Knights Hope To Stop Kahuku For Third Time In 19 Years
By Jack Danilewicz
E-mail this story | Print this page | Comments (0) | Archive | RSS | Share
Del.icio.us
|
Football is not a game of perfect, as the late Northwestern coach Randy Walker liked to say, but it has always been the consensus among Kahuku’s opponents that nothing less than a near-perfect game is necessary to have a chance against the Red Raiders.
“You have to be almost perfect against them,” said Castle coach Nelson Maeda, whose team hosts the defending state champion Red Raiders at 7 p.m. Friday.“You have to get an edge in the kicking game and hope they give you some opportunities because it’s very hard to win all three phases (offense, defense and special teams).”
For its part, Kahuku has grown accustomed to getting every team’s best shot. Maeda is hoping that is true of Friday’s encounter. The Knights took a 3-1 record into their bye week and figure to carry some momentum into the game after a workmanlike 14-8 win over rival Kailua in their last outing Sept. 21.
Prior to Kahuku’s upset loss to McKinley last fall, Castle was the last Oahu Interscholastic Association East Red team to beat the Red Raiders, posting a 23-6 win Sept. 16, 2005 for the Knights’ first win in the series since 1988. That Kahuku team went on to win the state championship, but Castle’s task this year is no less daunting than then, according to Maeda.
“They have great talent and a great coaching staff, and nothing less than a state championship is expected,” he said. “It’s an amazing program, and in the last 10 to 15 years, they’ve taken it to another level.”
To go with its power running game, led by running back Junior Mataafa, the Red Raiders also feature up-and-coming quarterback Jray Galeai.
“He’s a great athlete, and they’re throwing the ball more than they have (in past years),” Maeda said. “That makes it even tougher (to defend Kahuku) - they’re not one-dimensional.”
As in past years, Kahuku’s offensive line (Daniel Kinikini, Patrick Au, Jordan Bridges, Anthony Siilata and Samiu Tonga) is big and agile. The Red Raiders’ ability to wear teams down was best evidenced Sept. 8 in their win over upset-minded Kalaheo, when they were able to grind out a 33-26 victory with solid play in the trenches.
“You have to start with their line play,” said Maeda.“They’re mammoth. The best way to put it is that they physically punish you.”
Castle is banking on another solid effort from its defense as well as improved play on the offensive side.
“Our defense has been on the field a lot this season, so we’ll have to generate some offense to have a chance,” said the coach. “We’ve kind of sputtered around. We’ve been out of sync and not very productive lately. It’s mostly been three downs and out. Kahuku has a corps of seasoned veterans, defensively, and they’re big and fast. We’ll have to move the chains, control the ball a little bit, and get the ball to our athletes in open space. Our primary focus this week is to try to inject some energy into our offense.”
On that note, Maeda is hoping the return of slotback Bronson Kekahuna from an injury can help the Knights get untracked, offensively. Big plays on offense have been largely absent from the Castle attack this fall.
Defensively, the Knights have been solid to date, behind the play of Solomon Koehler, K.J. Aipia, Uli Maae, Kaua Olds and Alika Kekoanui. Although they yielded four touchdowns to Kalaheo in their only league loss Sept. 14, Castle has given up only four touchdowns in its three other contests. The Knights held Kailua to a single touchdown a week after Kailua had put up 42 on McKinley. Castle’s defense has been especially stout in the red zone, having given up much of its yardage between the 20-yard lines.
“We’ve dug our heels in, and that’s been good,” Maeda said. “We’ve bent, but we haven’t broken.”
The Knights’ open date on their schedule came at a good time, he added. Several Knights were suffering from the flu last week, but the bye allowed Maeda to give his team Friday through last Sunday off to rejuvenate. With Kahuku and Farrington as its last two regular-season opponents, Maeda expected his team’s focus to be good.
“It’s a long two weeks when you enter your bye week with a loss,” he admitted.“Our spirit has been good, and that can only help. Ending the season with two key games, our kids know they have to bring their A-game. They won’t need any added incentive.”
E-mail this story | Print this page | Comments (0) | Archive | RSS
Most Recent Comment(s):
