Hawaiian Electric Game of the Week
No. 1 Punahou to face No. 5 Saint Louis




The Interscholastic League of Honolulu season gets underway with a clash of top-five teams at Hawaiian Airlines Field at Aloha Stadium Friday night.

Reigning Division I state champion Punahou makes its season debut against Cal Lee-led Saint Louis in the nightcap of an ILH doubleheader in Halawa. Kickoff between the Buffanblu and Crusaders is approximately scheduled for 8:15 p.m. It will follow a 5:30 p.m. game between Saint Francis and Pac-Five.

"We're excited to start the season and we're also looking forward to the opportunity to compete against Saint Louis, which is one of the best teams currently and historically," said Punahou coach Kale Ane, whose team is No. 1 in the ScoringLive/OC16 Division I Football Power Rankings.

Much like the rest of the state, the Buffanblu's scheduled season opener at Leilehua back on Aug. 8 was canceled and they have been limited to practice sessions since then.

"We're still putting the pieces together, you know, it's always a puzzle this time of the season, but we're moving in the right direction," said Ane, who was All-Hawaii D1 Coach of the Year in 2013. "The kids are working hard and we got the chance to see Saint Louis play their first two games, but it's a little bit different when you play someone versus when you're watching them."

Ane said Crusaders' multitude of offensive weapons is cause for concern.

"They have great athletes all over the place: o-line, quarterbacks — and I mean both of their guys — wide receiver, running back and defensively they're aggressive, physical and they get after you, so this will be a good opportunity for us to compete against a quality team."

Lee, the winningest prep coach in state history, has played both senior Ryder Kuhns and sophomore Tua Tagovailoa at quarterback in Saint Louis' first two games, however, he said he'll likely use one against Punahou. Which one, is the question.

"After the preseason games and this week of practice, we'll evaluate the guys and see how they're doing, but it might be a game-time decision," Lee said when reached by phone Tuesday. "Whoever it is, they're definitely going to deserve it for sure."

The fifth-ranked Crusaders (0-2) have allowed 63 points in each of their first two games, an issue that has been at the forefront of Lee's to-do list.

"I think after two preseason games we saw some strengths and some weaknesses," Lee said. "We need to shore some things up, we need to stop the run, stop the pass on defense and on offense we need to be a little more consistent, get some receivers open so we can execute."

Lee said the Buffanblu know how to win — they have claimed the last three league championships — but it's something that he doesn't want his team to be overly concerned about.

"They're a really big, physical team on both sides of the ball and they have some really good athletes that play hard and have a winning attitude," Lee said. "They've been there and they're the state champions, so they've got a lot of pride for sure. They're going to come out and they're going to be excited, but we've got to be just concerned with ourselves, work on what we need to work on and continue to get better."

NBC Sports Radio AM 1500 will carry the game. A link to the their broadcast will also be available on ScoringLive.com.

Other games of interest this weekend:
-No. 8 Leilehua at No. 10 Waianae, Friday 8 p.m.
The Mules (2-0, 2-0 OIA D1 Red) have posted a pair of blowout victories in their first two games behind senior QB Kalanimoku Pauole (28-of-39 passing, 518 yards, 8 TDs, 2 INTs). The Seariders (1-1, 1-1) rebounded from a season-opening loss to Moanalua with a win at Kaiser last week. Waianae won the last time the teams met, 39-21, back Sept. 6, 2013.

-No. 2 Mililani at No. 9 Kapolei, Saturday, 6:30 p.m.
The Trojans (3-0, 2-0 OIA D1 Blue) will hit the road for the first time this season when they visit the Hurricanes (0-2, 0-2), who will be playing their first home game of 2014. Mililani leads the state in both total offense (1,159 yards) and touchdowns (16) and has outscored opponents 114 to 54. The Trojans won last year's game, when both were members of the Red West, by a score of 35-0.

-Kaimuki at Pearl City, Friday 8 p.m.
The Bulldogs (1-0) visit the Chargers (2-0) in a key OIA D2 game featuring a pair of playoff hopefuls. Kaimuki, which dropped from D1 last year, got 170 rushing yards and three touchdowns from RB Sean Noda in a 26-6 win over Anuenue Saturday, while Pearl City has won both of its first two games handily after coming off a league runner-up finish and state-tournament appearance last season.



Reach Kalani Takase at [email protected].




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