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Surfriders, Seariders Face Off

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Here’s a closer look at this weekend’s Oahu Interscholastic Association quarterfinal playoff match-up between host Kailua and Waianae (official kickoff time and actual day were to be announced after press time).

What to watch: With its bye coming in the last week of the OIA’s regular season, Kailua comes into this game well-rested, having been idle since its rivalry game against Castle Oct. 2. That’s a layoff of two weeks by the time of this week-end’s kickoff, if you’re scoring at home, but any bye week at this time of the year can only be a positive, a given opportunity for teams to heal up and regroup. The Surfriders’ football revival is one of the “feel good” stories of the 2010 season, and a win over traditional power Waianae would put Kailua in the OIA semifinals for the first time since 2002. For the Seariders’ part, they’ve played perhaps the state’s toughest schedule, having opened with games against Saint Louis and Kahuku prior to tackling their Red West slate. Waianae is among the best road teams in the OIA, having won at Mililani and Kapolei along with a narrow loss to Leilehua.

Why Kailua Might Win: If the Surfriders make this a track meet, it’s doubtful Waianae can keep up, as they are built for long, sustained drives rather than quick scores and shoot-outs. Kailua can control the game if they can play turnover-free.

Offensively, Kailua’s passing attack rates first in the state and is producing 250.4 yards per game. Quarterback Kahaku Iaea has made good decisions all year and has distributed the ball to an array of receivers, who include Eric Lum, Jarrin Young, Dustin Kalai, Ryson Lee-Kealoha and Isaac Sato. Waianae is relinquishing 192.1 yards per game through the air, so Kailua’s offensive staff can only be relishing this match-up.

Key to victory for Kailua:

Load up against the run, defensively; air it out, offensively. The Surfriders’ run defense has come a long way since week two, when they conceded 256 yards to Kahuku. In recent wins over both Farrington and Kaiser, teams committed to running the ball, the Surfriders yielded only 3.2 and 3.0 yards per running play, respectively. Kailua will gladly take those results this week against Waianae, which averages 228 rushing yards a game. The Surfriders will face two good backs in Bryson Panui and Jaylen Mitchell, but they have already gone up against some of the OIA’s best in Kahuku’s Aofaga Wily and Kaiser’s Josh Gonda, so expect Kailua to be assertive on the defensive side versus the run. The Seariders play better from ahead than behind, so getting a lead and forcing Waianae into obvious throwing downs is a big key for Kailua.

Why Waianae Might Win:

As always, the Seariders are big and physical up front and are capable of generating a pass rush that could throw off the timing of any air attack. And while the Surfriders utilize the field well, Waianae isn’t likely to come into this game in awe of any passing game, having faced passing teams (Leilehua, Radford, Mililani, Campbell and Aiea) in five of the last six weeks. Indeed, only Kapolei ran the ball more plays than they threw it among Waianae’s Red West opponents.

Key to victory for Waianae:

Run the ball on offense; generate a pass rush on defense and force turnovers.

Waianae’s best defense this week may be its offense, if the Seariders can control the ball and the clock, they can keep Kailua’s high-powered offense off the field. The Seariders may be somewhat one-dimensional scheme-wise, but not personnel-wise. Especially through play-action, they can make big plays in the passing game behind the arm of Puletua Wilson when the run-game is clicking. Of more concern to the Surfrider Nation perhaps should be Wilson’s ability to make plays with his feet. He has rushed for a team-high seven touch-downs on the ground and has carried the ball more times (78) than any other Searider player.

On the defensive side, the Seariders could benefit from getting a few takeaways. Despite their ability to pile up the yards, Kailua has been turnover-prone, having been intercepted 15 times through their eight games.

Key match-up to watch:

Kailua’s offensive line versus Waianae’s front seven. The match-up between Kailua’s receiver corps and the Seariders’ secondary looks like a positive one for the Surfriders, but it won’t matter much if they can’t protect Iaea well enough up front to give him time to operate.

Sunday’s Headline: Iaea, Surfrider Offense Methodical In Win Over Waianae. It says here Kailua will put up three first-half scores and hang on for a 21-16 win.

Contact Jack Danilewicz at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).