Comments on: Q&A: Hilo coach Kaeo Drummondo defends record win over Waiakea

By: integrity

integrity — Tue, 17 Sep 2019 06:30:57 +0000

Why would a school fire a coach that has done nothing but build an amazing football program and respect to the school and the community.Hilo Vikings football is nothing but well trained hard work and disciplined football program
There should be nothing but absolute praise for their character
Ignorance and jealousy will always be
God bless the Hilo Vikings forever

By: Falcon Future

Falcon Future — Thu, 12 Sep 2019 18:23:42 +0000

@The Rim, thanks for the info. Yes, I suspected that Waiakea’s lack of coaching skills had a lot to do with the final score being 104-0. All of the history between the schools does not matter. A score of 104-0 should not be happening between two schools of this size in the same division. If this score happened in a ILH or OIA game, there would be big newspaper articles and parents would be writing letters to get both coaches fired.

It is time for Waiakea to make some tough decisions.

By: Wainakea

Wainakea — Thu, 12 Sep 2019 12:28:50 +0000

Waiakea is the 2nd largest school on the Big Island behind Kealakehe at 1200 students, bigger than Hilo which has around 1100. They have decent talent as they produce pro baseball players every other year. But they have been changing coaches every 2~4 years to no avail. Until 2014, Waiakea had a winning record over Hilo in over 30 years of playing each other every year.

By: The Rim

The Rim — Thu, 12 Sep 2019 08:52:51 +0000

@Falcon I’ve been watching BIIF football for over 35 years, and I was at this game from start to finish. Waiakea contributed to at least 60 of those points through turnovers and by playing the most undisciplined defense and offense that I’ve ever seen. The score went from 34-0 to 83-0 in a blink of an eye, and that was all Waiakea’s doing. I would be the first to criticize Hilo if it was warranted, but in this case, the blame should go to the coaching. This is a team that has been outscored 200+-10. If it was Pahoa of Kohala or even Kau, I would jump all over Hilo. But this was Waiakea, one of the largest schools with decent talent.

By: Falcon Future

Falcon Future — Wed, 11 Sep 2019 23:18:24 +0000

The score was 83-0 at halftime and the Hilo coach claims they were already holding back? How da heck is that even possible?

Maybe the bigger question is what da heck is wrong with Waiakea? It sounds like their offense was fumbling on every other play and their defense couldn’t tackle anybody. If that’s true, there is some coaching issues going on.

This is also a problem for the BIIF league. Why is Waiakea in D1? I’m completely amazed that two teams supposedly in the same division can be that far apart in talent. No make sense. Should Waiakea be in D2 or should Hilo go to Open?

By: Frank Mauz

Frank Mauz — Wed, 11 Sep 2019 20:16:34 +0000

Interesting to read the interviews with coaches Azevedo and Drummondo. The BIIF has unique challenges in travel distances, enrollment disparities, scheduling and weather. It is encouraging to see everyone concerned trying hard to “make lemonade out of this lemon.” Kudos to all the coaches and ADs as they continue to make the safety and enjoyment of student athletes their highest priority.

By: hilorain

hilorain — Wed, 11 Sep 2019 19:38:44 +0000

If HHS elected to not kick PATs, score would have been under 100. Just a thought.

By: Wainakea

Wainakea — Wed, 11 Sep 2019 15:50:09 +0000

@Robert Collias
I do think 8-man was a great way for small schools to have programs, but as it kind of is on the mainland, it really only works for private schools if you look at it in the long run. Pahoa and Kohala was having issues even keeping the 8-man going as it didn’t spark enough interest in the kids. The numbers are up this year now that they have transitioned, though it might be a temporal one, it is kind of hard to have kids in schools like Pahoa and Kohala be interested in 8-man, unlike Lanai and Molokai, as they can actually transfer to say Keaau or Kealakehe which have bigger programs instead.

While you could argue that the BIIF and the schools haven’t been promoting the sport enough, I think the fact that it was Pahoa, the only school that hasn’t won a 8-man BIIF title, was the one to start the motion to move to 11-man tells about the situation.

By: Robert Collias

Robert Collias — Wed, 11 Sep 2019 08:42:58 +0000

Coach Drummondo talks about a three-tiered system being discussed before the season. The BIIF had a three-tiered system with 8-man football played by the smallest schools for the last few years, an idea started in the MIL (now in it’s eighth official season, although what once was six teams — Kihei Charter, St. Anthony, Seabury Hall, Molokai, Lanai and Hana — is now down to just Hana, Lanai and Molokai).
The eight-man game is perfect for the smaller schools — Lanai shared the MIL title with Molokai last season when it had 38 players on the roster when the high school had 130 or so students total. Molokai, a school of about 400 students, has the 11-man game on its mind with 48 players on the roster this season after having 51 last season. Hana usually has about 80 students in the high school grades.
The Open division is cool and needed for the Saint Louises, Punahous and Kahukus of the state, but the HHSAA should consider sanctioning the 8-man game for the smallest of schools. OIA has schools that it would work for, the BIIF clearly does, the MIL obviously does, perhaps Island School on Kauai. I know the current rule to hold a state championship is that three leagues participate, but the HHSAA bypassed that rule for the Open Division (ILH and OIA only right now).

By: Kate Wong

Kate Wong — Wed, 11 Sep 2019 04:12:49 +0000

I agree “Monday quarterback”. The coach should’ve been more creative. We all know what kind of character this individual has. Knowing how how to play football is not the “only” thing you need to know when coach student athletes. This position entails a hell of alot more than that.