MILILANI, Hawaii — Titles will be defended or ceded at all three levels of Oahu Interscholastic Football this weekend.
The defending champions of the OIA Open, Division I and Division II tiers earned their way back into their respective title games last weekend with semifinal victories. The OIA Open title will be decided Friday night at Farrington, and the Division II and I titles will be settled Saturday at Mililani in back-to-back fashion.
All six teams in the OIA title games have qualified for state play.
The matchups are:
OPEN DIVISION
No. 1 Kahuku (9-2) vs. No. 2 Mililani (7-3), 7:30 p.m. Friday at Farrington
Defending OIA and state Open champion Kahuku routed Kapolei, 44-7 to set up a rematch with Mililani in the hard-fought 2021 league title game. The Red Raiders prevailed in that one, 21-14, after coming back from two scores down. Kahuku also came from behind to beat Mililani in the OIA Open regular-season finale, 29-17, on Oct. 15.
Second-seeded Mililani got back to the title game with a 39-29 win over third-seeded Campbell, a contest that turned on a controversial fumble call on Sabers receiver Tana Togafau-Tavui in the third quarter. The Trojans parlayed it into an eventual touchdown and a two-score lead that proved critical.
After sophomore quarterback Kini McMillan threw for 416 yards and five touchdowns with one interception, Mililani coach Rod York was ready to call him one of the best quarterbacks in the state, along with Campbell sophomore Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, who accounted for 457 yards and four TDs.
Of the rematch with Kahuku, McMillan told Spectrum News on Friday, “It’s a chance to prove the people right. Not only the people, but ourselves. We got a lot to prove.”
Said York, “That’s what we fought for. … It gives us an opportunity. We talk about that all the time. When you get the opportunity, you gotta cash in. Now we gotta finish.”
Kahuku senior QB Waika Crawford, while less prolific than some of his peers in the Open Division, has been steady and instrumental in helping the Red Raiders remain unbeaten against local teams this season with 17 touchdowns against just two interceptions (stats per Hawaii Prep World). He had 213 passing yards and three TDs against the Kapolei Hurricanes.
“We just gotta bring it on and get to work,” Crawford told Spectrum OC16’s Jimmy Bender on Saturday. “I know they’re working and we’re going to be working too. It’s going to be a good game. We just gotta play our best, play our hearts out and play good football.”
Kahuku’s winning streak against Hawaii teams is 17 games going back to the start of the 2021 season.
The Red Raiders’ top offensive player, receiver/returner/kicker Kaikai Carvalho, the nephew of coach Sterling Carvalho, has returned from a foot injury for the most meaningful stretch of the year.
Kahuku and Mililani are the only two schools to win an OIA Open championship since the tier was added in 2018.
DIVISION I
No. 1 Waipahu (8-1) vs. No. 2 Aiea (8-2), 7 p.m. Saturday at Mililani
The two best teams in OIA Division I all season will rightly get a chance to compete for the crown.
Defending champion Aiea lost only to Waipahu during the regular season – 20-14 on Sept. 17 – and appears primed for a second chance from a game it led by eight points early in the fourth quarter without its starting quarterback.
Both D-I semifinal games were no-contests as Waipahu rolled to a 33-point lead before giving up two late scores in a 33-14 win over Farrington, and Aiea blanked shorthanded Kailua 41-0.
Aiea quarterback Ezekiel Olie, who missed the Waipahu game, has been sublime otherwise for coach Wendell Say with 2,558 yards, 25 touchdowns and four picks on the year, per Hawaii Prep World.
Waipahu coach Bryson Carvalho has a hydra of a ground attack in quarterback Liatama Uiliata and running backs Anieli Talaeai and Braeden Togafau. Together, they’ve scored 21 rushing TDs.
Waipahu won the 2018 OIA Division I title (and went on to win the state title) in the first year that Division I became the league’s middle tier.
DIVISION II
No. 1 Nanakuli (8-1) vs. No. 3 Kaiser (6-3), 4 p.m. Saturday at Mililani
Defending OIA Division II champion Kaiser got back to the league final with a miraculous comeback last weekend. For Nanakuli, its return to the top has been eight years in the making.
The Golden Hawks, coached by Kili Watson, have a chance to win a league title for the first time since Watson’s older brother, Keala, led them to the feat in 2014.
Nanakuli defeated Kaimuki 37-7 to advance to the final behind a strong ground game and defense. Running back Allen Mahoe III had 97 yards rushing and two touchdowns.
Kaiser needed a 17-point fourth quarter comeback to get it to overtime against Pearl City, and prevailed in the extra period, 31-24.
Senior quarterback Easton Yoshino threw four touchdown passes to improbably help Tim Seaman’s team secure a state berth after it trailed 24-7 midway through the fourth quarter.
Nanakuli won the regular-season matchup 33-14.
A few more photos of Mililani's semifinal win over Campbell:
Note: Also this weekend, Punahou and Saint Louis meet for the Interscholastic League of Honolulu crown on Saturday. If Punahou wins, it takes the overall ILH title and Open Division state berth. If Saint Louis wins, the Crusaders force a winner-take-all game.
Brian McInnis covers the state’s sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii.