The 2025 high school football season in Hawai‘i is set to begin with a bang.
Teams from across the Islands will begin play on Friday and Saturday night, but no contest offers more intrigue than Saturday night's contest between Kahuku and Saint Louis at Kahuku's Carlton E. Weimer Field at 6:30 p.m.
The Red Raiders and Crusaders met in the 2024 HHSAA Open Division championship game, with Saint Louis prevailing 17-10 at the University of Hawai‘i's Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex. The win for Saint Louis snapped a streak of three straight titles for Kahuku, giving head coach Tupu Alualu a state championship in his debut season at the helm.
In March, Sterling Carvalho was removed as coach for the Red Raiders, ending a tenure as head coach that began in 2018. A legal battle ensued, including a full day in O‘ahu Circuit Court on July 28.
On Aug. 1, the motion from Carvalho's team seeking an immediate return to the Kahuku sidelines was denied. While Carvalho's legal team, led by attorney Eric Seitz, will continue to seek a return to coaching, the Red Raiders enter the 2025 season with Nihoa Pule as the team's head coach.
Meanwhile, in an Aug. 2 scrimmage at Farrington, Alualu was involved in an altercation in which a spectator acted aggressively towards the Saint Louis coaching staff. After the spectator charged at Alualu, the two had to be separated from each other.
Despite not having Carvalho at the helm, the Red Raiders still boast a mix of returning and new talent. Cousins Madden Soliai and Malaki Soliai-Tui committed to UCLA over the summer, while linebacker and USC commit Talanoa Ili is ranked by 247Sports as the top prospect in the state. Ili is a senior and a transfer from Orange Lutheran High School in California, where he was a three-year starter.
Another transfer that has bolstered Kahuku's roster is tight end Kekua "Rhino" Aumua, a Florida commit who transferred in from IMG Academy. Meanwhile, quarterback Matai Fuiava is back for his senior year after transferring to Kahuku from St. John Bosco in California midway through the 2024 season.
Saint Louis is led by a pair of seniors in quarterback Nainoa Lopes and offensive lineman Kamo‘i Huihui-White, both of whom have committed to California. Additionally, senior cornerback Jahren Altura committed to Hawai‘i over the summer.
Kahuku and Saint Louis also opened the 2024 season against each other at Kahuku, with the Red Raiders escaping with a 14-13 victory on Aug. 10, 2024.
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Christian Shimabuku can be reached at christian@alohastatedaily.com.
