The second day of the third annual JPS Paradise Football Classic tonight at Aloha Stadium pits Hawaii East against California for the championship.
Live updates will follow below.
California 21, Hawaii East 20, FINAL
FINAL STATS:
California 21, Hawaii East 20
At Aloha Stadium
1 2 3 4
California 7 0 7 7 21
Hawaii East 7 7 0 6 20
East—Kanoa Shannon 1 rush (Blessing Umaga kick)
Cali—A’jae Boyd 28 pass from Jake Simmons (Conor Calvert kick)
East—Tamatoa Mokiao-Atimalala 25 pass from Shastyn-Thor Kekahuna (Umaga kick)
Cali—Jalen Ward 5 pass from Simmons (Calvert kick)
Cali—Demarii Blanks 40 run (Calvert kick)
East—Rico Rosario 2 run (Pass failed)
RUSHING— California: Blanks 7-87, Kenroy Higgins 8-16, Zane Cribb 3-9, Hokulani Wickard 1-4, Simmons 8-(minus-3), TEAM 1-(minus-9). East: Rosario 5-25, Marcus Faufata-Pedrina 4-10, Shannon 4-7, Ieke Seei-Cleveland 4-7, Kekahuna 2-7, Seth Tina-Soberano 1-0.
PASSING— California: Simmons 12-22-0-165, Wickard 2-8-1-15. East: Tina-Soberano 7-14-0-52, Kekahuna 2-5-1-30, Faufata-Pedrina 2-5-1-16, Chayce Akaka 0-2-0-0.
RECEIVING– California: Boyd 4-57, Jalen Ward 3-30, Higgins 3-11, Beylei Colston 2-69, Taj Banks Jr. 1-13, Cristian Muratalla 1-0. East: Mokiao-Atimalala 3-29, Tosh Kekahuna-Kalawe 3-12, Rosario 2-32, Jeremy Evans 2-20, Tamarick Hallums 1-5.
10:43: Simmons takes one last knee and 21-20 is your final, and California is your 2018 JPS Paradise Classic Champion. Ugly game all-around with all the tension, but an exciting one until the very end.
10:42: Two incompletions for Faufata-Pedrina and CALIFORNIA IS GOING TO WIN THIS ONE. Turnover on downs. Fourteen seconds left.
10:40: East burns its last timeout after two short gains by Faufata-Pedrina. They face thrid-and-1 on their own 14 with 27 seconds left.
10:37: Simmons throws a fade incomplete, but East has 1:06 and one timeout to work with here.
10:36: California appears to elect to go for it on fourth-and-goal from the East 4-yard line, but calls a timeout with 1:10 left in the game.
10:33: HUGE play for California, as Beylei Colston hauls in a 65-yard pass from Simmons, all the way to the East 4.
10:28: East decides to kick it deep instead of an onside attempt. California takes over on its own 19.
10:23: East calls a timeout and calls for a lob to Saint Francis’ Scott McLeod in double coverage, and the senior can’t come down with it. The two-point conversion is no good. But most coaches would have probably called the exact same play when you have a 6-2, 220 All-State wide receiver and no true kicker on your roster.
10:22: Facing fourth-and-10 from the California 28, Tina-Soberano scrambles and throws across his body to find Waianae’s Rico Rosario for a 24-yard gain to the California 4, and a roughing the passer call puts them at the Cali 2. Rosario then bullies his way to a 2-yard touchdown with 4:07 to go, but then gets disqualified for an unsportsmanlike conduct call. More importantly, it pushes East back 15 yards. They now have a choice: From the California 18, do they go for a 35-yarder or do they go for it all?
10:12: CLUTCH stop by the East defense, including a sack on third down for a three-and-out. East takes over from California’s 40 with 6:23 remaining.
10:07: WHOA. FUMBLE. Eter takes a nice return near midfield, but it’s stripped and California takes over on its own 24 with 8:20 left after a sideline warning pushes them 15 yards back from the 39. A score of any kind would surely take the air out of the East squad.
10:05: CALIFORNIA TAKES ITS FIRST LEAD. Blanks refuses to go down, breaking multiple tackles en route to a 40-yard touchdown run. Calvert’s kick is good and California leads 21-14 with 8:33 to go in the fourth quarter.
FOURTH QUARTER
10:00: Faufata-Pedrina appears to have thrown a touchdown but instead it’s INTERCEPTED by Weber, which is the second time he’s picked him off today. Just a great defensive play. Touchback for California. Demarii Blanks takes a handoff for nine yards and we’re through three here at Aloha Stadium. California faces second-and-1 to start the fourth quarter from their own 29.
9:52: AND WE’RE TIED. Simmons finds Jalen Ward on a beautiful throw at the back of the end zone for a 5-yard score. Calvert’s PAT is good and we’re all even at 14 with 1:32 remaining in the third. Simmons was roughed on the touchdown, and those yards will be enforced from the kickoff. California will kick off from midfield.
9:44: Three-and-out for Hawaii East. Umaga shanks a punt and California starts from East’s 48, 4:43 left in the third.
9:38: Three-and-out for California, and they’ll punt from their own 13. Hawaii East calls its first timeout of the half with 5:43 left in the third.
9:35: East picks up just one first down and punts. California takes the field for the first time this half on their own 18, 6:47 left in the third quarter.
9:30: Hawaii East starts the second half from its own 48 after a nice return from Farrington’s Stephen Eter.
