Kauai High players go through a passing drill during an afternoon practice. Michael Lasquero | SL

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2012 KIF champions Kauai High were just one minute, 40 seconds away from advancing past the first round in the 2012 First Hawaiian Bank Division II football tournament. Winners of the KIF nine out of the past ten years, the Red Raiders of Kauai look to be the favorite to represent the KIF in the D2 state tourney; but it will be under a new leader at the helm this go-around.

Replacing Kauai head coach Corey Aguano will be first year head coach Tommy Cox, who has been assisting the coaching staff from 2008. Cox was also the JV head coach for Kauai the past two years so his tutelage and familiarity with the upcoming younger players should pay dividends and make the transition from coaching JV to varsity that much smoother.

"Good bunch of boys, I expect them to do well. They've been working hard all spring, all summer, so we look forward to some good things from some younger guys. We're going to emphasize the run game this year and hopefully that will open some things up" explains Cox.

The Red Raiders will also have a new starting quarterback this year with 5-foot-6 senior Kelson Andrade.

"We run the spread so he's going to be moving around a bit in his reads. He's a good well rounded athlete and has all the tools," said Cox on Andrade.

With new faces at head coach and quarterback, Kauai high is fortunate to have offensive lineman Devan Ferreira returning for his senior campaign.

"Key returner is my lineman, Devan Ferreira. He's the center, he's going to hold it down, that's my big boy down there," said Cox.

Ferreira has been a starter ever since he was a freshman, and can play every single position on the offensive line. The 6-foor-4, 315-pound senior has also already received college looks from Boise State, Pacific University, and the University of Hawaii.

"My outlook is to hopefully go all the way this year," said Ferreira

At the skill positions, Kauai has a slew of receivers returning.

"My receivers are definitely my forte this year, all of them are returning. Pono Bukowski, Kanoa Iwasaki, Kalawaia Judd, Lanakila Wilson, Cameron Henry, anyone of those can be a threat at any time. We look forward to them doing big things," praised Cox.

Added quarterback Andrade: "I'm pretty excited for the season, we have a good offense. We got so many good receivers that I could pick anyone. They are all go-to players."

Getting most of the work inside will be (Pono) Bukowski and (Kanoa) Iwasaki, who will man the slots and on the outside will be junior (Kalawaia) Judd, who was the 2012 leading receiver of the KIF as a sophomore. (Lanakila) Wilson also comes up from the JV program and was someone that coach Cox could depend on as a go-to guy.

Defensively, the Red Raiders run a 40 nickel as their base defense which features four down lineman, two middle "alpha" backers, and five defensive backs.

The leaders on the defense are three year varsity starter James Bukowski at middle linebacker, and Kaiea Iwasaki at safety. (Kaiea) Iwasaki produced in important games last season, recording INT's in the KIF championship game against Kapa'a and in the opening first round loss to Radford in the state tourney.

Kauai's preseason will have some international flair to it as they get paid a visit from Japan's Kwansei on Aug. 17. The Red Raiders will also play Cottage Grove from Oregon on Aug. 31 before getting into the six-game, three-team KIF regular season.

"We plan on taking things one game at a time. We'll worry about the postseason if we have the opportunity to get there, but right now we'll just worry about the KIF," said Cox.