Hawaii Prep World will be releasing summer previews of all 29 Oahu varsity football teams in advance of the 2017 season that kicks off in early August.
22ND IN A SERIES
SAINT LOUIS CRUSADERS
>> 2016 record and finish: 10-1 (5-1 ILH D-I); beat ‘Iolani 33-0 in first round of ILH D-I playoffs; beat Punahou 28-14 in ILH D-I championship game; beat Waianae 42-7 in state tournament Open Division semifinals; beat Kahuku 30-14 in state tournament Open Division championship game
>> Number of returning starters: 2 offense, 6 defense
>> Number of returning seniors: 30
>> Number of starters lost to graduation: 9 offense, 5 defense
>> Number of seniors lost to graduation: 30
>> Honolulu Star-Advertiser All-State selections lost to graduation: Michael Minihan, first-team OL; Jacob-Drew Russell, first-team OL; Tua Tagovailoa, first-team QB; Isaac Slade-Matautia, second-team LB; Jalen Saole, second-team S; Ronson Young, third-team REC; Rick Sandry, third-team CB
>> Honolulu Star-Advertiser All-State selections returning: Noa Purcell, first-team LB; Dylan Toilolo, first-team LB; Faatui Tuitele, second-team DE; Isaiah Tufaga, second-team S
>> Among 2017 key offensive returnees: Chevan Cordeiro, Sr., QB; Eliki Tanuvasa, Sr., OL; Arasi Mose, Jr., OL; Tosh Kekahuna, Sr., SB; Jonah Panoke, Sr., WR
>> Among 2017 key defensive returnees: Isaiah Tufaga, Sr., DB; Kai Kaneshiro, Sr., DB; Dylan Toilolo, Sr., LB; Noa Purcell, Sr., LB; Isaiah Feary, Sr., LB
>> Crusaders with Division I FBS college offers: Isaiah Tufaga, Sr. DB; Chris Sykes, Sr. WR; Chevan Cordeiro, Sr., QB; Isaiah Fear, Sr., DB/LB; Kai Kaneshiro, Sr., DB; Jonah Panoke, Sr. WR; Noa Purcell, Sr., LB; Isaiah Taliuli, Sr., LB; Eliki Tanuvasa, Sr., OL; Faatui Tuitele, Jr., DL; Matt Sykes, So., WR; Mason Tufaga, Fr., LB/DB
>> All-time state championships: 4 (3 in D-I — 1999, 2002, 2010; and 1 in Open Division — 2016)
>> All-time Prep Bowl (1973-1998) championships: 14 (all D-I — 1983, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998)
>> All-time ILH championships: 35 (all D-I — 1925, 1930, 1941, 1942, 1945, 1949, 1966, 1967, 1970, 1973, 1981, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2015, 2016)
>> 2017 conference: ILH D-I
>> 2017 state tournament declaration: Division I-Open
Head coach CAL LEE on the Crusaders’ outlook for 2017:
“There’s a lot of work going on getting the kids ready, getting them in shape and teaching them the game of football. It’s a whole new season and we have lots of new kids coming up that need experience. We’re practicing hard and hopefully they’ll be ready by game time.
“We’ve got 300 kids altogether, about 100 on varsity, 84 on JV and 120 in intermediate. That’s a lot of kids. There is one thing that’s unfortunate, though. They come out here as seventh graders, make the team and then some don’t play and then they are told they can’t play in the Big Boys league. If football is the only sport you play, you can’t play after the season. We in the coaching fraternity at all the schools agree that seventh and eighth graders should be allowed to play the sport in the offseason. They’ve gotta wait a whole year for the season to start.
“We’re real fortunate at Saint Louis to have players who love the game of football, and they all want to get better. And everybody works hard to make everybody better.
“The kids want to be part of something, in a sense. They enjoy it, they go through it every day and don’t complain and work hard. Even if they don’t play in the games. You gotta love those kids. I have 10 running backs and they love being part of a group and they are part of that group. We only play one running back. Still, you can tell they enjoy it. They’re not walking around doing nothing. They’re skipping and jumping and getting after it.
