Prep football preview: Availability of Kamehameha’s top back key to Friday’s showdown with Saint Louis

On paper, the Kamehameha Warriors have mastered the blueprint to dismantle, or at least defeat, four-time defending Open Division champion Saint Louis.

Momentum, however, is flammable and fluid, and the Crusaders have that juice. When No. 3 Kamehameha (3-2, 3-1 ILH Open) and No. 2 Saint Louis (4-3, 2-2) square off 7 p.m. Friday for the ILH championship, everything that built up over the course of nearly two years reaches a penultimate level.

But there is this: if Warriors running back Noah Bartley is still limping with an injured ankle — he played less than three quarters in last week’s 41-7 loss to Saint Louis — the blueprint no longer exists. Bartley emerged this fall as one of the stunning surprises of the class of 2022, the group of players that lost their junior seasons. Lost the game experience. Lost the practice reps.

On Friday, there will still be no spectators at Aloha Stadium, but Bartley’s health is x-factor No. 1. The 180-pound senior has rushed for 599 yards and six touchdowns (5.7 yards per carry) against top-5 competition from the get go. He has also caught 12 passes for 168 yards, both team highs.

If Bartley is a no-go, Micah Mahiai (84 yards, 21 carries) is the next man up. The Warriors’ offensive line has been explosive and dominant for most of the season, but Saint Louis’ front seven brought a renewed ferocity and commitment even before Bartley suffered his injury.

Crusaders coach Ron Lee expects Bartley to play.

“We need to stop him. He has a good O-line up front. We really just focus on our guys doing their job, everybody executing his assignment,” he said. “We want them at full strength. We hope (Bartley)’s OK and he plays, but we’re concentrating on ourselves, and playing better.”

Without a dominant ground game last week (30 attempts for 122 yards), Kamehameha’s passing attack was under pressure. Kealii Ah Yat passed for 103 yards (8-for-19) with one interception.

The junior has had many standout moments this fall, but has missed open receivers downfield often. If more of those deep throws connect, everything tilts.

Kamehameha also saw its defense struggle against Saint Louis’ offense. Since Crusaders quarterback AJ Bianco discovered the gift of flight, he has become a dual threat approaching the escapability of previous Saint Louis playmakers Jayden de Laura and Chevan Cordeiro.

Bianco’s arm strength is arguably beyond either of the two, who are currently starting Division I college QBs. On one play last week, he escaped the pocket, ran left and began to turn upfield. Then he stopped as the defense swarmed and launched a haymaker to Devon Tauaefa for a 45-yard touchdown.

He finished with 351 passing yards and three TDs. His rushing total, six carries for 17 yards, was modest, but belies what Bianco has become.

The ILH is where evolution is a way of life. Bianco was once a pocket passer facing maximum coverage. Now, defensive coordinators have to consider deploying a spy on the 6-foot-4, 225-pound rambler.

“He’s getting better. We need to remember he didn’t really play a lot of ball,” Lee said. “He’s got a lot of upside. He gets better every week in practice. More confident. Picking his spots a lot better. We need to get better this week. They’ll make adjustments, tweak their package, and we need to be ready.”