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The
operative word for the the defending state football champion Kahuku Red
Raiders this year is HUGE.
‘We’ve
got some big kids,’ says Reggie Torres, Kahuku’s second year head
football coach.
Given the
reputation of Kahuku
High School
football and its propensity for large athletes, when Coach Torres says
‘big’, then you know the 2007 Red Raiders are REALLY big.
The
offensive line this season is expected to go 320, 325, 340, 290, and
305 from right to left. Patrick
Au, the expected starter at right tackle, is gigantic at 6-feet
9-inches tall and 320 pounds. |
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| Patrick Au
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The right guard is Anthony Si’ilata at 6-feet
1-inch and 325 pounds. The
starting center is highly-recruited Benji Kemoe’atu�??recruited by
everyone from USC to Notre Dame to LSU and Florida�??who
stands 6-feet 5-inches tall and weighs in at 340 pounds. The
left guard is the smallest of the bunch, 6-foot 2-inch 290-pound Semiu
Tonga and the left tackle is 6-foot 3-inch 305-pound Danny Kinikini.
The
key for that line is to move the football. A
year ago, with all of Kahuku’s success, the offense struggled at times. Coach Torres expects that to change in 2007.
‘We’ve
made some adjustments,’ says Torres.
‘For one thing, it will be Sterling‘s
show this year.’
‘Sterling‘
is Sterling Carvalho, the Red Raiders’ offensive coordinator. He shared the responsibilities of
play-calling last year. This
upcoming season, with a full-year under his belt, he’ll make all the
offensive calls, Torres says.
The
first thing Torres and Carvalho will have to do is settle on a
quarterback. Three
players�??Nalu Carvalho, Tima Tapusoa, and Jray Galeai�??are competing for
the starting signal-caller spot. All three are expected to get a lot of snaps
during the pre-season. Their
first test will be a scrimmage at Kamehameha, Friday August 10.
A
couple of key skill players for Kahuku will be star running back Junior
Mata’afa, who should put up big numbers this season behind his massive
offensive line. And
a good target for whoever is chosen at quarterback is 6-foot 6-inch
wide receiver Willie Ching.
Defensively,
the Red Raiders have tremendous depth.
‘That’s our skill area,’ says Torres
Heavily-recruited
Shilo Te’o�??who is getting interest from a wide range of big name powers
like Florida, USC, BYU, Hawaii, Utah, LSU, Arizona, Notre Dame, and
Florida State�??anchors the defense at strong safety.
At
just under 6-feet tall and weighing in at 205 pounds, Te’o has earned a
reputation as a hard-hitter with tremendous athletic
skills.
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| Shilo Te’o
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The
Red Raider linebacker corps is very solid. 6-foot
3-inch 205 pound Alema Tachibana and 6-foot 4-inch 220-pound Paipai
Falemalu lead the way. Kulia
Pickard, at 5-11 and 205 pounds and Kaena Adolpho, at 5-10 and 180,
make it a linebacking fearsome foursome.
Leading
the defensive line will be Jerome Acoba at 6-3 and 230 pounds.
‘We’ve
got a lot of good players,’ says Torres.
That’s
bad news for Kahuku’s opponents this season. The
Red Raiders face last year’s state runner-up St. Louis�??the team they
edged 7-6 in the 2006 state championship game�??in the pre-season opener,
Saturday August 18 at Aloha Stadium. Two weeks later, on
September 1st, Kahuku will be on the Mainland to face Utah 5-A state champion Bingham High School.
‘We’re
going to be very competitive,’ Torres says.
Knowing
the tradition of greatness for Kahuku football, that’s an
understatement.
Check back for the St. Louis Football team preview by Bob Hogue!
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