Kamehameha is a marked team and they know it.
Star-Bulletin: ILH and OIA girls volleyball previews
I was behind the 8 ball. Normally, by now I've seen a lot of volleyball matches, from the Ann Kang Invitational to the Longy Okimoto to the Kamehameha-Punahou tourney. This year was different. The focus was on football, football photos and previews, and of course, games. I saw one volleyball match in preseason: Kamehameha's title win in the Ann Kang.
Fortunately, there are very good, very generous coaches in our state who are more than happy to share their thoughts and insights. Volleyball coaches are a special breed in Hawaii. Many of them coach year-round and get to know players from many schools since the players congregate to play for clubs. There's no denigration. There's utmost respect no matter where the players go to school. That's what working together at the club level will do. There's a bond.
It's not unique to volleyball. Softball and soccer are rich with relationships that cover the island, across school boundaries. There's a load of value in competition, sometimes too much, but it also brings cohesion across those lines.
For now, though, Kamehameha is the top team in the state, and the upcoming Star-Bulletin Girls Volleyball Top 10 poll will likely reflect this. I hope fans can get out to Kekuhaupio Gym and enjoy something that comes along only once in a while: a true sports dynasty in Hawaii.
Showing posts with label Star-Bulletin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Star-Bulletin. Show all posts
Monday, September 3, 2007
And people wonder why I love girls basketball...
Football was, still is, my first love. But that doesn't mean there aren't some things about it that suck.
Star-Bulletin: Aiea, Campbell to forfeit game
Yes, I mean suck. When you think about it, all the hours and sacrifice (family time, rest, etc.) that coaches give to our football programs statewide is remarkable. In Texas, there are some schools that pay their coaches major salaries — six figures — simply for coaching. That's what weekly crowds in excess of 10,000, even 20,000 can do.
But here, coaches do it for the love. They average a few pennies for each hour of their labor. Labor of love.
And how do they get paid in the currency of football? Their players go off near the end of a game and commit flagrant acts against the other team. They incite a near-riot. They bring shame and ridicule to their schools, their communities. All in a matter of seconds.
The coaches don't teach this. And it's not entire teams that go bonkers. It just takes a few rotten apples.
That's the emotional reaction by a football fan, some who played sports, officiated sports and coached kids. And that's where things get more interesting. These are teenagers, raging with hormones and trying to keep some semblance of balance in their busy lives. I remember those days. Getting up at 7 a.m. wasn't easy. Not having any spending money wasn't fun. Keeping up with schoolwork wasn't simple. But it was a great time because of the coaches and administrators at my school (Kaimuki) who did their best for us whether it was school or fundraising or anything else.
I think back to Pat Foster, who came up with money so those of us who were short on money could travel to the Far East for a basketball trip. He passed away long ago, long before I knew what he had done for someone like me. I never got to thank the man. I wish I could right now. I'd give the big man a big hug and just say, "Thank you, coach."
When Charlie Miyashiro passed away last year, I was stunned. I had seen him a few months before he passed. He was at a flag football game, watching his grandson play. I thanked him, and he smiled. He was one of the most joyful coaches and athletic directors I've ever met. The guy loved coaching so much, he used to coach at Kaimuki and Pac-Five at one time.
But when I see players get out of line and carry on, it almost breaks my heart. I know they'll regret it later. I know they'll recognize that one foolish moment of reaction wasn't worth the price. As Coach Wendell Say told me, it's a lesson worth learning in the long run. Kids have to find out at some point that an extreme emotional reaction is NOT what is best, regardless of the situation and cause.
That's the only silver lining out of this situation. It's a painful lesson, a public lesson, but one that can be heartfelt and never forgotten for every player at Aiea, Campbell, the OIA, and the rest of the state. And as Coach Say said, better that this happened early in the season than late.
I love football, but trust me, sportsmanship prevails best in girls athletics. It's not perfect there, either, but the players have a lot more maturity and self-control on the whole. I can live without another testosterone-laden incident as long as I live.
The best way to say "thank you" to your coaches is to play the way they taught you. They put their heart and soul into teaching you about the game, about life. So thank them now, while you still can, and thank them in every way on and off the field.
Star-Bulletin: Aiea, Campbell to forfeit game
Yes, I mean suck. When you think about it, all the hours and sacrifice (family time, rest, etc.) that coaches give to our football programs statewide is remarkable. In Texas, there are some schools that pay their coaches major salaries — six figures — simply for coaching. That's what weekly crowds in excess of 10,000, even 20,000 can do.
But here, coaches do it for the love. They average a few pennies for each hour of their labor. Labor of love.
And how do they get paid in the currency of football? Their players go off near the end of a game and commit flagrant acts against the other team. They incite a near-riot. They bring shame and ridicule to their schools, their communities. All in a matter of seconds.
