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Editor's note: Both coaches quoted in this story were contacted on Monday, one day before the Big Island Interscholastic Federation made the decision to postpone all athletic activities for the remainder of the week. As a result, the football game between Kamehameha-Hawaii and Hilo will be played the weekend of Oct. 14-15.

Two of three remaining undefeated teams in the Big Island Interscholastic Federation will face off this weekend in a inter-division showdown when three-time reigning Division I league champion Hilo hosts Kamehameha-Hawaii.

The Vikings (1-1 overall, 1-0 BIIF) are coming off a pulsating, come-from-behind 23-21 win over defending league D2 champion Konawaena last Saturday night, while the Warriors (3-0, 1-0) blanked Waiakea by a score of 37-0 Friday night.

After opening the season with a 49-7 non-league loss to second-ranked Saint Louis, Hilo outlasted the Wildcats in a heavyweight bout at Dr. Francis Wong Stadium.

The Vikings built a 20-0 lead by late in the first half, but allowed 23 straight points by Konawaena before Kalei Toletino-Perry's game-winning 29-yard field goal with 51 seconds left to play.

Kamehameha-Hawaii, which is ranked seventh in this week's ScoringLive/Hawaiian Electric Division II Power Rankings, is averaging 30.7 points per game offensively, while holding opponents to just 4.3 points per game.

We caught up with the coaches of both teams a few days before their clash at Wong Stadium.

ScoringLive: Describe your team's current situation in one word.
Dan Lyons, Kamehameha-Hawaii coach: "Excited. I think we're excited about the opportunities and I think we feel like we're headed in right direction. The guys are stepping up and helping each other and I just think there's excitement and passion about playing football."
Kaeo Drummondo, Hilo coach: "Progression. I think that there's some things that we're doing well. I think theres a lot of things that we need to work on and a lot of things we need to correct and button up on both sides of the ball. Looking at film from the last two games — and not taking into account the opponent, but just basing it off of how we're executing our schemes — there's improvement. Improvement was made from game one to game two, but definitely on both sides of the ball, there are things we need to fix and it's definitely still a work in progress."

ScoringLive: How close is your team to playing to its potential?
Lyons: "How many weeks are left in the season? We're going to put this together week-by-week, day by day and our intent is to be our best on our last game."
Drummondo: "Hopefully not close. I think last week was a good, hard-fought victory, but like I said, we watched the film with the players (Monday) and for every good thing that we did, there's things that we need to fix, so for us as a staff, I think it's great that without playing at our full potential to come out with a W against a quality program and a quality opponent like Konawaena. At the same time, it's a good thing to know, to understand and accept that even though we got that W, we're not near where we can be or where we need to be looking down the road and where we hope to be. I don't look at it as a bad thing. I look at it as a good thing. If our players have the same view that every day is a progression and as long as we're moving in the right direction, hopefully that's the direction we keep trending toward and we get where we need to be."

ScoringLive: Who or what has been the heart and soul of your team?
Lyons: "I think our defense has been the real heart and soul of things. I think (linebacker) Ethan James Ramos has stepped up and been a leader for us. We've been without (linebacker) Wayne Decalio and (defensive lineman) Sedrick Mahi because of injuries so other guys had to step up. (Linebacker) Noah Wengler has done a good job of stepping up and playing positions that he's maybe not used to. The whole group has stepped up and played really well without two or three of our best defensive players, so that's been real nice to see."
Drummondo: "Right now, in both the Saint Louis game and the Konawaena game, I think the one player that really jumps out at you is (wide receiver) Lukas Kuipers. Although his stats weren't spectacular against Saint Louis, I think Lukas did a lot of good things for us. He did what we expected him to do and he played his role great. He had some catches, he ended up scoring our only touchdown that game, but there were a lot of other factors that went into the end result so we don't really focus on the stats. The Konawaena game he came out of the gate really strong and had a really good game. He had a really, really quality first quarter, unfortunately he ran into an issue with cramps going into the second half that knocked him out of the game, but up until that point there wasn't much more we could have asked of him. He's taking care of his duties as a wide receiver, he's returning kicks for us and against Saint Louis he was actually our kicker, so at this point he's stepping up playing multiple positions, multiple roles and he's been a real bright spot for us right now."

