Punahou senior Tamatoa Falatea will join five other Buffanblu players in the 2019 Polynesian Bowl.
The 6-foot, 190-pound wide receiver has been selected a Polynesian Bowl All Star and will join teammates Duke Clemens, Tim Horn, Maninoa Tufono, Kaulana Makaula and Marist Liufau in the annual high school football all-star game on Saturday, Jan. 19, at Aloha Stadium.
Falatea, who leads the Open Division in receiving yards in divisional games, is currently fourth on Oahu in all divisions with 781 receiving yards and seven touchdowns in seven games overall. He’s caught 50 passes and is averaging more than 110 receiving yards per game.
The three players ahead of him in receiving have all played at least one more game.
Falatea has caught all seven touchdowns in his last five games and has posted three 100-yard receiving games, including a career-high 196 yards and two touchdowns on nine catches in the Buffanblu’s biggest win of the season — 43-21 over No. 3 Mililani.
For an updated list of players selected for the 2019 Polynesian Bowl, click here.
The Polynesian Bowl is an annual high school football all-star game held at Aloha Stadium every January featuring the top high school seniors in the country. The majority of the approximately 100 kids selected are of Polynesian ancestry.
The first game was held on January 21, 2017, with Team Stanley, captained by Ronnie Stanley, defeating Team Mariota, captained by Marcus Mariota, after Punahou’s Jeff Chan kicked a 20-yard field goal with 39 seconds remaining for a 9-7 win.
Team Makai defeated Team Mauka 31-14 in the 2018 game with Lompac (Calif.) running back Toa Taua rushing for two second-half touchdowns to lead Makai.
There are currently 17 players from Hawaii high schools selected to the game. Eight more players will be chosen, including one later today.
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