St. Louis Crusaders Favored in Hawaii High School State Football Tournament

The Saint Louis Crusaders of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu (private schools) are favored to win this year's Hawaii high school Division 1 (big schools) state football championship. The Saints (10-0) ran the table in the ILH this season, withstanding a strong challenge from runner-up Punahou (7-2).

St. Louis, which finished second in the state last year to Kahuku, will face Oahu Interscholastic Association (Oahu public schools) runner-up Waianae in one state semifinal at 4 p.m this Saturday at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu. The Seariders (9-3), with a powerful running game that netted 450 yards, made the trip to Hawaii island to defeat Big Island Interscholastic Federation champion Kealakehe 21-17 this past Saturday in Kona. The Waveriders finished the season at 10-3.

In the other state semifinal on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Aloha Stadium, OIA champion Leilehua Mules will square off against Maui Interscholastic League kingpin Baldwin Bears. Like St. Louis, Leilehua drew a first round bye in the tournament. Meanwhile, Baldwin put down OIA third-place finisher Farrington 26-14 at War Memorial Stadium on Maui this past Saturday.

Predictions for the tournament:

Semifinal 1: St. Louis versus Waianae: St. Louis, quarterbacked by returning all-state offensive player of the year Micah Mamiya, will use its sophisticated run-and-shoot offense to frustrate and overwhelm Waianae. While the Seariders had their way on the ground versus Kealakehe, they won't gain yards with such ease against the quick and talented Saints. What's more, the Waianae defense yielded 334 passing yards to Kealakehe. Expect the Saints to gain that much and more, and put more than 17 points on the board. My call: St. Louis 35, Waianae 7.

Semifinal 2: Baldwin versus Leilehua: This will be the game of the tournament. The Bears, who were a whisker away from upsetting eventual state champion Kahuku in last year's semifinals, are again led by quarterback Jordan Helle. On the other hand, Leilehua, bolstered by a strong defensive unit, is a surprise winner of the OIA. Kahuku was the odds-on favorite to repeat as the Oahu public school champion but was upset in the first round of the playoffs by Kapolei. My call is that Baldwin will not be denied this time around and look to be a hair better (pardon the pun) than the Mules. I look for Baldwin to prevail 15-14.

Title game: Baldwin versus St. Louis. This contest will generate much fan interest because Baldwin will be a first-time participant in a football state title game. Look for a sizable turnout at Aloha Stadium for the game. While many fans will be pining for a Hoosier's-like fairytale ending for Baldwin, in the end St. Louis will take care of what needs to be done on the gridiron and dominate the Bears. Final score prediction: St. Louis 24, Baldwin 6.

I will post the actual scores and my commentary after the conclusion of the tournament.