The coaches don't teach this. And it's not entire teams that go bonkers. It just takes a few rotten apples.
That's the emotional reaction by a football fan, some who played sports, officiated sports and coached kids. And that's where things get more interesting. These are teenagers, raging with hormones and trying to keep some semblance of balance in their busy lives. I remember those days. Getting up at 7 a.m. wasn't easy. Not having any spending money wasn't fun. Keeping up with schoolwork wasn't simple. But it was a great time because of the coaches and administrators at my school (Kaimuki) who did their best for us whether it was school or fundraising or anything else.
I think back to Pat Foster, who came up with money so those of us who were short on money could travel to the Far East for a basketball trip. He passed away long ago, long before I knew what he had done for someone like me. I never got to thank the man. I wish I could right now. I'd give the big man a big hug and just say, "Thank you, coach."
When Charlie Miyashiro passed away last year, I was stunned. I had seen him a few months before he passed. He was at a flag football game, watching his grandson play. I thanked him, and he smiled. He was one of the most joyful coaches and athletic directors I've ever met. The guy loved coaching so much, he used to coach at Kaimuki and Pac-Five at one time.
But when I see players get out of line and carry on, it almost breaks my heart. I know they'll regret it later. I know they'll recognize that one foolish moment of reaction wasn't worth the price. As Coach Wendell Say told me, it's a lesson worth learning in the long run. Kids have to find out at some point that an extreme emotional reaction is NOT what is best, regardless of the situation and cause.
That's the only silver lining out of this situation. It's a painful lesson, a public lesson, but one that can be heartfelt and never forgotten for every player at Aiea, Campbell, the OIA, and the rest of the state. And as Coach Say said, better that this happened early in the season than late.
I love football, but trust me, sportsmanship prevails best in girls athletics. It's not perfect there, either, but the players have a lot more maturity and self-control on the whole. I can live without another testosterone-laden incident as long as I live.
The best way to say "thank you" to your coaches is to play the way they taught you. They put their heart and soul into teaching you about the game, about life. So thank them now, while you still can, and thank them in every way on and off the field.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Star-Bulletin's Volleyball Tabloid: Ke Anuenue
Once again, the Star-Bulletin staff turns out a beautiful, fun guide to the UH Wahine Volleyball season.
Star-Bulletin: Ke Anuenue
Will this win another award? Take a look at the e-edition and the hard copy and judge for yourself. Cindy Luis has no peer, and neither do the Star-Bulletin's creative forces.
Nice to see that the tabloid has been split up. For several years, it was a combo volleyball-football project. You've seen them. The Roadmap/Rand McNally theme. The H-Man comic book theme. (Kip Aoki is the best in the business.) Friggin awesome.
Now I'm eager to see what Dave Reardon has in store for the football tab. Yeeehaaa!!!
Star-Bulletin: Ke Anuenue
Will this win another award? Take a look at the e-edition and the hard copy and judge for yourself. Cindy Luis has no peer, and neither do the Star-Bulletin's creative forces.
Nice to see that the tabloid has been split up. For several years, it was a combo volleyball-football project. You've seen them. The Roadmap/Rand McNally theme. The H-Man comic book theme. (Kip Aoki is the best in the business.) Friggin awesome.
Now I'm eager to see what Dave Reardon has in store for the football tab. Yeeehaaa!!!
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Saints march to No. 1
No surprise here.
Star-Bulletin: Top 10 poll
If you were at Aloha Stadium on Friday night (or read my story in the Star-Bulletin), you know that the Saint Louis-Kahuku game was a close one until the final quarter. Saint Louis, a bit rusty on offense, was up to the task on defense. The Crusaders limited Kahuku to 120 rushing yards en route to a 21-6 win.
Kahuku will work on its mistakes for the next 10 days before flying out to Utah to play Bingham. Saint Louis is back on the gridiron this weekend at Kailua. Get there early. Parking can and will fill up easily and quickly, leaving latecomers with street parking. If you don't mind the walk, you'll be fine.
Not surprsingly, Saint Louis ascended to the No. 1 ranking in the Star-Bulletin Football Top 10. While Kahuku received some votes as low as No. 5, the Red Raiders tallied enough support to fall only one spot to No. 2.
Kamehameha will finally make its debut under new coach David Stant this weekend. The Warriors go to Castle, a team that is smarting after a one-sided loss at Mililani. It's early and there are a ton of questions about teams up and down the Top 10, but for now, Saint Louis is a clearly, unanimously, the best in the state.
Star-Bulletin: Top 10 poll
If you were at Aloha Stadium on Friday night (or read my story in the Star-Bulletin), you know that the Saint Louis-Kahuku game was a close one until the final quarter. Saint Louis, a bit rusty on offense, was up to the task on defense. The Crusaders limited Kahuku to 120 rushing yards en route to a 21-6 win.