“All we can do is be the best we can be as coaches and try to prepare them for the game of football. They work hard at it. We’ve got a bull’s-eye on our back as state champions and all that stuff. But they come out here and last year was last year. You can’t look back. They see that if you work hard, good things will happen. That’s all you can do.
“There’s a lot of good kids that graduated that we’re going to miss (including quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who is now at Alabama). That’s what the kids coming up now are working for, to do what the kids in front of them did. You never know. Some never played much. They come out, work hard, are dedicated and they could be the next person to keep up the expectations set by the guys who left.
“A lot of kids will be trying out for the 11 positions on offense and defense, and that competition makes them work harder. They know if they mess up, somebody else will step in. You can’t take a day off. You’ve got to be dedicated and plugging away day after day.
“We have goals. In offseason conditioning, in what we expect in the weight room. They take tests. We’ll be testing them this week on the bench, squats and the running. Those are some of the goals that can be reached that are not necessarily about football, but more the conditioning. It’s so they don’t show up and think they’re strong already.
“The biggest thing we want as coaches is we want effort. Everybody wants to win the game. If you don’t have that, you’re on the short end of the stick. We’re looking for that effort on every down, every series, every play. Those are the kinds of things we strive for as a team.”
2017 Saint Louis football schedule
Subject to change. Click here for the latest schedule updates.
Note: The ILH regular-season schedule was not out at the time this post was published.
Thursday, July 27
>> Campbell at Saint Louis (scrimmage)
Saturday, July 29
>> Kailua at Saint Louis, 9 a.m. (scrimmage, split squad)
>> Kaimuki at Saint Louis, 4 p.m. (scrimmage, split squad)
Saturday, Aug. 5
>> Saint Louis at Waianae (nonleague)
Saturday, Aug. 12
>> Baldwin vs. Saint Louis, at Aloha Stadium (nonleague)
Saturday, Sept. 23
>> Narbonne (Los Angeles) vs. Saint Louis, at Aloha Stadium (nonleague)
2017 Saint Louis varsity football staff
>> Head coach: Cal Lee (263-39-5, 25th season)
>> Offensive coordinator: Ron Lee
>> Quarterbacks: Vince Passas
>> Wide receivers: Gerald Welch
>> Slotbacks: Howard Peralta and Robbie Fukuhara
>> Running backs: Tupu Alualu and Aaron Mikami
>> Offensive line: Robert Crowell and James Hall
>> Defensive coordinator and linebackers: Frank Pahia
>> Defensive line: Nainoa Campbell and Shawn Kalima
>> Defensive backs: Wes Tufaga and Keone Batoon
>> Linebackers: Sam Taulea, Shawn Pacheco, Gary Graham and Sam Downey
What’s the deal with their 7th and 8th graders unable to play in JPS? Didn’t Tua and others play the other year in the JPS all-star game?
Is there a ILH intermediate football league?
Yet every other sport besides football has club during the offseason; soccer, volleyball and basketball. They should let the kids play.
Football is very physical, kids shouldn’t be hitting all year round. I think they have to make a choice between Int. ball and JPS
4 LB coaches? For realz? Back when I played, had 1 coach that coached both the LBs and DLs.
How many recruits on the St Lulu team this year? The Kapolei report mentioned a QB for the team who was at St Lulu previously. Former recruit who got beaten out for the QB position so transferred back to Kapolei. Same thing McKinley coach said. He accepts St Lulu will offer his best players, but then hopes they will come back to McKInley if they get beaten out for the starting positions and don’t want to sit on the bench.
Mahatma- There you go again making false accusations. If you don’t know the real story maybe you shouldn’t say anything. Had to be you to be the first basher of this story. Get a life!
