unpaid pre-season D-I football

[saynotomercs]

Saint Louis struggled again, drawing Kailua 1-1. Kobayashi and Herbig didn't play, but that doesn't explain Saint Louis' lack of offense. Like I suspected, losing Cui and Nunuha is a pretty big deal. Outside of Tagovailoa, Silofau, Kobayashi and maybe one slotback, Saint Louis' offensive skill players are very underwhelming. Essentially, it's a bunch of D2 caliber players. The OTs didn't look too good today either, with Tagovailoa getting sacked 3 times.

If Kobayashi can't go against Mililani, the Trojans should beat Saint Louis by 30. If he can, two touchdowns is still a pretty good spread.

[saynotomercs]

Other notes from Saint Louis-Kailua:

-Kailua looks like it will struggle on offense, but the defense looks competitive. Lack of numbers, however, will take a toll on the Surfriders

-Luca Vartic still hasn't cracked the 1st string defense, and while he remains the most physically gifted player in the secondary, he isn't making an overwhelmingly compelling case to nab a spot. He's still adjusting. He'll play a big role eventually, but I'm not certain he'll be a full-time starter on defense. Saint Louis could use his explosiveness on offense.

-Tristan Nichols worked with the 2nd team defense today, but he doesn't look to be close to starting at DE. He looks like he's 6'3" 275 at least and is a pretty good athlete, but he needs to play faster.

-Saint Louis is talented, fast and deep at linebacker. Saint Louis' 2nd best defender last year, Jace Smalley (Wallen Te'o was the best, IMO), is fighting for a starting job at OLB. It's the team's best unit by a wide, wide margin.

-OLB Joey Iosefa is a much better athlete than he is a player right now, but that athleticism alone should help him make big plays. He's not the second coming of Joe Siofele, but he might be a version of Isaac Savaiianaea.

[Getreal$]

Hilo vs Konawaena scrimmage just completed. Lots of situational periods. Kona showed up with small numbers (20) and I believe the format gave a huge advantage to Hilo due to the 3-1 player ratio they have. Once the actual scrimmage started, both teams ended up scoring a TD each. Big confidance boost for Kona holding their own against Hilo.

[rednblue]

Saint Louis struggled again, drawing Kailua 1-1. Kobayashi and Herbig didn't play, but that doesn't explain Saint Louis' lack of offense. Like I suspected, losing Cui and Nunuha is a pretty big deal. Outside of Tagovailoa, Silofau, Kobayashi and maybe one slotback, Saint Louis' offensive skill players are very underwhelming. Essentially, it's a bunch of D2 caliber players. The OTs didn't look too good today either, with Tagovailoa getting sacked 3 times.

If Kobayashi can't go against Mililani, the Trojans should beat Saint Louis by 30. If he can, two touchdowns is still a pretty good spread.

Any observations on players like Iosefo Noga, Isaiah Tufaga, Tytus Timoteo, Saitaua Lafau?
I knew there would be a dropoff at receiver but with Kobayashi and Sallas back, I didnt think it would be as bad as it sounds... I do like the idea of moving Vartic on offense.

[saynotomercs]

Saint Louis struggled again, drawing Kailua 1-1. Kobayashi and Herbig didn't play, but that doesn't explain Saint Louis' lack of offense. Like I suspected, losing Cui and Nunuha is a pretty big deal. Outside of Tagovailoa, Silofau, Kobayashi and maybe one slotback, Saint Louis' offensive skill players are very underwhelming. Essentially, it's a bunch of D2 caliber players. The OTs didn't look too good today either, with Tagovailoa getting sacked 3 times.

If Kobayashi can't go against Mililani, the Trojans should beat Saint Louis by 30. If he can, two touchdowns is still a pretty good spread.

Any observations on players like Iosefo Noga, Isaiah Tufaga, Tytus Timoteo, Saitaua Lafau?
I knew there would be a dropoff at receiver but with Kobayashi and Sallas back, I didnt think it would be as bad as it sounds... I do like the idea of moving Vartic on offense.