ScoringLive: The BIIF decided to keep its teams and divisions status quo for this season in a meeting Monday. What are your thoughts on the situation as well as the new state tournament format?
Lyons: "I like the new state tournament format. I like the format, I think it's exciting. The only thing I would say that maybe moving Division II to an eight-team tournament instead of six and make it even more competitive because I think there are a lot of teams in D2 that are pretty good. As far as the league's decision,  all I heard from our athletic director on the meeting was that where we were, that we're in D2 and so I don't know why or how all of that has gone down."
Drummondo: "I think that the new state format is good. I think it's good for everybody. I think it allows a lot more competitive balance. I think the state tournament is probably going to be more exciting on every level and hopefully more competitive. In all, I think it's good. As a competitor, do you want to be in a position to compete against the top teams in the state? Definitely, but at the same time we played four of the top D1 teams over the last year and for us right now the reality is that we're not at that level. The outcomes of those games speak the clearest, so we have to just accept that fact and whoever the competition is that the state decides is who we out and compete against, but I think for the state and Hawaii high school football, I think it's a good thing. As far as the BIIF staying status quo, I don't disagree with whatever decision each school, each program decides to make as far as wanting to stay in D1 or wanting to stay in D2. I think the league could — if the state allowed the league to — make the playoffs more fun. My personal opinion would be if the D1 runner-up and the D2 runner-up team had a play-in game for the second spot in the D1 state tournament, but my understanding is you have to declare before the season, so in theory that eliminates the play-in game. I think it would be a great game and there's an off week before the state tournament, so they could have played it then, but as far as this season, I think it's good to stay status quo with the regular season having started last week. It's the easiest way, but if I had my way, I think it would be great to have a play-in game."

ScoringLive: What's your take on this week's opponent?
Lyons: "Hilo is a very resilient team. I think they had a great game against Konawaena. We're pretty familiar with them just because we did our camp with them and did some scrimmages with them. They're going to be tough and very well-coached and resilient. This week's preparation is a little scattered because of the storm obviously. We had a film session (Monday) and then assuming we're going to get a good practice in (Tuesday), but the rest of the week is going to be a blue because of what actually happens with this storm. I think we just have to do what we do and our biggest thing right now is offensively we have to continue to take care of the ball and play good, tough defense. I think it will be a good, tough competitive game. I just hope the weather is good. Wong Stadium is not ideal for football in general and if we get 15 to 20 inches of rain from that storm, it's going to make it very difficult to play in, but we're preparing for our game and right now we're just making sure we have the mental reps and get the players to understand what we're trying to do and why we do what we do."
Drummondo: "I think we're pretty familiar with Kamehameha at this point. We had a couple of scrimmages against them and we had a combined practice and camp with them. They're very tough, aggressive, they have a stingy defense, they're big and physical up front. Their linebackers are aggressive, they run a few different coverages, so I think on the offensive side of the ball we're expecting to be challenged, but just like last week, we explained to the kids that these are the types of games that you have to be excited to play and these are the types of games that will help us take the next step forward. Defensively, we're expecting a great game. Offensively, they like to get the ball out. They have playmakers on the edge that they like to get the ball out to quickly to. They have a few different running backs they like to use and all three are capable of finding the crease. They're coached up very well on the line every year. (Offensive coordinator) Manly Kanoa does a great job with those guys up front. Their offensive line is very effective in what they do with their power-run game and when they get the ball out quick to the edges. For us it's about alignment, assignment and when the ball gets out to the edges, we've got to get there quick. They're a quality team, they're well-coached, so we've got to come out and execute and we've got to force some turnovers on our side. Hopefully it turns out in our favor at the end of the day, but we know what to expect. It's just about the players coming out and executing Friday night."

ScoringLive: How does your team win Friday's game?
Lyons: "We play great defense, we secure the ball and we make sure that we can get the ball to our skill guys. I think if we defend well and we don't have turnovers and in every game special teams is huge, so we always try to make sure we have decent special teams, but I think if we defend well and protect the ball and get some plays from our skill guys, that's how we win."
Drummondo: "Offensively, we take care of the football, don't turn it over, make our blocks, when we run the ball stay on our blocks and get that push. Our ball carries have to get what they can, our receivers have to catch the ball and turn upfield, take what they can and be smart. We put some things in our game plan where the players expect what's coming and we try to put them in a position where it's likely for them to succeed, but for us offensively, let's take care of the football and make sure we don't turn it over. On the flip side of that, defensively it's always alignment, assignment and relentless effort to the ball. We've got to be great tacklers, we've got to get the ball out — whether it's punching it out, stripping it out or catching it in the air — but we've got to turn the ball over in our favor and get the defense going. If we do those things on the offensively side and the defensive side, I think the scoreboard will work itself out in the end. We just have to take care of the little things first."

Kickoff between the Warriors and Vikings is slated for 7:30 p.m.