Running back Sanele Lavatai and the Farrington Govs hope to keep their winning ways over Kapolei going as they meet in the OIA Red quartefinals Friday. Evan Asato | SL

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Kapolei's time as a Division I football program might be short lived since it was after Y2K, but they have already had plenty of postseason battles. However, the one team they have not been able to beat are the Farrington Governors, who has ended their season a total of four times now. The Govs are riding high after defeating two-time defending champion Kahuku 15 days ago, and have home field advantage and a week off on their side.  The odds are not in the Hurricanes favor and they will have their work cut out for them if they want to avoid history from repeating itself.

A different point of attack

Both teams would rather run the ball than throw it, but they do it in differing ways. Farrington quarterback Montana Liana most often takes handoffs under center while Kapolei quarterback Aizon Kahana is often taking snaps in a shotgun formation. Linebacker turned running back Sanele Lavatai is the main guy carrying the ball for the Govs, having led the Red division in rushing with 738 yards and 11 touchdowns in six games. On the other hand, Kapolei has a three-headed monster in the backfield that features Triston Pebria, Mana Reis, and Kainoa Brown. Pebria, who draws comparisons to Jacksonville Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew, is the main guy toting the rock with 757 yards and 12 touchdowns so far this year. Reis is your prototypical third down back who can catch the ball out of the backfield while Brown is a big, burly fullback who is a hassle for teams to take down.

Whichever rushing style is able to generate the most offense should dictate the outcome of the game. Both teams rely on their running game to get things going for their offense because throwing the ball looks like a dangerous thing when you look at each teams' defensive backfield.

Unauthorized airspace

The team that finds themselves having a difficult time running the ball will find that throwing it is even harder. Both teams have a strong pass defense that can shut down an average passing offense. Kapolei are led by safety Bryson Hughes and defensive back Tristan Centeio. Hughes has befitted from a switch from strong to free safety, and is among the league leaders in interceptions with five unofficially.  Centeio doesn't have as much interceptions as Hughes, but does have the speed to take one to the house if ever gets his hands on one.

On the other side, Farrington's secondary are led by defensive backs Tre Boyd and Jacob McEnroe, as well as rover Pumba Williams. The trio have unofficially combined for a grand total of eight interceptions. That number does not include pass deflections and dropped picks, but it is evident that the Govs have a ball-hawking secondary.

Fans at Roosevelt's Ticky Vasconcellos stadium might be in for an interception party if neither team can get anything going on the ground. Kahana and Liana have combined for 11 interceptions on the year while only throwing for nine touchdowns. It will be interesting to see how things play out and to see who can make plays in the passing game. A conservative passing game over an aggressive one might be the key for both teams in this matchup.

Staying consistent

Both teams are looking to flip the script on something that has plague them all season, playing a complete game of four quarters. Farrington is a team who has had slow starts in the season, but came back late to snatch a win. The Govs' first win of the season was a result of them rallying from a 14-0 halftime deficit to stun the Knights in overtime, 20-14. They also had to rally against Moanalua where they trailed for most of the game before coming back to defeat Na Menehune by the final score of 41-38. It would be wise for Farrington to play with a lead rather than a deficit because it allows them to milk the clock with their ball-control type of offense.

On the other hand Kapolei is fresh off a 42-27 win over Kailua, a game where the Hurricanes allowed the Surfriders to score 27 in the fourth quarter to make things interesting. Other than that fourth quarter let up, the Hurricanes have also been in situations where they needed to mount a comeback to make a get a victory. Kapolei faced fourth quarter deficits against Waipahu and Leilehua and managed to come away with wins in both games. They also came close to spoiling Waianae's homecoming where they trailed 28-6 at halftime before the coming back to make it a 35-27 final.
Kapolei has the tools to play a dominant ballgame for four quarters, they just haven't been able to do it all season.

Final thoughts

This game could very well come down to which team makes the least mistakes. Both teams have striking similarities and strengths that will see this game have highs and lows. Opportunities for the big play will present itself throughout the game, it'll just be a matter if someone is willing to take that risk or not.