By Wes Nakama
Even a young and inexperienced Punahou football team was too much for ‘Iolani on Friday afternoon, as the visiting Buff ‘n Blue shut out the Raiders, 42-0, at Eddie Hamada Field.
It was the first meeting between Division I ‘Iolani and Open Division Punahou since 2016, when the Buff ‘n Blue won, 49-24.
Friday’s game got away from the Raiders quickly, as Punahou built leads of 14-0 after one quarter, 28-0 at halftime and 35-0 one minute into the third quarter, prompting a running clock. Nelson Aau rushed for 115 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries and Dane Kellner returned two punts for TDs as the Buff ‘n Blue, who were coming off losses of 30-7 to Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.) and 49-17 to Campbell, evened their record at 2-2. ‘Iolani fell to 2-3.
“The last couple games, we fell short on execution, we fell short in several different areas,” Punahou coach Nate Kia said. “With a young team, it’s not uncommon, it wasn’t even surprising. But it gets more urgent when you’re one game away from playing our ILH Open Division schedule. For us to come out and execute (today) was big, but there’s still tons to work on.”
Kellner got the Buff ‘n Blue on the board quickly with an impressive 70-yard punt return for a touchdown just three-and-a-half minutes into the game. After the Raiders’ ensuing possession ended in an interception by linebacker Iloa Kaio, Punahou marched 44 yards in seven plays, culminating in Aau’s 3-yard TD run on fourth-and-goal with 3:41 remaining in the first quarter.
Carson Beard’s extra point made it 14-0.
Aau then capped an 11-play, 52-yard scoring drive with a 16-yard run, and Beard’s PAT made it 21-0 with 7:34 still left in the second quarter. Aau then finished a 10-play, 63-yard march with his third TD from 10 yards out.
“We knew after our Campbell loss that our offense was pretty good,” said Aau, who rushed for 115 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries against the Sabers. “We just gotta execute our plays, that’s all. Coming into this game, we knew they (‘Iolani) have some guys, they have speed. But overall we have more size.”
Aau, a quick and explosive senior who impressed in spot duty last season, said he gained 25 pounds of muscle in the past year and is now at 5-foot-7, 170.
“Just a lot of lifting and eating, and running and conditioning,” Aau said, when asked how he put on weight while keeping his elusiveness. “It feels great, the last couple years I was just watching … to just carry on, my senior year now.”
Kia said Aau was a top backup at both running back and slot last season, and earned his starting role this season.
“He was starving for the opportunity in the offseason, and you can see he put in a lot of work,” Kia said. “He’s been a tremendous leader. He’s not a super loud rah-rah guy, but what he is, he’s an everyday grinder. He works super hard … the team has trust in him, they know he’s going to give his max effort and do everything right and unselfishly for the team.”
Defensively, the Buff ‘n Blue limited the Raiders to 133 yards of total offense.
“Being able to play against a very well-coached disciplined team that knows how to execute, that was important for us,” Kia said. “For us to prepare and have to address that was a huge opportunity and necessary step for us.”
Photos: Lori McKeown
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