The safeties, who looked like a strength during practice, got exposed a little bit in the two scrimmages. Tufaga seemed like a lock-starter going into the Kapolei scrimmage, but he didn't play with the first unit today. Not sure what his name is, but #2 (not Sefo) seems to have really improved his stock over the last week. He looks good in pursuit, but he also was responsible for Kailua's long TD pass. Noga seems to be a similar case, he's great playing downhill but has some issues in the Cover 2. The good thing is that there are a lot of competent athletes in this bunch, and I wouldn't be surprised at all if they find two or three above average players out of this bunch by the thick of the ILH season.
Timoteo has taken over at center and he's been fine.
Where is Lafau playing now? I don't think he's a wideout.

[2k_Hawaii]

Mililani backups beat the Kamemehaha backups. Mills called up a few players from the JV for the scrimmage, including Garriet Gabriel's son freshmen QB Dilion Gabriel.

[KindergartenCop]

Saint Louis struggled again, drawing Kailua 1-1. Kobayashi and Herbig didn't play, but that doesn't explain Saint Louis' lack of offense. Like I suspected, losing Cui and Nunuha is a pretty big deal. Outside of Tagovailoa, Silofau, Kobayashi and maybe one slotback, Saint Louis' offensive skill players are very underwhelming. Essentially, it's a bunch of D2 caliber players. The OTs didn't look too good today either, with Tagovailoa getting sacked 3 times.

If Kobayashi can't go against Mililani, the Trojans should beat Saint Louis by 30. If he can, two touchdowns is still a pretty good spread.

Any observations on players like Iosefo Noga, Isaiah Tufaga, Tytus Timoteo, Saitaua Lafau?
I knew there would be a dropoff at receiver but with Kobayashi and Sallas back, I didnt think it would be as bad as it sounds... I do like the idea of moving Vartic on offense.

The safeties, who looked like a strength during practice, got exposed a little bit in the two scrimmages. Tufaga seemed like a lock-starter going into the Kapolei scrimmage, but he didn't play with the first unit today. Not sure what his name is, but #2 (not Sefo) seems to have really improved his stock over the last week. He looks good in pursuit, but he also was responsible for Kailua's long TD pass. Noga seems to be a similar case, he's great playing downhill but has some issues in the Cover 2. The good thing is that there are a lot of competent athletes in this bunch, and I wouldn't be surprised at all if they find two or three above average players out of this bunch by the thick of the ILH season.
Timoteo has taken over at center and he's been fine.
Where is Lafau playing now? I don't think he's a wideout.

The problem I see with STL's secondary is they play against an offense that only has about 5 plays, They run the same plays over and over and over and then a few more times for good measure. They see nothing else in practice. That is why they look so great in practice. They know where all the receivers are going and they jump the routs. When they see another type of offense and different looks and they don't know where the receivers are going, they get lost and so dose the secondary coaching staff. The secondary coaches don't know how to coach during game situations. Making and giving competent adjustment instructions on the fly. It's not only the players who are lost its the secondary coaching staff also.

I cant understand why they are having trouble moving the ball on offense. They practice the same routs all day every day and still cant do get the ball into the end zone (sarcasm). I think the rest of the league has figured out the offense. Wide receivers clear the corners and safeties and one of the slots go to the flats. I recall seeing that on every play every day. They are predicable. Oh I almost forgot, when they need some big yards for a first down or get them out of a pickle, they throw the deep curls to the wide receivers, then back to the slots in the flats again.

Don't get me wrong I bleed crusader. I was looking forward to bringing the Koa back to Kalaipohaku. it's going to be a long season.

[unpaid]

Been reading scrimmage reports from media and board members and a few things stand out to me.

St.Louis's football team is more of a work in progress apparently.So far they appear to need some help to get really competitive. Kamehameha seems like a more complete team on both sides of the ball than St.Louis or even Punahou.
Iolani 3-1 score advantage over Waianae is something you have to take notice of. I don't have Waianae ranked right now but keeping those big SeaRider kids out of the endzone for the majority of that scrimmage speaks well for Iolani.
They are going to put up a good fight in ILH D-I,I think.

