Posted on: Sunday, September 8, 2002
Classic might be televised
By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer
The HHSAA/First Hawaiian Bank Football Classic on Sept. 21 will be televised live statewide by KGMB, if at least 40,000 tickets are sold before game day, the station announced yesterday.
The doubleheader at Aloha Stadium will match Kahuku High School against Long Beach (Calif.) Poly at 5 p.m., followed by St. Louis vs. De La Salle (Calif.) at 8. Nearly 20,000 tickets already have been sold, according to Keith Amemiya, Hawai'i High School Athletic Association executive director.
Financial terms of the television deal were not disclosed, and KGMB general manager Rick Blangiardi said his station "has a Plan B" if the goal of 40,000 tickets sold is not reached by Sept. 20.
"But starting Monday, we'll be putting on a full-court press to get everybody into that stadium," Blangiardi said. "The fact that they've already sold about 20,000 tickets — I really believe we can push this over the top."
Blangiardi also said it's possible KGMB could distribute the game to Mainland outlets.
"These games not only have a lot of local interest, but they have regional and national appeal, too," Blangiardi said. "When you look at the rankings of these teams, that's pretty powerful stuff. We think this will be a major, major community event."
De La Salle arguably is the country's most storied high school program, having won a national-record 125 consecutive games dating to 1992. The Spartans have been crowned national champions by USA Today three of the past four years, and are ranked No. 1 again this season.
Long Beach Poly has won three straight championships in the California Interscholastic Federation's Southern Section Division I, regarded as the state's most competitive. The Jackrabbits are ranked No. 4 in USA Today's Super 25.
St. Louis, which has won 16 consecutive Interscholastic League of Honolulu titles, is ranked No. 21 by USA Today.
Kahuku is the two-time defending state champion and is ranked No. 9 in the West Region by USA Today.
Amemiya said he considered requesting that a sellout (50,000 tickets) be a requirement for live TV, but acknowledged that 40,000 is a more realistic figure.
"We had to weigh the desire to have a large crowd with the desire to have statewide, maximum exposure," Amemiya said. "There also was the chance that KGMB would have declined if we asked for a sellout, because we are venturing into unchartered waters. But 40,000 is by no means our ceiling. We still have every intention of selling the place out."
Larry Beil, a former KGMB and ESPN sports anchor, will do the play-by-play announcing for the telecast and KHON weekend sports anchor John Veneri will provide color commentary. KGMB weekend sports anchor Liz Chun will be the sideline reporter.
Beil now works as a weekend sports anchor for ABC7 in San Francisco.
