The OIA Red championship game features the state’s second-best team and an opponent that looked, early on anyway, like anything but a title contender.
When No. 2-ranked Mililani and No. 4 Farrington square off tonight at Aloha Stadium, the Trojans will be the favorite, a team that hasn’t lost since a 24-14 defeat at the hands of No. 1 Punahou two weeks into the season.
Farrington? There may not be a stronger makeover star this fall.
Replay the month of August. Raymond Torii Field, Aug. 9. The Farrington Governors took the field in a matchup of historical powerhouses. Waianae was the better team that day, winning 33-16.
Aug. 16, Kunuiakea Stadium. The Kamehameha Warriors left their mark with a 38-3 rout of their Kalihi neighbors.
Farrington had little clout offensively and its defense, reorganizing with two key players in new positions, had surrendered vast acreage. Outscored 71-19, much of Gov nation was up in arms.
Randall Okimoto and Co. kept chipping away in the war room and on the practice field. The young men in maroon, he insisted, would turn it around. They’d done it before with fairly inexperienced teams.
Okimoto was right. Farrington went on a five-game win streak, then faced nemesis Kahuku. Using a stonewall defensive front led by Breiden Fehoko, Motu Heimuli and Nolan Eseroma, the Governors outlasted the Red Raiders 21-7 to finish first in the OIA Red East.
While the defense had made a stirring turnaround, the offense had evolved. Linebacker-turned-running back Sanele Lavatai began to catch his stride midway through the campaign with a big performance against Kailua. Despite a hamstring injury, he and the retooled offensive line kept pounding away in playoff wins over Kapolei (17-10) and Campbell (7-0).
Okimoto, it turns out, might be a prophet. Farrington (8-2) hasn’t lost since those early nonconference games in August.
Lavatai (5-10, 174) enters the contest with 903 yards (6.1 per carry) and 13 touchdowns on the ground.
The one area that has separated Farrington from most smashmouth teams is a willingness to air it out on first down against defenses with eight (or more) in the box. Montana Liana doesn’t have gaudy statistics, but his completion rate on first-down throws has been excellent in recent weeks. He has thrown just five picks in nine games.
Farrington’s Cinderella season could turn into a pumpkin tonight, however.
Mililani’s front seven is arguably the best in the state, loaded with run-stuffers like linebacker Jacob Afele (6-0, 220) and defensive lineman Rex Manu (6-3, 260). Even with linebacker Dayton Furuta sidelined, the Trojans (9-1) have been dominant in playoff victories over Leilehua (21-9) and Kahuku (37-22).
Mililani’s progress offensively has been equally stunning, perhaps more so since much of it rests on a couple of 10th-graders. Sophomore Vavae Malepeai’s business-like approach belies his youth. At 6 feet, 190 pounds, he runs with power inside and has breakaway speed. He has rushed for 1,176 yards and 18 touchdowns, and his skill as a pass catcher has yet to be truly exploited (though he caught a 13-yard pass against Kahuku).
Sophomore quarterback McKenzie Milton has done just about everything asked of him by coach Rod York. The Trojans would’ve been fine with a game manager, but Milton’s accuracy (60 percent) and production through the air (1,240 yards, 12 TDs, just two interceptions) have been among the most efficient in the OIA. Add to that his ability to run (365 yards, three TD) and he’s been a low-risk, high-reward playmaker when defenses key on Malepeai.
Bronsen Ader (53 receptions, 568 yards, three TDs) has been a deep threat, but Kainoa Wilson (30, 452, 3) and Ryan Reedy (13, 179, 2) were crucial in the win over Kahuku.
It was a rarity, but the Trojans’ stout defense wasn’t absolutely flawless last week. Kahuku fullback Polikapo Liua Jr. bolted for several first downs and finished with 131 yards on 17 carries. But the Trojans did enough to contain breakaway threats on the perimeter, limiting Soli Afalava to 69 yards and quarterback Tuli Wily-Matagi to 8 rushing yards.
Can they contain Lavatai? Or will Farrington continue to mix the pass and the run, utilizing two-way weapons like Jacob McEnroe in the aerial attack?
Farrington’s defense has developed into an elite unit. Two months ago, the Govs couldn’t contain anybody. Last week, they shut out Campbell and its outstanding quarterback Isaac Hurd.
