Knights find inspiration in coach's struggle

By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer

Quick, name the only O'ahu Interscholastic Association football team to qualify for the state tournament three years running?

With encouragement from his wife, Nelson Maeda continued coaching. Jodi Ann Davis died in February, 18 months after being diagnosed with a malignant tumor. Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser

Of the 21 OIA schools eligible, only Castle earned an invitation to the exclusive eight-team party in 2000, 2001 and 2002.

When people talk about OIA football powers, few immediately think of the Knights. That especially was true this season, as undersized Castle (7-4) had to fill major holes in key spots and opened the season with 13 seniors and 37 players total.

"When you see a team win consistently with that type of kids, the bottom line is coaching," St. Louis coach Delbert Tengan said. "To do it year after year and maintain the winning even with different players, it shows they're not just a flash in the pan."

Knights coach Nelson Maeda, in his sixth season leading Castle, has long been recognized by his peers as one of the best in the business. But the job he has done in the past two seasons while dealing with a tremendous personal struggle makes his efforts even more remarkable.

Maeda's wife, Jodi, was found to have a malignant brain tumor in 2000 and battled it bravely for 18 months before finally succumbing this past February. That left Maeda, 45, a single parent with children ages 9, 8 and 3.

"Obviously, being young kids, it was tough on them to see their mom suffer and just wither away," Maeda said. "It was rough on all of us, but she taught us to don't give up."

As Jodi's condition worsened in 2001, Maeda contemplated stepping down from his coaching position to spend more time at home. But Jodi talked him into staying on.

"Being a head coach is a big time investment," Maeda said. "It's not just coaching — you're also an equipment manager, laundry person ... during the season, sometimes I don't get home until 9 o'clock. But there reached a point (in Jodi's illness) where there was not much more we could do. She encouraged me to stick with it, and we'd do the best we can at home."

"It was my outlet," Maeda said. "It gave me a chance to focus on something else."

Tengan, who has known both Maeda and his wife since their high school days at Kailua, said Jodi understood how important coaching was to Nelson.

"She knew his love for the sport and knew what his talent was," Tengan said. "She knew he could make a big impact on those Castle kids."

Maeda coaches the way he played, squeezing the most out of what he's been given. As a walk-on safety at UH, he eventually cracked the starting lineup that included two future NFL players in the defensive backfield — Blane Gaison and Dana McLemore.

In 2000, Castle emerged out of the OIA's second-tier White Division and upset Kailua of the top-tier Red in the league quarterfinals to advance to the state tournament.

Last season, led by spectacular senior quarterback Joel Botelho, the Knights were promoted to the Red and went 7-1 in the regular season, knocking off Wai'anae and Kailua in the process. They again made it to the state tournament.

And this year, Castle lost to Leilehua in the preseason but made the OIA playoffs with a 4-3 record, and then upset Campbell in the quarterfinals and beat Farrington for the second time in last week's semifinals to advance to tomorrow night's championship game against Kailua (9-1).

"Nelson has done a tremendous job, especially because he usually doesn't have any Division I players over there," Tengan said. "His players work hard, are disciplined and believe in the system. They lack the size and the numbers, but Nelson is a disciple of fundamental football, and that's what they play."

Senior linebacker Cory Daniel, one of this year's team captains, said there aren't many secrets to Castle's success.

"We try to beat teams with our speed, because sometimes they overlook that," Daniel said. "But basically, we're just working our butts off."

He added that seeing what their coach was going through only made the players work harder.

"He has guts," Daniel said of Maeda. "A lot of us, if that happened to our mom, we probably wouldn't be playing. But he was here day-in, day-out, keeping his game face on. It showed that he has a lot of love for the game.

"That motivated us even more. We tried to give him our best on and off the field."

Maeda's strength through the situation inspired Tengan as well.

"I have the utmost respect for Nelson not just as a coach, but as a person," Tengan said. "To balance coaching with taking care of his wife and kids ... And after the funeral, instead of me making him feel good, he made me feel good. He wrote me a long thank you note, congratulating me on getting the (St. Louis) job, telling me how proud he was. For him to take the time to do that, it showed a lot."

Maeda said life as a single parent is very demanding, but said he manages with a lot of support, starting with his mother, Doris.

"That's the only way I could do it," Maeda said. "It's mostly Grandma, but I also have close friends and aunties who come over and help. And I've gotten support from Castle, too. They've given me a lot of flexibility."

It is said that a team often is a reflection of its coach, and the word many people use to describe the Knights is "scrappy."

"I've heard that, and I take it as a compliment," Maeda said. "It means we're never gonna give up."

OIA Championship

Castle vs. Kailua

• Records: Castle 7-4, Kailua 9-1

• Advertiser ranking: Castle No. 6, Kailua No. 3

• Last week: Castle defeated Farrington, 13-9; Kailua defeated McKinley, 41-28

• Coaches: Nelson Maeda, 6th season at Castle, 34-27-1, 8th overall, 38-41-3. Darren Johnson, 7th season at Kailua, 50-24. Head-to-head, Johnson is 4-2 overall, 3-1 in regular season, 1-1 in postseason.

• History: During the regular season, Kailua won 20-0. Castle is 11-15-1 in postseason, 0-5 in OIA title games; Kailua is 15-15-1, 1-5 in OIA title games. Castle's last and only league title was 1945 (when it was Benjamin Parker High); Kailua shared OIA title last year with Kahuku and also won titles in 1963, 1964, 1965.

• Key factors: Castle won last week despite four interceptions, only seven first downs and 160 yards of offense. The Knights most likely will not prevail with a similar performance. "The ball has bounced our way," Maeda said. "We've been fortunate." ... Kailua's running game, led by senior tailback Nathan Leaver, continues to roll. Leaver rushed for 121 yards and four touchdowns on 19 carries against McKinley, a week after gaining 227 yards on 22 carries against Mililani. "Since the season started, we worked more on all the little things, the technique," Leaver said. "We got better, and it shows." The Surfriders also got 93 rushing yards and one touchdown on 13 carries from Bronson Kamaka last week. ... In the teams' regular season meeting, the score was 0-0 at halftime and 7-0 after three quarters. The field at Kailua was covered in mud. ... Castle's defense is small, but quick. In addition to ball-hawking defensive end Soli Lefiti, the Knights have outstanding linebackers in sophomore Blaze Soares and senior Cory Daniel. "Blaze is all over the field, and Cory might be, pound-for-pound, the toughest linebacker in the state," Maeda said. "If there's one word for him, it's 'vicious.' " ... Kailua's defense came up with three turnovers — two fumbles and one interception — and seven sacks last week. "They've got a couple of buzz saws back there," Maeda said.