Kahuku's offense appears to be much improved over last year.The Red Raiders might be back on top at the end of the year.

Mililani took on three of Hawaii's best and look to be the favorites to take the state title.

[LocalCheesehead]

Saint Louis struggled again, drawing Kailua 1-1. Kobayashi and Herbig didn't play, but that doesn't explain Saint Louis' lack of offense. Like I suspected, losing Cui and Nunuha is a pretty big deal. Outside of Tagovailoa, Silofau, Kobayashi and maybe one slotback, Saint Louis' offensive skill players are very underwhelming. Essentially, it's a bunch of D2 caliber players. The OTs didn't look too good today either, with Tagovailoa getting sacked 3 times.

If Kobayashi can't go against Mililani, the Trojans should beat Saint Louis by 30. If he can, two touchdowns is still a pretty good spread.

Any observations on players like Iosefo Noga, Isaiah Tufaga, Tytus Timoteo, Saitaua Lafau?
I knew there would be a dropoff at receiver but with Kobayashi and Sallas back, I didnt think it would be as bad as it sounds... I do like the idea of moving Vartic on offense.

The safeties, who looked like a strength during practice, got exposed a little bit in the two scrimmages. Tufaga seemed like a lock-starter going into the Kapolei scrimmage, but he didn't play with the first unit today. Not sure what his name is, but #2 (not Sefo) seems to have really improved his stock over the last week. He looks good in pursuit, but he also was responsible for Kailua's long TD pass. Noga seems to be a similar case, he's great playing downhill but has some issues in the Cover 2. The good thing is that there are a lot of competent athletes in this bunch, and I wouldn't be surprised at all if they find two or three above average players out of this bunch by the thick of the ILH season.
Timoteo has taken over at center and he's been fine.
Where is Lafau playing now? I don't think he's a wideout.

Some notes;

- Starting WR's Saitaua and Kobayashi are injured.
- 3 starting Olineman were out injured as well.
- Linebacking corps is arguably the best in the state.
- Vartic is much more needed on the defense because of his speed and range.

As is typical with this offense, the players need time to gel. Having all your starting Olineman healthy is key to making it run smoothly. One things for sure, the defense has improved vastly from last year. No need to panic at this point, it's only preseason scrimmages. They were having the same troubles last year early on, but in the end, they were playing for the ILH Championship.

[rednblue]

Some notes;

- Starting WR's Saitaua and Kobayashi are injured.
- 3 starting Olineman were out injured as well.
- Linebacking corps is arguably the best in the state.
- Vartic is much more needed on the defense because of his speed and range.

As is typical with this offense, the players need time to gel. Having all your starting Olineman healthy is key to making it run smoothly. One things for sure, the defense has improved vastly from last year. No need to panic at this point, it's only preseason scrimmages. They were having the same troubles last year early on, but in the end, they were playing for the ILH Championship.

That's good to hear. Hard to judge so early on, with Tua only playing a handful of series with a limited amount of starters available.
Any news on if current injuries (esp. OL) will continue on through the first game vs Liberty on the 29th?

[rednblue]

I'm also pretty eager to see how Kahuku looks this season... the addition of Kekaula Kaniho and his coverage ability is huge for that defensive backfield.
The plan on starting Kesi Ah Hoy at QB? They have more than enough talent at RB but they also seem to have some capable QBs as well...

[huki-lau-lau]

I'm also pretty eager to see how Kahuku looks this season... the addition of Kekaula Kaniho and his coverage ability is huge for that defensive backfield.
The plan on starting Kesi Ah Hoy at QB? They have more than enough talent at RB but they also seem to have some capable QBs as well...

dont know about the intangibles and the stuff the coaches see in practice but from my couch i would develop mereretagi (6'3" 190) as qb and put kesi (5'11" 220) in slot cause he is a reliable catcher blocker. reggie an sterling knew how to mix n match the talent (or lack of) to win championships
with tata and hao as offense coach this is truly the first year where kahuku does not have influence from previous offenseive kahuku style coaches. it will be true new mindset way of thinking. good luck coach tata and team

[HS Football Fanatic]

Been reading scrimmage reports from media and board members and a few things stand out to me.

