina Vierra scored five plays later on a two-yard run.
The Warriors scored on the following possession when Scott went from punter to running back on a fourth-and-4 near midfield. He gained 10 yards on the fake punt, and Octavio scored one play later on his second 38-yard TD run.