Kalaheo’s varsity football team is forfeiting Saturday’s Oahu Interscholastic Association regular-season opening game against Waipahu.
Harold Tanaka, the OIA football coordinator, called Hawaii Prep World on Thursday to say that Kalaheo suffered some injuries in practice Thursday and it brought the total amount of players on the roster below a safe level.
Kalaheo coach Darrell Poole confirmed the forfeit, but believes the team will be fine to play the rest of its games.
“We had injuries today and injuries from the other day and from our game on Maui, and it put us in jeopardy to play the game,” Poole said Thursday via cell phone. “If we didn’t have those injuries, it would not have affected the game. We had to make a decision. It’s not the decision I wanted to make, but in the long run, it’s about the safety of the kids.”
Eight recent injuries brought down the total of Kalaheo players ready to play from 21 to 13. The eight players are expected back next week.
“I think we’ll be ready to go next week,” Poole said. “They gotta heal. We’ll be fine. I’ve already talked it over with the trainer. We were looking forward to playing against Waipahu.
“My kids are resilient. We were tough at 19 players on Maui. We had injuries and we were still in the game.”
Poole also said there are about eight players who are ineligible at this time and will eventually be ready to go, bringing the total roster to 29.
Waipahu coach Bryson Carvalho said he is looking for a team to scrimmage Saturday. Due to the forfeit win, the Maruaders are 2-0 (1-0 OIA), with a 51-14 road victory over Nanakuli last week under their belts.
Waipahu’s next scheduled game is a home contest against Roosevelt on Aug. 25. At last check, the school was still waiting for an OK for the go-ahead on its brand-new artificial turf field.
After the forfeit loss, Kalaheo is 0-2 (0-1 OIA). The Mustangs dropped a 35-28 game at Kamehammeha-Maui last week. They suited up 19 players while KS-Maui had 23.
The Mustangs return to action Aug. 19 at Aloha Stadium against McKinley (0-1).
As reported Wednesday, there is one other OIA varsity and four JV cancellations this week:
>> Kaiser varsity (forfeit) at Mililani, Friday
>> Kaiser JV (forfeit) at Mililani, Friday
>> McKinley JV (forfeit) at Roosevelt, Friday
>> Kalaheo JV (forfeit) vs. Waipahu, at Kailua High field, Saturday
>> Waialua JV (forfeit) vs. Kaimuiki, at Skippa Diaz Stadium, Saturday
Wow! What a letdown! Need to get some of them basketball players out for FB! Cannot have BBall Coaches telling their players “no play FB!”
BTW, what’s with their only 1/2 of the Bleachers being built? I understand that it will be as it looks like now with only 1 side of the GL to the fifty YL. How come the other half is not being built? Who wants only 1/2 of the field? How will 2 teams of spectators fit on such a small bleacher? This half the field bleachers is just as bad as McKinley HS having a brand new field turf field but no more bleachers! The most expensive practice field in HS FB! Must be the same State Planner overseeing both Kalaheo & McKinley projects.
Hawaii High School football is in trouble. Imagine Leilehua has a 3.0 GPA
requirement(70 players on roster) to play…yet Kalaheo, Kaiser don’t have enough players to
play a game. Something is wrong here……
Not a surprise. With so much focus on potential long term brain injury, many families do not want their kids playing football anymore. ESPN Outside the Lines did a special right around the time the movie Concussion came out. Numbers are drastically low at the youth level for middle and upper class across the US. Inevitably it will or has already hit parts of our island.
I am not following this very closely, but 2 schools I read about were Kaiser and Kalaheo. Look at the demographics, it’s upper and middle class. But areas that is higher in poverty such as Campbell, Kahuku, and Waianae do not seem to be impacted the same.
In 5-10 years I wouldn’t be surprised if many schools do not even offer football anymore. We might be down to 24 schools across the state.
is having a terrible coach as the head coach factor into this? or I should “perceived”?
so why dey junk svhool get new field no mo team, waine n kahku n camble no mo nice field
Because of da ILH, recruiting and wanting 2 teams in the open division.
8 man football. Why are the higher ups so embarrassed to even consider the idea. Outer island schools are embracing the concept. 8 man has even allowed some schools to participate in football for the first time.
To subject today’s kids to foolish outdated traditions and standards is absolutely ridiculous and dangerous.