Kapolei Hosts Mililani Friday
By Jack Danilewicz
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Del.icio.usUnder former Hurricane Trent McKinney’s watch, the Mililani football resume is impressive (an 11-4 record as a starter), but he admits it’s the precious few near-misses that drive him and his teammates.
The Trojans’ promising 2009 season ended in a 35-27 loss to eventual OIA overall champion Kahuku in the playoffs, and that’s a motivating force every day on the practice field.
“The Kahuku loss stuck with us all off season,” said McKinney, the quarterback of the Trojans’ talented senior class. “When we remember that game, it gets us going.”
Another loss that remains fresh is when Kapolei beat them 41-24 at homecoming last October, dropping the Trojans from the ranks of the unbeaten in the OIA’s Red West. This Friday night, Mililani visits Kapolei for the Hurricanes’ own homecoming. Adding to the intrigue is that McKinney spent his first two years playing for the Hurricanes before his family relocated to Mililani in time for his junior season.
While he has ties to the Hurricanes, McKinney is treating this week as any other. “I’m looking forward to it as I would any game,” he said. “This week they (Kapolei) are our championship game.”
McKinney couldn’t have gone wrong finishing his career at either school, given both Kapolei and Mililani’s reputations for turning out good quarterbacks. Heading into last week’s game versus Aiea, he had already thrown for 937 yards to go with a sparkling completion rate of 63.6. On the ground, he’s rushed for 257 more and an average of 7.8 yards per attempt.
One shift in the off-season saw the arrival of new offensive coordinator Bobby George, a stellar quarterback in his own playing days at Saint Louis School.
“He’s a very open coach,” McKinney said. “He listens to what I observe on the field, and I listen to what he observes. His plays are effective, and we work good with him.”
While McKinney led Mililani to wins in four of their first five games (a 42-28 loss to Waianae was their only setback), Kapolei has been in the rebuilding mode with a roster dominated by underclassmen. Even so, the Hurricanes have played every opponent tough, including great defensive efforts versus Leilehua (a 21-7 loss) and Aiea (a 7-0 win).
“The key is to execute and cut out the mental mistakes,” McKinney said. “When we don’t have everyone on the same page, it throws the whole offense off.”
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