State football quarterfinal is mirror-image matchup
By Stacy Kaneshiro
Advertiser Staff Writer
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| McKinley coach David Tanuvasa, left, and Baldwin coach Chad Kauhaahaa will face off on Friday.
Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser |
Kickoff is 7:30 p.m. at War Memorial Stadium in Wailuku.
"We know to budget our time and know how to better organize ourselves," Tigers coach David Tanuvasa said. "We don't want to make similar mistakes."
Still, this is McKinley's debut in the state tournament. Advice from people who've been there and done that was welcomed. Who would know better than Farrington athletic director Harold Tanaka, then-coach of the Governors, who lost to Baldwin, 25-19, in a quarterfinal in Wailuku in the 1999 tournament.
"We went to more experienced guys like Farrington," Tanuvasa said. "The No. 1 thing (we learned) is don't eat too much. Then get some sleep before the game. And don't eat too much again."
It seems the Governors got a bit sluggish after having two meals before their game with the Bears three years ago. But the Tigers know they have to be at their best against Baldwin (8-1), the Maui Interscholastic League champions. The Bears' eight-game winning streak is the longest among the eight tournament teams. Their only loss was 35-7 to Kamehameha in preseason. It was a character-builder for the Bears.
"It showed us a lot what our team was made of," rookie coach Chad Kauhaahaa said. "Yeah, the score was ugly, but at the same time our boys never gave up. Most people think you get smashed, 35-7, call it a season already; no sense trying. But our boys fed off that. They didn't go into the tank. They kept pushing hard."
After an all-star career with the Bears — in football under then-coach Joe Balangitao and then-basketball coach Jon Garcia — Kauhaahaa went on to play at the University of Utah under Ron McBride. Kauhaahaa said it was his dream to become a coach at his alma mater.
"I've had a lot of good mentors from Coach Balangitao, Coach Garcia and Coach Ron McBride," Kauhaahaa said. "I've got a little bit of all of them in me when I coach. Plus, the main thing is my family support. My wife's been great, my grandparents are my No. 1 supporters. Without a good backbone at home, it's not going to work."
Kauhaahaa said there has been a revival of interest in the Bears, who missed the tournament the past two seasons.
"Alumnus, old players, they're coming to games, watching us practice," he said. "That's a good feeling."
The pride is felt at McKinley, too.
"The school is excited, as well as the community around McKinley," Tanuvasa said. "(The players) think it's a good thing that they can go out there and have the opportunity to make the McKinley family proud of their boys."
Keys to the game
Offensively, the Bears (8-1) and Tigers (8-4) are mirror images, as both use run-and-shoot offenses. Kauhaahaa brought in former St. Louis intermediate coach Pohai Lee, nephew of former Crusaders coach Cal Lee, to teach the nuances of the offense.
McKinley quarterback Abel Werner completed 193 of 299 passes for 2,562 yards and 22 touchdowns in 11 OIA games. He spreads the wealth among three receivers in Isaiah Iaea, Iama Lauvao and Joshua Bumanglag; they have combined for 146 receptions for 2,104 yards. Iaea (6-0, 165), one of the team's better athletes, has 1,093 of those yards on 54 catches. Werner also swings passes to running back Michael Vasconcellos (20-for-133), the team's leading rusher (669 yards on a 4.6 per carry average) and leading scorer with 13 TDs.
The Bears have a solid quarterback in Michael Donohoo (137 of 227 for 2,036 yards and 24 TDs), the MIL's leading passer. His favorite receiver is Akamu Aki, who has 58 catches for 1,047 yards and nine TDs.
"He looks poised back there," Tanuvasa said of Donohoo. "He has a strong presence."
Other targets for Donohoo are J.J. Eno (23-300, 5 TDs) and Gered Mochizuki (22-436, 4 TDs).
"They're similar to us in a lot of ways," Tanuvasa said of Baldwin. "We operate out of the shotgun, while they take theirs from under the snapper."
Both teams have seen their share of passing offenses during the season, so each is expected to be able to solve each other's passing games.
Baldwin saw a good passing team in St. Anthony. Trojans quarterback Daniel Parker passed for 268 yards against the Bears in a 28-19 loss.
In the OIA, just about everyone in the East passed, such as Kailua, Castle and Farrington.
The Bears use a 4-4 alignment on defense. Their key players are lineman Meade Tabata (5-7, 188) and linebacker Henry Abad (5-10, 205).
The Tigers contained Farrington quarterback Royce Machado to 93 yards in Saturday's third-place playoff. But one of the Tigers' problems in their 41-28 loss to Kailua in the semifinals was securing the perimeters, leaving quarterback Ranson Kepa with no resistance to run or throw. McKinley also needs to finish off its tackles. On a 50-yard TD pass to David Kaihenui, he broke a number of tackles en route to the end zone.
