With the state tuned in to see two of Hawaii’s all-time great running backs on this date in 1973, Saint Louis quarterback Vince Passas took matters into his own hands.
Passas threw for 178 yards on 11 completions to lead the Crusaders to a 30-0 win in front of 9,087 fans at Honolulu Stadium for the rare televised game.
His effort took some of the shine off a matchup between Saint Louis running back Ed Kini and Punahou’s Mosi Tatupu. Kini ran for three touchdowns and his team’s defense, led by Brian Cabral, Harris Matsushima and David Levy, held the Samoan Strongboy to 66 yards on 17 carries in the shutout.
Kini tied Tatupu for the lead in touchdowns but the Buffanblu broke the ILH record with 1,497 total yards.
The victory tied the clubs for first place in the league, and set up a rematch for the crown. That one went to Saint Louis as well, 21-20, with Punahou limiting Passas to 97 yards and Kini to 67. Tatupu rumbled for 162 yards in the loss and the Crusaders went on to lose the Prep Bowl 6-0 to Waianae.
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