100 kids vars wow all oia schools only get 50 -60 kid come try out
Mahatma-HAHA You so off base with that KPO qb. Just so y’all know that qb did not transfer out of his own free will. Check your facts son
100 kids”wow” only 11 can play at a time. In reality only about 15 kids will have major impacts, the rest will be practice players all year hoping to tell their friends they won a championship ring. HS football should have a cap. Even the NFL only carries 50 something on a team. 100 kids is a waste.
@mahatma gonzo Haha! All these kids played together since 7th grade. No new kids, the qb has waited for his turn since he always was behind Tua. His last starting year was 9th gr Jv when Tua played vars. They have 2 coaches for the middle backers both part time cuz of jobs. And 2 for outside again cuz work. The Qb transferred to kapolei because of something that happened at School(not football related) But looks like it will work out for him as they needed a qb.
Looks to be another exciting football season in the 808. Good luck to all and we’ll see you all at states. Go BIG Red.
Wow, didn’t realize St Louis lost so much of their returnees from last year. Should be Pun and StL again battling for title although Kamehameha has “Boogie”, a very underrated QB. Sad that the ILH schedule is so boring, same teams playing each other over and over again. Everyone suffers, the players, fans, schools, parents and the public in general. Guess I’ll try to get a season pass like I did in HS. Not sure if can, but will try to purchase for my mom (aka “Uber”) and myself.
Education First July 16, 2017 at 12:44 pm
Wow, didn’t realize St Louis lost so much of their returnees from last year. Should be Pun and StL again battling for title although Kamehameha has “Boogie”, a very underrated QB. Sad that the ILH schedule is so boring, same teams playing each other over and over again. Everyone suffers, the players, fans, schools, parents and the public in general. Guess I’ll try to get a season pass like I did in HS. Not sure if can, but will try to purchase for my mom (aka “Uber”) and myself.
—————————-
Look, my shadow is back pretending to be me again. Hi shadow! #luvit
http://www.hawaiiprepworld.com/football/spring-ing-into-fb-season-saint-louis-crusaders/
FYi- Last year 2016 Cal also complained about the ILH intermediate not able to play outside leagues, its getting almost as old as the OIA fan boys complaining about recruiting.
It’s crazy how a bunch of oia schools are in need of players just to have enough to practice against each other during the week and stl has the luxury to have 10 rb’s.
Oh look, the phony Education First calling ME the shadow. Notice how this fake Ed 1st shows up when BG Grad disappears? Troller using multiple screen names. Give it up, stalker. LMAO!!!!!
I’m guessing the remaining student body is trying out for the band? lol
Looks like the Crusaders are loaded for bear this year. Looking forward to seeing them in states.
RRFL!
St. Louis has always had large squads for all 3 levels, even before the school went to a K-12 school. Unlike the other sports like basketball and baseball, where they can place the athletes into a division II, or in the case of Punahou, a blue team and a gold team, football doesn’t have that luxury.
Looks impressive when they come out on the field with ..100 kids and 18 assistant coaches. Really, all you need is a good vocal and teaching (techniques) offensive, defensive and special team coach. The rest of the coaches take up space and waana be coaches.
Education First July 16, 2017 at 5:23 pm
Oh look, the phony Education First calling ME the shadow. Notice how this fake Ed 1st shows up when BG Grad disappears? Troller using multiple screen names. Give it up, stalker. LMAO!!!!!
—————-
This girl just really loves me. But I get it. You want to be the best. But you cannot. There is only 1 me. And based on your M.O., you are probably BG Grad.
#sosad #sopathetic
Fake Education First uses hashtags on his post. How old are you, 12??!! LOL! Either that or some old frustrated nobody trying to be relevant. Nerd should go back on his imaginary vacation and never come back. Thanks.
#whatswrongwithhashtags?
#hashtags4lyf
lol…
btw…rebuilding year(s) for St LuLu… again. 2 returning starters on offense? good thing the defense will keep them in games. but they’ll have to keep up with Puns offense.
Good luck.