THIRD QUARTER
Halftime statistics:
Hawaii East 14, California 7
At Aloha Stadium
1 2 3 4
California 7 0 0 0 7
Hawaii East 7 7 0 0 14
East—Kanoa Shannon 1 rush (Blessing Umaga kick)
Cali—A’jae Boyd 28 pass from Jake Simmons (Conor Calvert kick)
East—Tamatoa Mokiao-Atimalala 25 pass from Shastyn-Thor Kekahuna (Umaga kick)
RUSHING— California: Demarii Blanks 3-18, Kenroy Higgins 4-9, Hokulani Wickard 1-4, Simmons 5-3, TEAM 1-(minus-9). East: Shannon 3-5, Kekahuna 1-3, Ieke Seei-Cleveland 3-1, Marcus Faufata-Pedrina 2-1, Rico Rosario 1-(minus-2).
PASSING— California: Simmons 4-9-0-48, Wickard 2-8-1-15. East: Kekahuna 2-3-1-30, Tina-Soberano 3-5-0-20, Faufata-Pedrina 1-1-0-3, Chayce Akaka 0-2-0-0.
RECEIVING– California: Boyd 2-41, Higgins 2-15, Beylei Colston 1-4, Jalen Ward 1-3. East: Tosh Kekahuna-Kalawe 2-8, Mokiao-Atimalala 1-25, Rosario 1-8, Jeremy Evans 1-7, Tamarick Hallums 1-5.
9:17: The first half ends how too many plays have today: in a scuffle. Kenroy Higgins catches a 10-yard pass before another melee breaks out. California’s coaches have received a warning and so have multiple players on each team. For now, East takes a 14-7 lead into the intermission and will receive to start the second half.
9:10: Faufata-Pedrina is PICKED OFF by Rome Weber, who returns it 32 yards to his own 43. California takes over with 40 seconds remaining and all three timeouts.
9:09: Great play by Calvert, who chases a bad snap on a punt, recovers on his own 10 and punts the ball away as he was falling on his side. Hawaii East starts from its own 45 instead of a first-and-goal. Damien quarterback Marcus-Faufata Pedrina gets sacked and East calls its final timeout with 59 seconds left in the half facing second-and-16 from their own 39.
9:03: Things have been chippy here in the first half. Very, very chippy. Punches thrown, taunting, shoving and more extracurricular activities have caused a lot of penalties on both sides and many stoppages in play.
8:56: TOUCHDOWN HAWAII EAST. Kekahuna hits Kapolei’s Tamatoa Mokiao-Atimalala on a screen and he does the rest on a 25-yard score. Umaga’s PAT is good and East is back in the lead, 14-7 with 2:14 left in the half.
8:52: Roosevelt quarterback Shastyn-Thor Kekahuna is intercepted by Boyd, who fumbles it and is recovered by East. California safety Jaelyn Thomas is also ejected for throwing a punch and East has a first down on California’s 28. Wild.
8:47: East’s stingy defense forces a turnover on downs for California, but an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty gives them the ball on their own 30 instead of their own 45.
8:42: East elects to go for it on fourth-and-1 from their own 47, but Kaimuki’s Ieke Seei-Cleveland is stopped short. California takes over with great field position with 5:41 to go in the half.
8:38: California goes for it on fourth-and-8 from the East 38, and Simmons misses a wide open throw in busted coverage. East gets the ball back with 7:49 left in the half.
8:33: Mililani’s Jalen Tuivaiave-Olomua is ejected for a targeting call on Simmons. Tough loss for East, as the senior had a great year for the Trojans as Star-Advertiser All-State first team selection. California gets a fresh set of downs on its own 45.
8:30: Tina-Soberano misses his next two throws to start the second quarter, and East punts. California looks to take its first lead of the game, starting from its own 26 with 9:36 left in the second quarter.
SECOND QUARTER
8:26: Kalani’s Seth Tina-Soberano enters the game for East and is off to a solid start, completing his first three passes for a total of 20 yards. East faces second-and-5 from its own 43 to start the second quarter.
8:22: East looks to respond, starting from its own 25.
8:20: TOUCHDOWN CALIFORNIA. Simmons and A’jae Boyd hook up for a 28-yard touchdown on another great ball from Simmons. Conor Calvert converts the extra point and we’re all tied at 7 with 2:20 to go in the opening quarter.
8:17: California is driving down the field efficiently thanks to the play of quarterback Jake Simmons, who is 3-for-4 with 20 yards in the early going. They now have a fresh set of downs at the East 25 with 3:22 to go in the first.
8:10: Nice defensive stand for California, forcing a three-and-out for Hawaii East. California starts its next possession from its own 34 with 5:04 left in the first.
8:08: California gains a first down thanks to a faskmask call, but can’t convert much else. East takes over on its own 8 with 5:54 to go in the first.
8:02: KAMEHAMEHA STAND UP. California quarterback Hokulani Wickard is PICKED OFF by Kamehameha’s Kalamaku Kuewa, who returns it all the way to the California 5. Another Kamehameha product, Kanoa Shannon, gets two straight touches, with his second a 1-yard touchdown run. Farrington’s Blessing Umaga kicks the extra point and Hawaii East leads 7-0 with 8:29 left. What a start for East.
7:58: California starts from its own 26 after the return.
7:57: California wins the toss and chooses to receive.
FIRST QUARTER
So embarrassing! All these ejections from the Hawaii team. These are a reflection of their head coaches! If I’m not mistaken, Jalen Olomua, Scottie Agasiva and Tasi Malepeai All Mililani players all ejected! Rico from Waianae also ejected. Really surprised they have this allstar game this year because of the the big fight they had last year. Some of these kids play again next week in the Polynesian Bowl and if I was on the selection committee I would pull them off the team.
What was embarrassing were the officials.
Watched the footage again today. If they made their calls fairly then there would have been equal ejections from California. Celebrating from multiple players? Targeting from #33? #75 biggest instigator in the brawl? Nope, guess they don’t count. Not to mention not even being able to do basic math or correct ball placement. Give us a break.
Good job boys for putting your hands up and staying out of the brawls. The footage shows it all.