Kahuku ready to rally around Torres

If there’s one thing Kahuku football players have learned in the past year, it’s the importance of focus.

How else can any neutral watcher explain the team’s success on the field when so many distractions and heartbreaks happened off it? The Red Raiders were No. 1 in the state and unbeaten as the league playoffs began. After an unprecedented removal due to eligibility issues of a player, the Red Raiders were suddenly out of the title hunt.

Then came the loss of a beloved teammate. They managed to gain inspiration from the life of Keoni Tafuna, and entered the new season primed for a return to the football field and all the potential success ahead. Then, another road block. Through the 33-day suspension of head coach Reggie Torres, Kahuku didn’t miss a beat once the helmets and pads were on. Kaiser makes the trek to the North Shore tonight against a defense that is finding its identity and an offense with power and a precise passing game.

Big Red limited Kailua’s ground game to minus-3 yards rushing and Kailua quarterback Kahaku Iaea to 140 passing yards with two picks. Kaiser is extremely young, bringing up a host of junior-varsity players to complement defensive stoppers like tackle Lopeti Fonokalafi (6-foot-1, 285 pounds) and super sophomore Fitou Fisiahi (6-0, 205).

During a 3-0 start, including last week’s regular-season opening win over Kailua, No. 1 Kahuku has demonstrated all of its strengths between the sidelines. Now that Torres, a longtime mentor as a judo, wrestling and football coach, is back with the team, there’s a collective sigh of relief.

"It wasn’t really different, practice has been basic," co-captain Benneton Fonua said. "But we wanted him back. From day one, we always supported him."

Whether it was necessary to discipline or fire a varsity head coach over an incident involving junior-varsity players wasn’t at issue for the Red Raiders.

"What happened wasn’t intentional. We always told him, ‘Coach, we need you back,’ " Fonua said.

When the veteran coach returned to the field on Wednesday for practice, all eyes were on him.

"He was very happy. You could see he didn’t want to show it," running back and co-captain Sterling Moe said. "When he was walking across the field, it looked like he wanted to sprint. We clapped for him and the coaches were laughing."

Torres felt relief to be back on the field.

"It was a fun day. We had a 1:30 meeting and we talked about the transition process. I didn’t want to come in here and throw everything off balance. I feel good, good," he said, exhaling. "I’m tired today, but it still feels good."

The Red Raiders have some hobbling starters, including running back Aofaga Wily, who had an ankle injury in mid-August.

"We’ve got some injuries. Aofaga is out for at least two more weeks," Torres said.

Despite the turbulence off the field, the players have learned to move on quickly.

"Everything’s great," said Fonua, a linebacker for a defensive unit that has allowed 3.3 points per game. "We really appreciated Coach Walter (Santiago) after practice (on Wednesday). We applauded him. He’s a very busy man. Without him, we didn’t know what we were going to do."

One of the lasting effects of a regimented, old-school program run by Torres and his staff goes beyond the game. Last year’s team was one of the most disciplined, as is this year’s. Penalty yardage is moderate. Sportsmanship is solid. Kahuku remains resilient.

"Pretty much we came together as a team, no matter what the outside problems are," Fonua said. "Coach Walter said, ‘Focus on education and football. Don’t worry about anything else. That will be taken care of.’ With (Torres) back, everything is unity. Everything feels a lot better — no man left behind. It’s great to have him back."

When the team first got the news about Torres’ return on Tuesday, he was still 24 hours away from being allowed back on the field.

"Everybody started cheering," Fonua said. "We always wanted Coach Reggie with us."

Extra points

Punahou travels to San Diego this week for a game at Vista High School. The game can be heard live online at www.hitekradio.com, 4 p.m. Hawaii time. … While the Oahu Interscholastic Association White Conference (Division II) enters its third week of league play and the Red Conference (D-I) starts its second week of regular-season games, the state’s other four leagues kick off this weekend.