Malupo, Santos best in the West
By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer
In the O'ahu Interscholastic Association's Red Conference, the West could have been considered the "Black and Blue" division.
While only three of the East's seven teams rushed for more than 700 yards this season, five of the seven West teams cracked the 700-yard barrier and a sixth was only 15 yards short.
Campbell running back Mapa Malupo and Mililani linebacker Jose Santos, who epitomized the West's rough-and-tumble makeup, have been named Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year, respectively, in a vote of division coaches.
Malupo, a hard-running 6-foot, 220-pound senior, led all OIA rushers with 775 yards and averaged 7.2 yards per carry.
His best games came at the right times: 177 yards and two touchdowns in an 18-15 victory over 'Aiea, 157 yards and one touchdown on 26 carries in a 27-14 win over Waipahu and 152 yards and one touchdown in a 23-21 victory over Mililani.
"I was very impressed with him when we played them," Mililani coach James Millwood said. "We were pretty good against the run this year, but I think out of everybody he had the best day against us. He's explosive and powerful, and he's also smart and real smooth and he has great vision. I voted for him as Player of the Year, because I thought he was the most outstanding offensive weapon in the West."
Millwood said he was even more impressed with Malupo after coaching him for two weeks in preparation for the Hawai'i Union Builders All-Star game earlier this month.
"The West was more of a running (division), and we had a lot of good backs," Millwood said. "But Malupo really stood out. I think he can play Division I (in college); somebody should grab him."
Santos, a ball-hawking 6-1, 205-pound senior, led a Trojans unit that finished second in the West in total defense. Mililani allowed just 230 yards per game.
His value to the Trojans was perhaps best exemplified by his performance against arch rival Leilehua: 14 tackles, one fumble caused and one fumble recovered, blocked a potential game-tying extra-point attempt and recovered an onside kick with 1:44 remaining to help preserve a 21-20 win.
Santos had a similar effort against Waipahu, making 13 tackles, including one sack, with two pass deflections and also making a touchdown catch to help the Trojans prevail, 34-13.
"He played injured, and he was very unselfish because he played in the defensive backfield the previous two years," Millwood said. "We asked him to move up closer to the line of scrimmage this year because that's where we were missing some guys, and he ended up playing middle linebacker. We're really going to miss him, because he did so much for us."
Jake Kawamata, who guided Leilehua to its first playoff appearance since 1998, was named Coach of the Year. Leilehua went 0-8 in last year's regular season.
"Our communities are very close, and early on I could hear positive talk about him," Millwood said. "He got them believing in themselves. I think he's taking Leilehua in the right direction."
