This starts with a plan, immediately followed with hustle and execution.

That is what every player, coach and parent knows when it comes to traveling to the mainland for sports. When No. 1 Mililani and No. 3 Punahou travel this weekend to the continent, it will be more than just football that lures them.

Getting roughly 100 players, coaches, managers and parents organized from the first day of fundraising to the final-day return trip to the islands can be any administrator’s headache.

When Faga‘itua traveled from American Samoa to Oahu for a three-week stay — including scrimmages and a game with Saint Louis — coach and vice principal Suaese “Pooch” Ta‘ase spearheaded a campaign that raised $125,000.

For Mililani, one of the largest public schools in the state, and private-school Punahou, expenses won’t be quite as high for a trip of just a few days. Mililani will trek to Henderson, Nev., just outside Las Vegas, to take on in-state powerhouse Liberty — which just returned to the mainland after losing to Saint Louis 43-16 at Aloha Stadium on Saturday.

Punahou flies to California to play Del Oro. The Buffanblu have made it a tradition to venture to the Golden State just about every two years. While the Mililani Trojans will experience the glitz and glitter of the “ninth island”, Punahou will have an almost collegiate flavor. Not only will the Buffanblu play their game at Cal’s stadium, they will visit campuses at Cal, Stanford and Santa Clara. They’ll even practice at Cal and Stanford.

The preparation has been fully absorbing for Mililani coach Rod York, whose program is traveling out of state for the first time under his watch, and Punahou coach Kale Ane.

THE GAME PLAN

Each football program has its travel coordinator.

“Lii Furuta is our team mom. Without her, we’d go down the sink,” York said.

Several administrators will accompany the team, he added, including athletic director Glenn Nitta.

James Kakos is a Punahou administrator who is highly valued by coaches.

“I’m very lucky that he works with all our travel teams,” said Ane, who is also an athletic director. “He makes sure that we have hotel, buses, meals, activities and (are) visiting colleges while we’re there.”

The experience of past trips is always a benefit.

“It’s so difficult to take this many people and so many moving parts,” Ane said. “The transition period. Eating meals, getting a shower, rest, study hall, meetings. You’ve got to drive to the practice fields. All of it needs to be coordinated, but we’ve done it enough that we have a pretty good schematic plan.”

Punahou will get down time after Friday’s Del Oro game. On Saturday, they’ll see Cal host Grambling.

GREEN HARVEST

In typical local fashion, players hustled hard in the offseason to raise money.

The Trojans had ticket sales for a music concert at a local establishment.

“A lot of parents paid for the trip through that,” York said.

He also did some smart shopping.

“Each kid had to pay $1,050. We were lucky to get on the Vacations Hawaii package,” York added.

For Punahou, it’s been less about fundraisers.

“The school supports the program, so they’re helping out a lot. The families pay a portion and the school pays a portion,” Ane said.

THE LOGISTICS

So how, exactly, does any team send dozens of sets of helmets, shoulder pads and gear to a destination nearly 3,000 miles away without losing anything? That is always a concern for traveling teams in any sport. Both teams depart today.

Mililani has 71 players going on the trip.

“The gear’s coming with the kids. We have travel bags to fit all their gear. The kids understand it’s a business trip. We’re traveling light,” York said.

Punahou is taking all 66 players.

“We’re working with Hawaiian Air and they’ve been very generous, allowing us to work together as a group. It’s been a collaboration of our locker room guys and our Hawaiian Air people,” Ane said. “The kids pack their bag after practice (Monday), we put them in the truck and they’ll board all the equipment early. Bringing our equipment to them early in the boarding area.”

That’s where Punahou’s experience traveling pays off.

“Maybe we’ll do it like (Punahou) next time,” York said.

Then there’s the issue of finding a place to practice. Ane secured some prime locations early on.

“That’s always a problem. That’s why it takes a lot of people to coordinate and communicate. Cal Berkley is going to allow us to practice on their field and so is Stanford,” he said. “It’s a great opportunity for the kids to play on the field.”

It didn’t hurt that recent Punahou graduates Kanawai Noa and Semisi Ulufale are freshman players at Cal. Former Buffanblu defensive end Luke Kaumatule is at Stanford.