Kahuku will work on its mistakes for the next 10 days before flying out to Utah to play Bingham. Saint Louis is back on the gridiron this weekend at Kailua. Get there early. Parking can and will fill up easily and quickly, leaving latecomers with street parking. If you don't mind the walk, you'll be fine.
Not surprsingly, Saint Louis ascended to the No. 1 ranking in the Star-Bulletin Football Top 10. While Kahuku received some votes as low as No. 5, the Red Raiders tallied enough support to fall only one spot to No. 2.
Kamehameha will finally make its debut under new coach David Stant this weekend. The Warriors go to Castle, a team that is smarting after a one-sided loss at Mililani. It's early and there are a ton of questions about teams up and down the Top 10, but for now, Saint Louis is a clearly, unanimously, the best in the state.
Footballholics Anonymous
Yep, it's in full gear now. Rumblin', stumblin', tumblin'.
Catch up with scores on the football forum with my scoreboard, which is updated every day with story links from across the state and freshly-brewed scores.
The Top 10 countdown series that I recently completed in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin is just a heavy pupu platter. Coming up in the next few days are previews of the OIA Red and White Conferences, as well as the new Top 10. I was originally against our Top 10 countdown. Just seemed way too early to ask coaches and media for ballots on August 2. Players hadn't even gotten their pads on, let alone start scrimmaging.
I was wrong. My bosses have pretty good instincts, and so far, I've gotten a huge number of unsolicited comments about the countdown. Not a single negative opinion. Hard for me to believe it's that one-sided, but that's the truth. Of course, a poll that early will be more wrong than right, and Saint Louis proved this to be true by knocking down Kahuku 21-6 on Friday.
No surprises there. Kahuku has 96 players to analyze and played a bunch of them, perhaps all. The offense showed a lot more than it did in last year's opener against Punahou because they had an OC and a playbook intact this time. Jray Galeai has a ton of potential, but coach Reggie Torres emphasizes that his new quarterback needs time to settle in. He runs well, makes good decisions on the option, and has a nice throwing touch. Even with a one-dimensional offense last year, Kahuku won the state title. Drawing up a defensive gameplan against the Red Raiders this fall won't be quite as simple.
Saint Louis, as expected, was tough and most of the time looked like it was in mid-season form. Micah Mamiya had total command and the Crusaders were content to sit in a shotgun formation for much of the game. That allowed Mamiya to make quick decisions and unload the ball if the pass rush was heavy. They didn't let him run the option until the second half, but I was surprised they let him run it at all considering last year's shoulder injury in the state semifinal. I suppose they can't coddle him forever, plus it gives opposing teams something else to work on when they see the video. They did show both shotgun two-back and pistol formations, as have a few other teams this season.
One of them is Punahou, which didn't run the option at all. I thought that was a possibility with Kimo Makaula (6-2, 210) at quarterback, but he stood there in the pocket like Brett Kan. The Buffanblu showed their I formation in addition to the pistol and shotgun sets, including the two-back. Cayman Shutte's background as a quarterback in the Punahou system showed brilliantly yesterday in the 56-18 win over McKinley. His timing and coordination with receivers was impeccable.
Coach Kale Ane insists there's no controversy, and I agree. Makaula, the ex-linebacker, is a good mid-range passer who will be tough to bring down. He never looked flustered yesterday throwing the ball, and time will give him a chance to become a better ballhandler (two fumbles). Shutte, who was 10-for-11 with four touchdowns, took advantage of McKinley's press coverage. His timing with receiver Robbie Toma, who had a huge game, was uncanny.
I don't think I want to miss a single Punahou game this season. And yes, though it was hot at Alexander Field, I would rather see all games played in the afternoon. There's nothing like it, and it would render electrical issues meaningless.
A game that ends before sundown gives families and friends a chance to hang out together afterwards. Fellowship should count for something in high school sports, and that comes more naturally when there's time. A night game? I understand the importance of gate revenue, and the economics of high school sports revolves around football income. What I hope for is a societal change, a collective mentality of what's best for the kids. I see that with afternoon football, not with evening games that often end closer to 11 p.m. than 10.
Catch up with scores on the football forum with my scoreboard, which is updated every day with story links from across the state and freshly-brewed scores.
The Top 10 countdown series that I recently completed in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin is just a heavy pupu platter. Coming up in the next few days are previews of the OIA Red and White Conferences, as well as the new Top 10. I was originally against our Top 10 countdown. Just seemed way too early to ask coaches and media for ballots on August 2. Players hadn't even gotten their pads on, let alone start scrimmaging.
