Quarterbacks Justus Neufeldt, of Kalaheo, and Shastyn Kekahuna, of Roosevelt, will face off Friday night when their teams meet at Kailua's Alex Kane Stadium in a pivotal OIA D2 game. ScoringLive photo illustration

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With just four weeks left in the regular season of the Oahu Interscholastic Association's Division II schedule, just about every game this time of year has playoff implications.

Friday night's meeting between Kalaheo and Roosevelt is one of those pivotal showdowns.

The Mustangs (1-3 overall, 1-2 league) sit in fifth place, while the Rough Riders (1-3) occupy sixth place in the eight-team league. Only the top four teams qualify for the OIA tournament following the nine-week regular season, and only the league champion will qualify for November's four-team D2 state tournament.

Both teams are looking to rebound from losses last week.

Kalaheo was blanked, 31-0, by No. 4 Pearl City Friday after a bye the previous week, and two weeks following a thrilling come-from-behind 27-26 win over McKinley. It opened the season with a 35-28 win at Kamehameha-Maui, but was forced to forfeit its regular-season opener against Waipahu the following week.

Roosevelt, meanwhile, has lost its last three games since a 33-0 win over McKinley to open the year. It has been outscored by opponents 91-14 during the losing streak, but hung tough with then-No. 7 Kaimuki Friday night before falling, 14-6.

We caught up with the coaches of both teams a few days before they face off.

ScoringLive: Describe your team's current situation in one word.

Kui Kahooilihala, Roosevelt coach: "Attitude. It's been a challenge since I took over last year. We have some great senior leadership, but we also have some knuckleheads and I tell the senior guys that they have to lead by example; That's the bottom line. They can change the course of things that we do here at the school and in the program. I always tell the older guys that the younger kids will follow them — not just on the field, but in school — and some of the kids tend to give up easy on the field and feel sorry for themselves. But other guys like Tasi (Sofukini), Isaiah (Rosa) and Shastyn (Kekahuna) are always picking the guys up and yelling at them — not in a bad way, but to motivate them. We tell the kids that they're one team and we've got to play as a team. Until they get it, we're not going to be successful. They've got to learn that. We've got to play together. We've got some guys not on the same page. I tell them that we'll get it, but we're still not there yet. We need to change our attitudes."

Darrell Poole, Kalaheo coach: "Family. Despite of what we're going through, the kids are still holding tight together as a family. Nothing has got them down. Despite that loss to Pearl City last week, we're still holding together. We're in almost the same situation as Kaiser — we only have 24 guys playing — so for us, that togetherness is what's keeping us going. We have that never-say-die attitude on this team, which is a rare thing for most teams with the amount of players that we have."

ScoringLive: What, or who, do you consider to be the heart of your team?

Kahooilihala: "It's simple for me, it's our seniors. They're great leaders, they'll fight to the end and they're competitors. Shastyn went up the varsity as a sophomore, along with a couple other kids that went up that year — about six of them — and this bunch of seniors is a special group. They're a great group group and great leaders. They're experienced, too, especially Shastyn."

Poole: "The heart of our team is our quarterback and that's Justus Neufeldt. He's a senior and he's the heart and soul of our team right now — especially the offense. He didn't play quarterback last year, so we kind of threw him into the fire, but he's doing the best that he can. So far, in the few games that we've played, we had some blown opportunities versus Pearl City, but that's a team thing, but the heart and soul of our team right now is Justus Neufeldt."

ScoringLive: Which game this season — win or loss — has proved to be most beneficial?

Kahooilihala: "I've got to say the Kaimuki game last week. The kids fought, they played football and I was really proud of the kids. They never gave up on the field and they backed each other up."

Poole: "I would say the McKinley game. Unfortunately, we came off of that forfeit against Waipahu because of numbers, but to bounce back with what we had to win against McKinley was a big thing for us. Before we forfeited, we played with 19 players at Kamehameha-Maui, and if not for some crucial injuries in that game we would have played Waipahu, but it gave us a chance to bounce back against McKinley. I just think how the kids held tough together again and only played with 21, 22 players that game — I was really proud of them."

ScoringLive: What are your thoughts on your opponent this week?

Kahooilihala: "Kalaheo is a great team. We're not going to play with a blind eye because these guys can hit you with the passing game and they can hit you with the running game. These guys run the veer option just like us and they run it real well, and they also throw the ball real well. Their quarterback is a big kid and he has a great arm. Kalaheo is a great team, so we've got to be careful. It's not going to be an easy game."

Poole: "It's going to be a battle between the two teams. The last couple of years they've been real tough against us. It boils down to the numbers, but to me, this is a crucial game for both of us with how the records are now; We both need a win to stay in the playoff picture. For us, if we do what we're capable of doing — despite us being a young team — I think we can win against them, but we can't blow our chances and opportunities like we had last game. We have to capitalize on chances that come our way and score and keep them out of the end zone, but I think it's going to be a tough game."

ScoringLive: Is there a specific matchup within the game that you feel will be especially important?

Kahooilihala: "We've got to get those guys up front moving, our line. This week for them it's been a lot of details on our blocking schemes up front and just recognizing the defensive guys in the box. We tell them every day that we need the push, so for me, it's about these guys up front because our backs like Shastyn back there, they're going to do what they need to do. They'll run on their landmarks, but it starts with the big linemen up front."

Poole: "For us, I think it's going to be about our defense. Because they're a running team, our big thing is going to be our defense stopping the running game of theirs. They're going to run the ball and run the ball, but the quarterback (Kekahuna) is capable of throwing the ball well, too. Defensively, we have to get the ball back and offensively we have to keep it and be able to score, but the key matchup is our defense versus their offense."

Roosevelt beat Kalaheo the last time the teams met — on Sept. 23, 2016 — by a score of 28-8.

Kickoff between the Rough Riders and Mustangs is scheduled for approximately 7 p.m. Friday at Kailua's Alex Kane Stadium.