Iolani's Stowers back for more
By Stacy Kaneshiro
Advertiser Staff Writer
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| Iolani senior running back Raynold Stowers said he has received interest from schools including Southern Cal, Colorado and Hawai'i.
Rebecca Breyer • The Honolulu Advertiser Raynold Stowers Grade: Senior Height: 6 feet 1 Weight: 205 pounds 40-yard dash: 4.4 seconds Bench: 23 reps of 185 pounds Fun fact: Could have attended McKinley, Farrington or Saint Louis. At McKinley, he would have been an ideal single back in its run-and-shoot offense. At Farrington, he could have teammed with all-state running back Matt Bell. At Saint Louis, he would be in the backfield mix with 2002 Offensive Player of the Year BJ Batts, an all-purpose player. |
What's truly impressive is that he accomplished the feat in seven games, the fewest of any of the running backs.
And a warning to opponents: He has improved.
"Ray has matured a lot," Iolani coach Wendell Look said. "He's playing with a lot more confidence now. We expect him to carry the load on the offensive side. He is running with authority. He feels stronger now. Last year, he was a bit tentative coming off of shoulder surgery."
The 6-foot-1, 205-pound senior worked on his strength and impressed Southern Cal coaches at its summer camp for high school players last month. He was timed at 4.4 seconds in the 40-yard dash and measured at 34 inches in the vertical leap. He recorded 23 repetitions of 185 pounds on the bench press. His maximum press is 295 pounds.
He said Southern Cal offensive coordinator Norm Chow, a Punahou graduate who coached at Waialua High, has shown strong interest in him.
"If they were to offer (a scholarship), I'd take it," he said.
Stowers said he is already approved by the NCAA clearinghouse for academic eligibility and said Hawai'i, Colorado and other Pac-10 schools are also calling.
But Stowers' focus is on this season. With the advent of the Division II state tournament, the historically under-sized and sometimes under-manned Raiders have a realistic chance at a title against comparable teams. Iolani has not won a league championship since 1980.
"We'd like to take it as far as we can," Stowers said. "We're not that big. We have to use our quickness."
Although Iolani is classified as Division II in its league and for state tournament qualification, by league rules, it still can win the ILH title by recording a better record during the regular season than the Division I champion and by winning a play-off for the overall title.
But if the Raiders win the overall ILH title, it would likely mean they would have beaten perennial powers Saint Louis and Kamehameha. So a Division II state title might seem anti-climactic.
"That's something to look at," Stowers said of a Division II state tournament. "But something even better is winning the ILH. It would probably mean more to us."
Stowers' success can be traced to his love for the game. He has been around high school football before he was a freshman.
He honed his skills for the Kalihi and Palama Pop Warner programs. He followed his uncle, William Stowers, to practice. William Stowers is an assistant at McKinley.
"I could have ended up at McKinley," he said. "I used to train at McKinley."
Because of that connection, he is friends with a number of McKinley players. In fact, he had pleaded to his coach to play McKinley. Look accommodated his request with last night's Father Bray Classic match.
It was Stowers' cousin, Iolani graduate Ed Ta'amu, a defensive lineman who went on to Utah and is trying out with the Houston Texans, who encouraged him to apply at Iolani.
"I looked up to him growing up," he said.
Stowers appreciates what his 1,000-yard season means. He understands his place in history, to have his name mentioned among the previous 1,000-yard club members. Onosai Tanuvasa, Pearl City High's football coach, blazed the path when he became the first 1,000-yard rusher in the ILH in 1969 for Farrington. Punahou's Mosi Tatupu, who went on to USC and an NFL career, Iolani's Joe Igber and Saint Louis' Pesefea Fiaseu, now at the University of Hawai'i, are two-time one-grand rushers. Stowers could be the fourth.
"I just ran to get what I could," he said of last season's performance. "This year, it's more of a challenge. I have to work twice as hard."
Repeating the feat will be tough, not only because of the seven-game schedule. He is a marked man.
"I'm sure teams are going to design defenses to stop him," Look said. "Hopefully, we can still utilize him. He's got to be a threat for us."
