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It’s quite possibly the fantasy of any linebacker to line up in the shotgun and quarterback the team to victory.
Sedric Crawford got his first official game in the books on Saturday night with five touchdown passes and 254 yards through the air as Nanakuli overwhelmed Molokai 37-0 at the Golden Hawks’ field.
Crawford also rushed 11 times for 89 yards, finding gaps in Molokai’s defense to do major damage. Injuries to other Golden Hawks made the shift from inside linebacker to QB a necessity. Crawford’s high IQ and field vision complement his athleticism perfectly.
“He’s one guy who can do it all, but what I love about Seddy is he is a great leader,” Nanakuli coach Kili Watson said. “He came in after the game and apologized, and said he didn’t feel like he did a good job as a leader. That’s the awesome thing about him.”
Watson was impressed with Molokai, which left half its team back home.
“Molokai’s a great team. I was excited for them to come down. I wanted the boys to play a team they could relate to, a dominant Hawaiian community,” Watson said. “They showed great heart out there in their first 11-man game.”
Molokai made history by playing an 11-man game for the first time in roughly half a century. The Farmers, it is believed, had never played a football game on Oahu until Saturday. In recent seasons, they had risen to champion status in the Maui Interscholastic League’s 8-man division.
The Farmers were 24 strong, leaving another 24 back home due to a mix of injuries, academic issues and simple youth. Quarterback/safety Kaimana Nakayama, son of legendary Farmers baseball coach Ken Nakayama, was often elusive and finished with 86 total yards from scrimmage.
“We’ve got to learn from it and come back strong,” said Nakayama, who played every snap, including special teams.
Molokai will travel again next weekend to play at Kamehameha-Maui in another 11-man preseason game. Then the defending champs play an MIL 8-man schedule with Lanai and Hana. Eight Farmers were ironmen, playing both ways.
“It’s our first 11-man game in 50 or 60 years, so it’s a step in the right direction. Our defense played well early, but our offense struggled to execute. We can take some positives from this,” Farmers coach Mike Kahale said. “We had a rash of injuries, a lot of young players, and four or five starters who didn’t make it (due to academics). Hopefully, things work out.”
A gem in the rough was unearthed for Molokai with first-time player Vaai Seumalo, who is roughly 6 feet, 2 inches and 260 pounds. Seumalo had played basketball and volleyball for the Farmers, and had never played an organized football game in his life. He was a troublesome force in the trenches and found his way into Nanakuli’s backfield several times.
It was enough to force Nanakuli to roll Crawford out of the pocket often, and his arm strength proved lethal to the Farmers.
The home team in black couldn’t get on the scoreboard until the second quarter, when Crawford fired a perfect strike down the seam to Kekoa Torres for a 27-yard TD with 11:46 left in the second quarter.
Then came a mental error by a Molokai kick returner, who allowed Nanakuli to recover a squib kick at the 12-yard line.
After a penalty on Nanakuli, Crawford found Torres again, this time on a corner route for a 25-yard TD. From that point on, leg cramps became a major issue for the Farmers.
With 5:12 left in the first half, Crawford lofted a spiral down the left sideline to Nainoa Paz for a 26-yard TD, and it was 21-0.
After Crawford found Tahj Hauhio in the flat, Hauhio raced to the right pylon for an 11-yard TD with 6:52 to go in the third.
By that point, five Farmers had gone down with leg cramps on a humid night. Crawford’s final TD pass was a 54-yard bomb to Paz with 2:00 left in the third.
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Nanakuli 37, Molokai 0
At Nanakuli High
>> Molokai (0-1) 0 0 0 0 — 0
>> Nanakuli (1-0) 0 21 14 2 — 37
Nanakuli — Kekoa Torres 27 pass from Sedric Crawford (Keola Bright kick)
Nanakuli — Torres 25 pass from Crawford (Bright kick)
Nanakuli — Nainoa Paz 26 pass from Crawford (Bright kick)
Nanakuli — Tahj Hauhio 11 pass from Crawford (Bright kick)
Nanakuli — Paz 54 pas from Crawford (Bright kick)
Nanakuli — Safety, Molokai snaps ball out of end zone
RUSHING — Molokai: Nalima Puaa-Aki 6-13, Kolee Pedro-Tabilangan 6-6, Kaimana Nakayama 14-45, Slater Oswald 2-(-4), Kilakila Orlando 1-(-3). Nanakuli: Sedric Crawford 11-89, Randen McCabe 12-32, team 1-(-10), Keahi Ah Sue 1-(-5).
PASSING — Molokai: Nakayama 4-9-2-41. Nanakuli: Crawford 8-20-2-126, Ah Sue 1-1-0-6.
RECEIVING — Molokai: Pedro-Tabilangan 3-17, Jayden Kaupu 1-24. Nanakuli: Tahj Hauhio 5-71, Torres 3-67, Paz 4-107, Royce Wilms 2-12, David Kalili 1-3.
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