Mililani will practice at Liberty High School.

THE CRIB

There are always priorities when it comes to an itinerary. Should a team stay in the nicest hotel (or condo)? Or can it cut corners by staying in a modest place to have more spending money.

“That’s one of the reasons we chose Vegas. It’s cheaper,” York said. “I checked with our volleyball teams and cheerleading teams, and $1,050 is about as cheap as it gets. Main Street has the biggest buffet where we can fit the most people, so it only makes sense for us.”

The Buffanblu are staying in a Bay Area hotel.

“We’re going for the best deals we can get, put three in a room. We’re going to a place that has easy access to the freeway, where we can get water and Gatorade, get snacks,” Ane said. “There are meeting rooms for us. We want to stay on the same floor as much as possible. It’s a nice hotel — not the Taj Mahal, but it’s nice.”

SOCIAL SACRIFICE

Ane always wants some level of bonding among his players rather than cliques.

“We mix them up, the young guys with the older guys. A huge part of every trip is getting to know each other. Put the cellphones away, turn the TV off and get to know each other. The bus (riding) times, when you look back, those are really the times that were just as much fun, to goof on each other and learn what’s going on in each other’s world,” he said.

As for texting and playing video games on phones, Ane is flexible, but firm.

“We’re going to limit the social media as much as we can. I’m still learning about all this with the messages and what people can do. We’re not sure yet. We have collected (phones) at night in the past and that was a lot of moaning and groaning. It’s definitely something we’re discussing.”

Punahou will set aside a vast amount of time for study hall, but there will also be guest speakers.

“Last time in San Diego, we had a Navy SEAL come talk to us,” Ane said.

There are coaches who ban phone use after lights-out time, and a few who actually collect such things and hold them until morning. York is not one of them.

“I’m not too worried about that. We talk to our kids about what we expect, that we represent our school and our community at all times. We’re not there to babysit, but at the same time we tell the kids to take care of business, just like at home. We’re not going to monitor texting,” he said. “But in the morning, if they need an attitude adjustment, we’ll cancel some things and do some up-downs.

TOUCHDOWN

In the end, what makes all the details and stress worth the vast effort?

“It’s worth it because of the experience and the camaraderie,” York said. “It’s one thing to go with just you and your wife, and it’s another to go with your wife and the whole team. They’ll always remember it. Some of these guys will be in each others’ weddings. They’ll be brothers. We’ll come back tighter. This is a senior-led group and we expect the captains to do what they normally do and lead, and the other guys to follow.”

Ane sounds almost as excited as his players.

“It’s fun to see the kids go into a big-time stadium, seeing it through their eyes, running around taking pictures in a 100,000-seat arena, seeing locker rooms and guessing whose is this, how this changes their perspective on where they want to go to college,” he said. “The alumni support that comes and they just want to see their team play. There are so many opportunities to learn. The school has been very kind to allow us all these opportunities.

It’s a lot of work, worrying about every little thing, but when you step back, it’s worth it for every player and their families.”

The High School Top 10

Voted on by coaches and media statewide. First-place votes in parentheses. Ten points for first-place votes, nine for second, etc.

News & Notes

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3. LIVE BLOG: Liberty vs. Saint Louis

4. Where are the D-I offers for Milton?

5. Tigers showed off pride of McKinley

6. Punahou’s Tuileta done with football

7. Trojans drop to No. 8 in nation

8. Liberty has major Hawaii connection

9. Saint Louis has something special

Top Performers

BACK OF THE WEEK
McKenzie Milton, Mililani
The senior quarterback, who is committed to the University of Hawaii, completed 33 of 45 passes for a school-record 515 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions in the Trojans’ 67-21 win over Kapolei on Saturday night. He also rushed for 60 yards on five carries, and scored on a long touchdown run that was called back due to a penalty.

LINEMAN OF THE WEEK
Samson Reed, Kahuku
Early in the season, the Red Raiders’ defensive lineman’s No. 92 jersey was called quite a bit by the public address announcers when he was in on many tackles. Only a sophomore, he got off to a great start that got even better during Friday night’s 78-0 win over McKinley. Reed had four sacks, including one for a safety. Afterward, he humbly said, “I’m just glad to be on the varsity this year.”