The No. 6-ranked Campbell Sabers know about proficiency and production.

But even when the well seems dry, they’ve learned to be poised. With just over a minute left, the Sabers trailed Kapolei 13-7 last week. Back on their 25-yard line, things seemed bleak.

Then sophomore Ezra Savea delivered. His 75-yard touchdown strike to Jayce Bantolina saved the day. Then another sophomore, Austin Fuga, came up with an end-zone interception to seal the win.

Head coach Amosa Amosa calmly addressed the team moments later, wearing a T-shirt with the image of his late linebackers coach, Dave Wojcik, on his chest, close to his heart.

Campbell (4-0) has known ups and downs, from trusted starters departing for other programs to young talent diverting to the ILH before setting foot on campus. But there’s Amosa, his loyal staff and the willingness to put all the chips on the table and let a 15-year-old gunslinger run the operation when all seems lost.

Amosa, the former Saber lineman-turned-UH standout, would have it no other way. As a former offensive coordinator at Aiea, he’s always preferred an uptempo, no-huddle attack.

Savea hasn’t buckled one bit despite following in the footsteps of Isaac Hurd, one of the finest quarterbacks in the program’s history. Savea has completed 60 percent of his passes (48 of 80) for 739 yards (246.3 per game) and 10 touchdowns. At 9.2 yards per attempt, one of the highest in the state, and has a 168.85 passer rating.

Now the Sabers take on their toughest foe to date, No. 2 Mililani (5-0). The Trojans’ front seven, featuring tenacious Rex Manu and speedy Kaimana Padello and bullish Kahewai Ka’aiawa’awa, won’t be any easier to stifle.

Offensively, Mililani continues, a tsunami wave of touchdowns. They’re averaging a whopping 52.3 points per game, all against Division-I competition. They devoured Aiea 56-14 last week after scoring 41 the week before on Kapolei.

McKenzie Milton is in masterful mode, a quarterback putting up eye-popping, video-game numbers: 67-percent completion rate, 304.8 passing yards per game, 11 yards per attempt. His passer rating, 190.99 is slightly below the top of the current list, but it’s still comparable to what Marcus Mariota did at Saint Louis four years ago. And, like Mariota, he can beat defenses with his feet.

Milton runs a 4.4 to 4.6 40-yard dash, depending on whom you believe. He is a blur and, more importantly, knows precisely when and where to use that speed. He has rushed for 403 yards, averaging 13.4 yards per carry, for seven touchdowns. That comes out to 100.8 yards per game, making him one of the state’s top rushers.

There may come a day, maybe against Campbell’s elite defense, when Milton will be reined in. That gives him the freedom, actually, to spring his running back, Vavae Malepeai, and one of the state’s top receiving corps. Malepeai has been somewhat subdued so far as defenses clamp down. The 6-foot, 200-pound running back has rushed for 413 yards (103.3 per game) and nine touchdowns. But in the past three games, he has been limited to 12 carries per game.

In the hybrid scheme drawn up by coach Rod York, the Trojans will take what a defense gives, and forcing Malepeai into 8-in-the-box defenses is not part of the equation. His unselfishness is a key reason why the Trojans are 4-0 in league play (5-0 counting a non-league forfeit win over McKinley).

What puts Mililani over the top is its excess of pass-catching talent. Kainoa Wilson, one of the top receivers in the state, went down with a back injury early in the season, but Milton and his jets never missed a beat. Kalakaua Timoteo has emerged from last year’s cameo role into a starring one. The 6-1, 195-pound wideout has 23 receptions for 545 yards (23.7 per catch) and seven touchdowns.

Bronson Ramos (10 catches, 172 yards, two TDs), Bryson Ventura (six, 41, one), Roman Tovi and Luani Matagiese have chipped in as Milton spreads the ball across the field. The offensive line, anchored by Jordan Agasiva, may be the best-conditioned and most adaptable in the state.

Campbell hasn’t seen a whole lot of receivers with speed and height like Timoteo.

FRIDAY’S GAMES

No. 3 Kahuku (4-0, 4-0 OIA Red) at Kaiser (2-2, 2-2)

While the Cougars’ ascended against D-II competition the past two years, coach Rich Miano longed for the day they’d take on the behemoths of the OIA. Miano retired after winning the state D-II crown last year, but here they are, ready to take on mighty Kahuku.

No defense has slowed Kaiser’s phenomenal running back, Jensen McDaniel. The junior has rushed for 571 yards and 12 TDs — all against D-I foes — and has been consistent about it, too: 162 rushing yards, four TDs against Aiea; 159 yards, one TD against Waianae; 162 yards, two TDs against Waipahu. He had "only" 88 yards against McKinley last week, but ran for five touchdowns and added seven receptions for 62 yards.

Castle (1-3, 1-3 OIA Red) at Waianae (2-2, 2-2)

Scoring hasn’t been a problem for the Seariders, who are averaging 29.5 points per game and have not scored fewer than 23 in a game so far. But it was a crisp passing attack by Leilehua that hurt Waianae two weeks ago, and Castle’s aerial attack is showing signs of prosperity recently.

Aiea (2-2, 2-2 OIA Blue) at Moanalua (1-3, 1-3)

It’s been two weeks since Na Menehune took a tough 25-14 home loss from Kapolei. With Aiea, Kailua and Mililani on the slate, it’s imperative for this young squad to finish strong if the playoffs are going to be in their future.

Na Alii have allowed 108 points in consecutive losses to powerhouses Farrington and Mililani, but thanks to a forfeit win (over Kaiser), their destiny is in their hands. Eke out a win in one of these final three regular-season games — Campbell and Kapolei follow Moanalua — and Aiea is definitely in the playoffs.

