OC-16 Considers televising MIL Football

Good news for neighbor island football is that OC-16 is considering televising Maui Interscholastic League football games. OC-16 which has televised high school football games in O'ahu for nearly 20 years has indirectly helped give greater exposure to high school players on this island. Plain and simple there broadcasts provide good video and analysis of prospective football recruits.


Sunday, April 16, 2006 8:35 AM
OC-16 considers televising MIL football games
By ROBERT COLLIAS, Staff Writer

WAILUKU – OC-16 might televise Maui Interscholastic League football games in 2006.

Dave Vinton, manager of sports for the Time-Warner cable station, confirmed Saturday that the channel wants to add MIL games.

OC-16 will televise Oahu Interscholastic Association football games for the 17th season this fall. Last year, OC-16 televised Kealakehe’s 35-6 win over Keeau for the Big Island Interscholastic Federation Division I football title and did a pair of BIIF volleyball games. The station is also expanding its NCAA Division II basketball coverage, which has included games in Hilo.

Vinton contacted the MIL last week to get a preliminary football schedule, but he said the number of Maui games that might be televised are among a slew of questions still to be worked out.

“We’re checking out the options,’’ Vinton said via telephone on Saturday. “We know that Maui has some great teams. We just want to get those teams on the air so the rest of the state can see them.’’

Vinton said his first conversations with MIL officials, including executive secretary Stephen Kim, have gone well.

“We’re at the stage where we wanted to see what their reaction was going to be,’’ he said. “Their reaction was what we thought it would be – they would be happy to be on television and we are happy that they are happy.’’

Vinton’s first vision was to show an MIL championship game, but a title game for either Division I or Division II would only happen if there are separate champions in the first and second rounds of either level.

Vinton, who also serves as a sideline reporter for weekly OIA football games on Friday nights, said that the announcers available include Larry Price, Russell Shimooka and Kanoa Leahey.

With the station committed to OIA football games on Friday nights, Vinton said that MIL games may come on Saturdays or possibly as 5 p.m. games in a doubleheader format with OIA games on Fridays. He added that the station would like to have a decision on which and how many MIL games will be on the air by July.

Vinton said that MIL volleyball and boys basketball games are possibilities for future years.

“We feel we are a statewide station and if we could help out the Maui schools in any way, that would be great,’’ Vinton said. “The student-athletes are what it is about and to get them out there in any way possible is the goal.’’

http://www.mauinews.com/story.aspx?id=18752