I was wrong. My bosses have pretty good instincts, and so far, I've gotten a huge number of unsolicited comments about the countdown. Not a single negative opinion. Hard for me to believe it's that one-sided, but that's the truth. Of course, a poll that early will be more wrong than right, and Saint Louis proved this to be true by knocking down Kahuku 21-6 on Friday.
No surprises there. Kahuku has 96 players to analyze and played a bunch of them, perhaps all. The offense showed a lot more than it did in last year's opener against Punahou because they had an OC and a playbook intact this time. Jray Galeai has a ton of potential, but coach Reggie Torres emphasizes that his new quarterback needs time to settle in. He runs well, makes good decisions on the option, and has a nice throwing touch. Even with a one-dimensional offense last year, Kahuku won the state title. Drawing up a defensive gameplan against the Red Raiders this fall won't be quite as simple.
Saint Louis, as expected, was tough and most of the time looked like it was in mid-season form. Micah Mamiya had total command and the Crusaders were content to sit in a shotgun formation for much of the game. That allowed Mamiya to make quick decisions and unload the ball if the pass rush was heavy. They didn't let him run the option until the second half, but I was surprised they let him run it at all considering last year's shoulder injury in the state semifinal. I suppose they can't coddle him forever, plus it gives opposing teams something else to work on when they see the video. They did show both shotgun two-back and pistol formations, as have a few other teams this season.
One of them is Punahou, which didn't run the option at all. I thought that was a possibility with Kimo Makaula (6-2, 210) at quarterback, but he stood there in the pocket like Brett Kan. The Buffanblu showed their I formation in addition to the pistol and shotgun sets, including the two-back. Cayman Shutte's background as a quarterback in the Punahou system showed brilliantly yesterday in the 56-18 win over McKinley. His timing and coordination with receivers was impeccable.
Coach Kale Ane insists there's no controversy, and I agree. Makaula, the ex-linebacker, is a good mid-range passer who will be tough to bring down. He never looked flustered yesterday throwing the ball, and time will give him a chance to become a better ballhandler (two fumbles). Shutte, who was 10-for-11 with four touchdowns, took advantage of McKinley's press coverage. His timing with receiver Robbie Toma, who had a huge game, was uncanny.
I don't think I want to miss a single Punahou game this season. And yes, though it was hot at Alexander Field, I would rather see all games played in the afternoon. There's nothing like it, and it would render electrical issues meaningless.
A game that ends before sundown gives families and friends a chance to hang out together afterwards. Fellowship should count for something in high school sports, and that comes more naturally when there's time. A night game? I understand the importance of gate revenue, and the economics of high school sports revolves around football income. What I hope for is a societal change, a collective mentality of what's best for the kids. I see that with afternoon football, not with evening games that often end closer to 11 p.m. than 10.
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Farrington at No. 10
Yeah, I know you want prep football news. So here it is.
Star-Bulletin: Govs open at No. 10 in prep poll
Today marks Day 1 of a new project initiated by my bosses at the Star-Bulletin. A preseason Top 10 poll, highlighting one team each day.
Good idea. I'm not big on polls this early in the season, but the coaches and media came through with their ballots and we have our Top 10. I love polling in general, so it was fun as always.
Farrington is in an interesting space. The system is in place. Coaching and administrative leadership is outstanding. A ton of starters are back on defense. Developing former backups into starters is what the Govs are focusing on now. This is a team that tied Kahuku in the OIA Red East standings last season, so a No. 10 ranking might be a bit underwhelming.
We'll see soon enough. Farrington is in the public eye for many reasons, but the one I think is most important is this: despite ups and downs in the community and on campus, the football program has been par excellance in motion. Senior leadership has been superb and serves a positive role.
There's nothing flashy about humility and consistency, but that's what the Govs have, top to bottom. That's one reason why I always enjoy covering Farrington sports.
Well, the BBQ chicken and burgers don't hurt, either.
Star-Bulletin: Govs open at No. 10 in prep poll
Today marks Day 1 of a new project initiated by my bosses at the Star-Bulletin. A preseason Top 10 poll, highlighting one team each day.
Good idea. I'm not big on polls this early in the season, but the coaches and media came through with their ballots and we have our Top 10. I love polling in general, so it was fun as always.
Farrington is in an interesting space. The system is in place. Coaching and administrative leadership is outstanding. A ton of starters are back on defense. Developing former backups into starters is what the Govs are focusing on now. This is a team that tied Kahuku in the OIA Red East standings last season, so a No. 10 ranking might be a bit underwhelming.
We'll see soon enough. Farrington is in the public eye for many reasons, but the one I think is most important is this: despite ups and downs in the community and on campus, the football program has been par excellance in motion. Senior leadership has been superb and serves a positive role.
There's nothing flashy about humility and consistency, but that's what the Govs have, top to bottom. That's one reason why I always enjoy covering Farrington sports.
Well, the BBQ chicken and burgers don't hurt, either.
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