‘Iolani busted out throwback uniforms for the 50th Father Bray Classic.
Then its offense busted out in a big way against Kalani.
Sophomore Jordan Ross scored three touchdowns during a 30-point first quarter that the eighth-ranked Raiders ultimately needed in a 51-36 victory over the Falcons on Saturday night at Aloha Stadium.
Sporting black uniforms with red shoulders, ‘Iolani paid homage to the late Father Bray by winning its 10th straight season opener.
Kalani didn’t make it easy, scoring the first 24 points of the second half to make it a one-possession game.
‘Iolani had the ball, fourth and 2 with 1:40 remaining when senior Easton Tsubata found Keoni-Kordell Makekau over the middle for a 25-yard touchdown to seal the game.
“Every team on this island is good and you have to know that and come out ready to play every down,” said Tsubata, who was 13-for-16 for 201 yards and two touchdowns.
Tsubata and junior Austin Jim On rotated turns at quarterback throughout the game. Jim On finished 9-for-13 for 107 yards and a touchdown.
“I thought they were pretty good,” ‘Iolani coach Wendell Look said. “They made the right decision and were pretty accurate with the ball.”
They got plenty of help early from Ross, a 5-foot-8 sophomore who played on the intermediate team last year.
Ross showed elusive speed and quickness, totaling 100 rushing yards on just seven carries in less than a half of work.
He scored on runs of 8, 26 and 25 yards and Tsubata and Jim On traded touchdown passes late in the second quarter to build a 44-6 lead.
“(Jordan) is very, very special for us,” Tsubata said. “He does a great job running the ball and he’s only a sophomore. He’s a gifted player.”
Coming off its best season in 16 years, Kalani, which won four games in 2012, got two touchdown passes from senior Noah Brum and made a game of it in the second half.
Brum, who passed for 1,725 yards as a junior, threw for at least 200 for the seventh time in his last eight games, finishing 25-for-48 for 296 yards.
He tossed first-half scoring passes of 16 and 2 yards to senior Brandon Roberts, who finished with nine catches for 87 yards.
The 2-yard touchdown came with six seconds left before halftime to cut the deficit to 44-12 and avoid the running clock rule for the start of the second half.
It made a difference as Kalani mounted a frantic rally in the second half, pulling to within eight points at 44-36 on a 1-yard touchdown run by Ikona Mamiya.
Mamiya also scored on a 37-yard touchdown run and Roberts took a lateral from Brum and hit Trevor Yamashita on a 49-yard touchdown pass as Kalani dominated the second half.
The Falcons finished with 448 total yards.
“I guess we’ve got to do a little bit better preparation in the first half coming out of the gates,” Kalani coach Greg Taguchi said. “I’m pleased we bounced back in the second half.”
Makekau finished with seven catches for a game-high 111 yards and two touchdowns for ‘Iolani, which hosts No. 7 Leilehua next week.
Kalani, which got a team-high 107 receiving yards from Yamashita, will open OIA White Division play in its rivalry game with Kaiser.
At Aloha Stadium
Kalani (0-1) 6 6 8 16 — 36
‘Iolani (1-0) 30 14 0 7 — 51
Iol—Jordan Ross 8 run (Max Look run)
Kaln—Brandon Roberts 16 pass from Noah Brum (run failed)
Iol—Ross 26 run (Jordan Genovia kick)
Iol—Tyler McKenna 4 run (Genovia kick)
Iol—Ross 25 run (Look run)
Iol—Chad Hanaoka 73 pass from Easton Tsubata (Keoni-Kordell Makekau kick)
Iol—Makekau 37 pass from Austin Jim On (Genovia kick)
Kaln—Roberts 2 pass from Brum (kick failed)
Kaln—Ikona Mamiya 37 run (Blaise Manabe pass from Brum)
Kaln—Trevor Yamashita 49 pass from Roberts (Roberts pass from Brum)
Kaln—Mamiya 1 run (Manabe pass from Brum)
Iol—Makekau 25 pass from Tsubata (Genovia kick)
RUSHING—Kaln: Mamiya 10-75, Brandon Nahina 3-14, Brum 2-8, Roberts 1-6. Iol: Ross 7-100, McKenna 17-57, Tsubata 6-26, Hanaoka 1-6, Brent Tonaki 2-4, Tyler Teruya 1-2, Bailey Sylvester 1-(minus-2), Jim On 2-(minus-17).
PASSING—Kaln: Brum 25-48-2-296, Roberts 1-1-0-49. Iol: Tsubata 13-16-0-201, Jim On 9-13-0-107.
RECEIVING—Kaln: Roberts 9-87, Sean Romo 6-58, Yamashita 5-107, Manabe 5-84, Mamiya 1-9. Iol: Makekau 7-111, Nicholas Kennedy 4-29, Conor Hannum 3-14, Hanaoka 2-85, Chase Kanekuni 2-21, Teruya 2-7, Connor Ohira 1-26, Sylvester 1-23, Ross 1-3.
