Hound and Pound

For a lot of Division II high school football programs, things happen in cycles.

Just a couple of years ago, Pac-Five knew this well. P.J. Minaya was an elusive playmaker at quarterback, and a talented group of receivers and running backs allowed the Wolfpack to score a lot of points.

This fall, the pendulum of strength has swung over to the Wolfpack defense. In three games, Pac-Five has three wins, and no opponent has scored a point. Not Lahainaluna. Not Castle. Not Kapolei.

"We’re not satisfied, no way," nose guard Ben Keller said. "We want to keep improving."

With the string of shutouts and a 3-0 nonconference record, attention is bound to come the Wolfpack’s way, which is why coach Kip Botelho is cautious. The ups and downs of a long season have to be regulated emotionally. With a major test against Saint Louis on Friday, Pac-Five’s conservative, defense-first mantra could fare well. Saint Louis, which lost to Kamehameha in its ILH opener, will be hungry. The Crusaders are ranked fourth in the Star-Advertiser’s state poll and Pac-Five is ninth this week.

Twenty-six years have passed since Pac-Five was last unofficially crowned state champion. Winning the Prep Bowl, the matchup between the Interscholastic League of Honolulu and Oahu Interscholastic Association title winners, brought prominence to the Wolfpack in 1982 and again in ’85. Junior Pale, a two-sport standout, has been the defensive coordinator at Pac-Five for a decade now. He was a sophomore on the ’82 squad that stunned the prep football world.

With a core of returnees and an infusion of speed at linebacker, Pale and the defensive coaches have tweaked and fine-tuned the old with the new. Pac-Five lines up in a 3-4, but can switch to a 4-3 or 4-4 without hesitation.

Titus Failauga, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound junior, is one of the jewels of the defense. The former Word of Life lineman is quick — he also plays basketball for Mid-Pacific — and lines up on the right side.

"We have more speed and we execute better than last year," Failauga said. "All our boys want to play defense. Defense wins games."

In the trenches, Keller takes on double and triple teams. Pale, who played the same position, considers Keller an often overlooked key to the defense’s success.

The defensive co-captains and other starters all note Pale’s attention to detail. Every day, it never fails. Coach Pale is right on top of his defense, a seasoned jeweler with his scope, scanning his diamonds for the slightest bit of tarnish or defect. Often enough, a missed assignment raises his ire and the defense hears about it. Yesterday, it was the unit’s star, Failauga, who got the brunt of Pale’s attention.

"Coach always tells us, ‘Don’t play your own games,’ " said Failauga, who has a scholarship offer from Hawaii.

"It’s assignment and alignment," defensive end Brett Kanoa added.

"It’s repetition, assignment, assignment because sometimes they get lazy and they don’t do their job and there’s a big hole right there," Pale said. "That’s why I preach to them every day. We don’t ask much, just do your assignments. I don’t care if they don’t want to hear it. They’re going to hear it."

PALE PUTS TRUST in his position coaches, including up front on the D-line.

"Coach Joe Onosai, I pretty much give him the free hand to do anything. (Failauga) will play anywhere; he’s humble, real coachable, so we move him around," Pale said. "Ben (Keller) is the nose, with the 3, you have to have a good nose guard. So far, he’s doing a good job. The ILH is a very tough league, so hopefully he can keep up," he said.

Kanoa is at left defensive end, with run support from outside linebacker Joshua Donovan and inside linebackers Cyprus Fesili and Sosiua Havea. Another 6-4 defender, Drew Wilson, is the weak-side linebacker behind Failauga.

"We just play simple, basic defensive football, try and cover the gaps, do our responsibilities and make plays.

Mathew Ohtani and Robert Johnson are the corners, with Drew Viena and Nick Kwon at safety. Viena, a 5-11 two-sport athlete, returned a pick 60 yards against Castle.

"We take pride in our defense," Viena said. "We feel we shouldn’t give up any touchdowns if we all do our assignments."

Beyond that, the Wolfpack have some depth, but nothing like the 80- and 90-man rosters at ILH powerhouse programs. So, they keep things simple.

"Any defensive coach doesn’t want to give up a big play," Pale said. "I learned from coaches before me — Coach Charlie (Miyashiro), Coach Joe Francis, Coach Bo (Don Botelho) was the main one. Coach Kip taught me a lot.

FOR KIP BOTELHO, it’s been a period of adjustment.

"We’re going to use our personnel strengths. I would love to spread ’em out and wing it every play, but we don’t have those guys. If the other team doesn’t score, we have a chance to win," he said.

Teams have switched out their best pass protectors against Failauga, who has four sacks. Castle put lineman Justin Telefoni on the edge against Failauga, who had two sacks.

"You expect your big players to step up in big-time games, and this is one of them," Botelho said. "We’re expecting them to play well. It’s a good test to see where we really are."

Keller just wants to see a focused effort regardless of hype and hoopla.

"It’s all about discipline. I want our team to win the championship," he said. "But I also would rather not see us get big-headed."