Kailua (0-5, 0-5 OIA Blue) at Kapolei (1-4, 1-4)

Year 1 under coach Joseph Wong has been a tough one, but the foundation is being built. Paepaeiva Silifaiva-Kaeha has stepped up lately. He ran for 149 yards and a TD in the loss to Farrington last week.

Kalaheo (2-2, 2-2 OIA D-II) at Roosevelt (0-5, 0-5)

The Mustangs have relied on a ground game — Kawika

Cavanh (218 yards) and Kaliu Lapera (195 yards, three TDs) — in their quest for a playoff berth. The Rough Riders, coming off a 10-6 loss to Kalani and a 21-20 loss to Waialua, have dropped nine in a row since beating Anuenue last year.

Anuenue (0-5, 0-5 OIA D-II) at Nanakuli (4-0, 4-0)

The Golden Hawks have been the class of the division so far, scoring 38 points per game with a balanced attack. Kale Kanehailua has thrown seven TDs in three games and Makaila Haina-Horswill (376 rushing yards, four TDs) leads a solid crew in the backfield.

SATURDAY’S GAMES

No. 8 Saint Louis (2-3, 2-1 ILH) vs. No. 4 Kamehameha (3-0, 2-0), at Aloha Stadium

There is hardly another program that has endured injuries and drama, ups and downs, quite like the Kamehameha Warriors. Challenges? When Doug Cosbie was hired more than a year ago, he didn’t have the benefit of spring football to integrate his players into a system he had fine-tuned for decades.

And yet, last year’s Warriors closed ILH regular-season play with three wins in a row, then walloped Saint Louis 38-12 in the semifinal before falling to eventual state champ Punahou in the league final.

They made that impressive run without starting running back Kaulana Apelu, who went down with a knee injury in the preseason opener against Castle.

Fast-forward a year, and the hard-luck senior is down again with a knee injury. Meanwhile, his teammates have picked up the slack, winning three in a row to start the season, including a momentum-building 25-17 win over CIF powerhouse Del Oro (Calif.) on the road. That’s seven wins in their past eight games and Cosbie is 12-2 as Kamehameha’s head coach. While last year’s squad had high-production playmakers in Brandon Kahookele and Kainoa Simao, this year’s team is sharing the load in the backfield. Fatu Sua-Godinet continues to evolve and progress at quarterback. The speedy senior was 13-for-20 with 181 yards and a TD against Kamehameha’s defense, by BYU commit Mika Taufa, has permitted just 15 points in two league wins.

Waipahu (0-5, 0-5 OIA Blue) vs. McKinley (0-5, 0-5), at Roosevelt

Life in D-I football has not been kind to the Marauders in recent years. They’ve been depleted with talent graduating or transferring out to some extent. Waipahu has two games left — McKinley and Waianae — to avoid its worst win-loss mark since the 2003, when the Marauders went 1-6. That team’s lone win, over Leilehua, was by forfeit.

The Tigers are trying to avoid their worst mark since ’07, when that team went 0-7-1. The winner of this game is in the playoffs with the loser out.

Damien (1-3, 0-3 ILH) vs. St. Francis (2-3, 0-3), at Aloha Stadium

The Monarchs won last year’s only meeting with the Saints, 34-14. St. Francis emerged from matchups with Kamehameha and Punahou relatively unscathed. The very young Saints have scored 110 points against three small-school opponents so far, but just nine against powerhouses. Sophomore Kawika Ulufale accounted for 203 total yards and two touchdowns in a 26-21 loss to Pac-Five three weeks ago. He has completed 62 percent of his pass attempts (58-for-93) with six TDs and only two picks.

Pac-Five (2-1, 1-1 ILH) vs. ‘Iolani (2-1, 1-1), at Aloha Stadium

The Wolfpack have had two weeks to heal up and prepare for the league’s defending D-II champs. The Raiders allowed 445 passing yards in a loss to Saint Louis last week on a combined 25-for-26 passing.

‘Pack quarterback Kainoa Ferreira has thrown the ball more than 60 times in two games (King Kekaulike, Saint Louis), but was fairly economical with just 34 attempts in the win over St. Francis. His passing 363.3 yards per game leads the state.

The Raiders have an 11-game win streak over the ‘Pack. Pac-Five last beat ‘Iolani in ’07.

Pearl City (4-0, 4-0 OIA D-II) vs. Radford (4-1, 4-0), at Aiea

The winner has a chance to secure a firmer hold on first place in the division, and a higher seed in the playoffs means a probable home-field advantage in the first round.

Thanks to a forfeit win over Anuenue on Sept. 5, the Chargers have been idle from game action for three weeks. Quarterback Jordan Taamu helped engineer a 7-6 win over the Rams last season. He is a dual force again this season, averaging nearly 125 yards per game through the air and nearly 40 per game on the ground. Dominic Maneafaiga (278 rushing yards, six TDs) is the team’s second-leading receiver with seven catches for 77 yards and two TDs. The Rams have hit the ground running, routing Kaimuki and Kalani since returning from California three weeks ago. In divisional play, Chance Cacatian is averaging nearly 90 rushing yards per game.

Kalani (3-2, 3-2 OIA D-II) vs. Kaimuki (1-3, 1-3), at Kaiser

Radford became the first team to solve Ace Faumui, limiting the Kalani running back to just 8 rushing yards last week. Kaimuki, perhaps, played its finest game in a close loss (21-14) at Nanakuli. The Bulldogs’ balanced attack included 148 rushing yards on 31 carries. That 60-40 run-pass ratio could be enough to keep the Falcons’ big-play potential to a minimum.