Kalaheo: Roster Bursts With Talent
By Jack Danilewicz
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Del.icio.usHead football coach Chris Mellor hopes to have his team in attack mode by 2 p.m. Saturday when Kalaheo visits Iolani for an inter-league game.
From spring ball through fall camp,they have re-emphasized their play on the defensive side of the ball.
“The stats speak for themselves,” said Mellor, whose team faired better statistically on offense in 2006. “We’re focused on defense. We’ve spent more time on it in practice.”
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Iolani could be the ideal early-season opponent to test it out. The Raiders won the D-II state title in 2005 and thrive on their spread offense. Iolani coach Wendell Look and staff went to Evanston, Ill., in 2001 to learn Northwestern’s version of the spread from the late Randy Walker and his staff.
The spread is dependent on good decision making behind center. Mellor was impressed by Iolani quarterback Kela Marciel this summer and sees Kalaheo’s defense of him as a key to Saturday’s encounter.
“When he (Marciel) has time to throw, like any good quarterback, he’s probably going to win the matchups,” said Mellor, whose team hopes to improve on last year’s 1-7 mark. “He can pick you apart. He’s really solid - quick, fast and precise.We need to focus in on pressuring him.They’re a precision-type team, and we have to find a way to disrupt their precision.We can’t just sit in a zone defense; we have to play aggressive football.
“We would approach (defending) them the same way a lot of teams approach us - by pressuring the play-maker,” he said. His quarterback, Cody von Appen, is invariably the focal point of opposing defenses.
Whether they can be a factor in the OIA Red East race could hinge on their defense, given their ability to churn out yardage with the veer offense. “Defensively, this game will be a good test for us. They’re in a tough league themselves, and their coaches know how to strategize. We think we match up with them pretty well. They have a lot of small, fast kids like we do.”
The Mustangs had a solid summer, he said, with a trip to Saint Mary’s College in Moraga, Calif., where they played Mainland schools. Most encouraging is an increase in numbers throughout the program. The varsity and JV rosters list 105 players, and Kalaheo will dress 44 players Saturday,two years after having only 24.
Injuries have cut into the momentum - albeit temporarily. Mellor admitted that von Appen was recently sidelined by a bruised shoulder.“I’m 99 percent sure he’ll play against Iolani. He keeps trying to show me every day that he’s healthy enough.”
Sophomore quarterback Phil Taui,meanwhile,whom Mellor calls “the bright spot"of Kalaheo’s 7-on-7 summer pass league scrimmages, has been taking the repetitions in practice. “He’s played above and beyond what we expected.”
Mellor expects linebackers Shawn Reed and Dillan Hanawahine to lead the way defensively, along with 6-foot,210-pound junior defensive end Matthew Gasparine,and strong safe-ty/outside linebacker Ayrton Kehrer should have an impact. “He was a big hitter throughout camp; he has a nose for the ball,and he plays good, aggressive football.”
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