St.Louis's football team is more of a work in progress apparently.So far they appear to need some help to get really competitive. Kamehameha seems like a more complete team on both sides of the ball than St.Louis or even Punahou.
Iolani 3-1 score advantage over Waianae is something you have to take notice of. I don't have Waianae ranked right now but keeping those big SeaRider kids out of the endzone for the majority of that scrimmage speaks well for Iolani.
They are going to put up a good fight in ILH D-I,I think.

Kahuku's offense appears to be much improved over last year.The Red Raiders might be back on top at the end of the year.

Mililani took on three of Hawaii's best and look to be the favorites to take the state title.

1. The Star-Advertiser is running its annual Top-Ten countdown. Tomorrow to Thursday will tell who #s 4 through 1 will be. I had originally thought St Louis would be #3, but based on your post, they might be announced tomorrow as #4.
2. I would say Kamehameha is certainly a balanced team, but that doesn't necessarily make them outstanding. With the graduation of Apelu, they have no blue-chip RBs. (They have a number of RBs, but none of them are blue-chippers). Kamehameha was announced in today's Star-Advertiser as the #5 team, so that tells me right there that they're not as good as either St Louis or Punahou. (I'm assuming Punahou will be ranked #2). Looks like Kamehameha's strength this year is their D-line (not including their LBs. St Louis has a huge advantage at LB).
3. Iolani is ranked #10, while Waianae is unranked. (I assume it's safe to say that Waianae won't be appearing in the Star-Advertiser as anywhere in the top four). Perhaps, then, it's not surprising that Iolani beat Waianae in that scrimmage. Also, consider that Iolani is fairly big on the line. (Although, I'm assuming Waianae is big on the line, too. When was the last time Waianae was small on the line?)
4. Kahuku might be on top at the end of the year? I don't think they'll be able to get past Mililani. I see Mililani taking it all again.

[rrforlifebaby]

Time will tell who is the last D1 team standing at the end of the season.
Just a couple of observations from watching the videos of Kahuku-mililani
1) trojans seemed to to be too fired up for a scrimmage, imho. I think in his arrogance, york obviously wanted to send a message that scrimmages or not, they are king.
2) milton was lucky to come out without getting dinged up considering the amount if time he played in the scrimmage....good thing Big Red's defenders weren't up to par in their tackling.
3) Big Red has a nice stable of horses, tata and hao will diversify the O, but it looks like if necessary, the running game can carry the team until the passing game comes around.
4) yes, our D gave up 44pts in the scrimmage, but all the mistakes are fixable. By playoffs, this will be another bad azz Red Raider D.
5) Dominant running game and Bad Azz D.....hmmmmm.....sound familiar high school football fans? Trojans may be the favorites and rightly so with that explosive O, but its not a lock for them to repeat.

I still dont have much respect for the trojans D. They were a good D last year, but there O made it easier for them.
Kahuku's lack of O and Farrington 's lack of a bunch of stuff last year were factors in trojans going undefeated.

But, at the end of the day, all that matters is beating who you need to beat on the field, and the trojans did that last year.

Wishing all the teams good luck in this new season
RRFL!!!

[gopunahou]

Been reading scrimmage reports from media and board members and a few things stand out to me.

St.Louis's football team is more of a work in progress apparently.So far they appear to need some help to get really competitive. Kamehameha seems like a more complete team on both sides of the ball than St.Louis or even Punahou.
Iolani 3-1 score advantage over Waianae is something you have to take notice of. I don't have Waianae ranked right now but keeping those big SeaRider kids out of the endzone for the majority of that scrimmage speaks well for Iolani.
They are going to put up a good fight in ILH D-I,I think.

Kahuku's offense appears to be much improved over last year.The Red Raiders might be back on top at the end of the year.

Mililani took on three of Hawaii's best and look to be the favorites to take the state title.

Didn't Punahou play much better against Farrington than Kamehameha did? Scrimmages may not mean much but that's what I gleaned from this weekend.