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My take: Breaking down the second six in D1 football




Given the surprising interest generated by my take on the best four last week (My take: Some thoughts on the Division I best four), I thought it would only make sense to dive into the next six, if only to complete a list of ten.

Lets admit it, even the most hardened and staunch advocate of any team I didn't touch on last week would eventually concede that choosing the 'big four' is pretty much a no-brainer. On other hand, rounding out a list of ten with six more teams in a particular order is a little trickier.

So with that, here is my 'second six' in descending order, and some commentary about each of them:

5. Kamehameha

Yes, the Warriors have dropped a pair of close games in league play and ultimately could be the odd-man-out in Interscholastic League of Honolulu Division I play. Make no mistake though, this is a Kamehameha squad that would likely be a frontrunner in any league statewide not starting with the letter I. Defensively, the Warriors have pitched two shutouts thus far (Baldwin 53-0, Hilo 41-0) and a decisive 33-13 win over Waianae to open the season I think is often forgotten amongst the success the Seariders have had since. Quarterback Thomas Yam was having a monster year prior to a season-ending injury, but its possible the Warriors have found a more-than-capable replacement in junior Justice Young, who torched Iolani for 370 yards and four touchdowns. The constant for the Warriors' offense in all of the changes at quarterback has been senior Kumoku Noa, a dynamic playmaker both catching the ball and in the return game. Noa demands a lot attention from opposing defenses, but now with a healthy Fatu Sua-Godinet looking equally as dangerous opposite Noa as a pass catcher (10 receptions for 166 yards and a touchdown vs Iolani), watch out.

6. Waianae

Even if you take the blowout win over McKinley out of the equation, the Seariders offense has been on a roll, averaging 52 points per contest during a five-game stretch. A predominantly rush-oriented attack Waianae deploys must be easy to gameplan against, right? Not so fast, my friend. Consider this, three Waianae ball carriers have scored at least four touchdowns, led by Javen Towne's 14 scores on the year, and four other Seariders have at least 2 scores or more. Despite accumulating 1,991 rushing yards as team, Waianae's leading rusher yardage-wise has just 363 yards (Ezekiah Moniz-Hopeau) and Jurick Valdez is the only other player with more than 300 yards on the ground for the year. Having so many potential ball carriers has got to wear down opposing defenses. Defensively, the numbers aren't very eye-popping, particularly on the scoreboard, where the Seariders allow 24.7 points per game, but holding teams under 220 yards total per contest is noteworthy. Waianae will face their stiffest test of the year against Kahuku Saturday at Hawaiian Airlines Field at Aloha Stadium. I'm not sold on a primarily one-dimensional offensive gameplan as being effective against the state's elite, but on the other hand, the results certainly beg to disagree.

7. Kailua

Losers of two of three to end the regular season, a Kailua team that blazed out to 5-0 start has stumbled a bit as of late. Still, the Surfriders will enter the OIA playoffs as either the second or third seed out of the Blue. A big reason for Kailua's succcess has been the play of quarterback Noah Auld, who has thrown for 1,666 yards and sports a 7.6-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio. His completion rate (55.6) isn't stellar, but he has definitely blossomed into a capable passer after completing less than 50 percent of his passes for just 310 yards and two touchdowns in four games in 2014. His favorite target, Martin Tigilau has also improved exponentially this year, leading the team in both receiving yards (576) and touchdowns (11) working opposite Koolauloa Gaspar. The Surfriders' defense has been one of the bend-but-not-break variety, allowing over 21 points and 315 total yards on average. Of the five wins Kailua has on the season, none have come by more the 14 points. The Surfriders have shown they are definitely a capable team, but I still see a pretty visible gap between the teams at this point and below from those in the top five or six.

8. Kapolei

Kapolei sports a three-game win streak including most recently a victory over the Govs, but I'm not sure how comfortable I am with them at the eight spot. The Hurricanes' have launched a state-leading 305 passing attempts, almost 30 more than second-place Castle has, while the 143 rushing attempts thus far rank them 20th. Kapolei is second in passing yardage at 2,079, but has almost 100 more attempts than Mililani, which tops the list at 2,283. Granted a lack of balance could very well be by design, but a three yard per carry average per rush most likely isn't. On the plus side, three Hurricanes' pass catchers rank in the top 10 in receptions and yards, led by Jaymin Sarono (42 rec, 477 yards, 5 TD) and Ty-Noah Williams (34 rec, 532 yards, 4 TD). Another set of numbers to note are that on the season, the Hurricanes allow more points than they score (22.1 scored vs. 25.1 allowed) and also give up more yards (378.3 per game) than they gain (358.3). Kapolei's schedule dictated that it would likely start slow and need to finish strong, and to its credit it have responded in spades. Momentum is never a bad thing, and entering the OIA playoffs on a potential four-game win streak can't hurt in the confidence department. Still, Aiea, which at least by the numbers runs a carbon copy of Kapolei's pass happy offense, will make for an interesting regular season finale. Expect a ton of passes to be lofted skyward next Friday in Kapolei.

9. Farrington

The Govs have stumbled heading down the stretch in league play, which has included a blowout loss to Mililani and a defeat at the hands of Kapolei for the first time ever. A team that surged out of the gate scoring 46.6 points per game in wins over Waipahu, Iolani and Moanalua has slowed considerably to just a 20.5 clip over the last five. Still, I think having a weapon like Challen Faamatau gives the Govs a threat to take the ball to house on any given play in both the run and the pass, and any team facing the Govs in the OIA playoffs has got to be concerned with his gamebreaking ability. Quarterback Bishop Rapoza has shown flashes here and there, but his 58.3 completion rate has got to improve, and he's thrown a pick in two straight games after only registering a single interception in his first five. On the other side of the ball, the Govs four defensive touchdowns places them third in Division I play overall, but its been a stretch of four games since the last one (vs. Moanalua on Aug. 29). Farrington is in my estimation a lower-floor, higher-ceiling kind of team. They are the kind of squad that I wouldn't want to necessarily face in the early rounds of the playoffs, for fear of catching the Govs at their best.

10. Iolani

Speaking in terms of sheer power, its hard to argue that the Raiders don't belong in the best ten. Point all you want to a 0-3 league record as grounds to place them well out of the discussion, but realize that Iolani will not face an opponent ranked below fifth for the entire regular season, and perhaps they aren't quite as weak as a winless record indicates. And its not like the Raiders haven't fared reasonably well against the juggernauts of the ILH, averaging a respectable 20 points per contest. Yes, Punahou and Kamehameha both gashed Iolani to the tune of 122 total points in the first round, but the Raiders managed to hold Saint Louis (albeit without Tua Tagovailoa at the controls) to 28 points. Sophomore quarterback Tai-John Mizutani has had his share of struggles (0.77-to-1 touchdown to interception ratio in 2015), but has definitely shown improvement. In his last two starts against the Crusaders and Warriors, he completed 61 percent of his passes for 546 yards with three scores and three interceptions, and looks to be finding himself in the offense. Keoni-Kordell Makekau has been a big reason for Mizutani's progession, as he's posted three straight 100-yard games with four touchdowns. He's caught 30 passes in that span, and is clearly a go-to target for Mizutani. Iolani may end up losing the balance of its games in ILH play, but to be completely fair, I don't think any team I've ranked sixth or lower would fare any better with the same schedule as the Raiders.



Reach Brien Ing at [email protected].




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