They haven’t played in two weeks, yet the Saint Louis Crusaders have found themselves in the top 10 in the country, out of it, and back in it.
The Crusaders (2-0), who haven’t played since a 47-7 blowout victory over Narbonne (Calif.) on Aug. 17, moved back up a spot to No. 10 in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 national rankings released Sunday evening.
(MONDAY UPDATE: Saint Louis moved up two spots to No. 11 in the USA Today Super 25).
Saint Louis, barring another weather issue, will finally get back on the field on Friday night at Aloha Stadium when it plays Kahuku in a matchup of the top two ranked teams in the state.
The two teams have ended the last three prep football seasons at Aloha Stadium with Saint Louis winning consecutive top-tier state titles after the Kahuku won it all in 2015.
Kahuku and Saint Louis have split the last 14 meetings dating back to 1997. The Crusaders have won three of the last four meetings.
Saint Louis moved ahead of Grayson (Ga.), which lost to Bergen Catholic (N.J.) on Friday.
St. John’s College (Washington D.C.), with Kahuku transfer Sol-Jay Maiava at quarterback, moved up to No. 4 after thrashing back-to-back Alabama 7A state champion Hoover 42-14. Maiava finished with more than 250 yards and three touchdowns in the game.
Maiava and his crew play No. 11 Central (Fla.) and No. 5 IMG Academy (Fla.) over the next two weeks.
St. John Bosco (Calif.) remained No. 1 after beating Mililani 52-14.
Damn Sol Jay, you killing me. But who can blame you with a sketchy administration that rotate coaches out. Anyway, such talent at Kahuku, next man up. Both games will be similar. Punahou and Kahuku will have to get to the Qb.
Big games. Yup. Sol J, dang.
Congratulations to Sol-Jay! He just needed to get a quarterback coach that could develop his skills and maximize his abilities. Nothing against Kahuku’s staff, but they weren’t Raising his quarterback IQ as he is getting now. However, it’s been a win- win situation for both him and Kahuku. He’ll get better and be exposed to more offers from colleges. Kahuku has also benefited by developing Sauvao, Alapa, and Adolpho as the type of quarterbacks to run their system. Good luck to both Sol-Jay and Kahuku.
THE GAME OF THE WEEK. This has grown to be a huge rivalry, almost like UH-BYU. St. Louis has Ben dominant in their first two games. However, both Waianae and Narbonne are in rebuilding stages and really didn’t give the Crusaders a challenge. Kahuku has won two games as well. They proved they could overcome a challenge against Punahou. Against Waianae, their defense, as usual, made plays and special teams, too. Offensively, they didn’t get their running game in gear, although, it was said that they wanted to work on their passing game. Part of it was Waianae’s spirited defensive challenge. Look for the Crusaders to come with a lot of pressure on defense. Their linebackers are probably the best in the state. Offensively, they’ll try to exploit Kahuku’s defensive backs. Kahuku needs to control the ball and ground-&-pound the ball. Defensively, they need to get to the quarterback with their blitz’s & stunts, and also contain him so he can’t get outside the pocket. It can be a close game like last year’s state championship game. However if Kahuku can’t move the ball and score it could get out of hand.
I’m excited yet bummed Kahuku and STL are meeting so early in the season. The anticipation leading up every year as these two beat down their divisions before answering the annual public vs private debate for all the marbles will be missed.