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“I don’t feel as short as I look,” Maiava said.
Maiava, Capital High School’s junior cornerback, is generously listed on the team’s football roster at 5-foot-8, but he admits he’s “more like 5-5 or 5-6.”
“I’m definitely not 5-8,” he said.
Forget his height and concentrate on the number of interceptions he has through 11 games – eight – more than any other South Sound player this season.
Not bad for a first-year varsity cornerback who more often than not covers receivers standing 6 inches and more taller each week.
Maiava and the Capital secondary have come up big this season. They will need to be a positive factor in their 3A state quarterfinal game against O’Dea (11-0) at 1 p.m. today at Seattle Memorial Stadium.
Capital (8-3) and O’Dea have seen a lot of each other in recent years. Counting playoffs and the regular season, today’s game will be the seventh between the teams since 2007.
This will be the second year in a row the teams play twice – they also met in Week 1. Capital won both times last season, but the Irish beat the Cougars, 28-14, on Sept. 2 in a season opener.
While Maiava usually faces a size disadvantage on the receivers he covers, he studies their tendencies and is quick to fill a gap.
Maiava’s success isn’t solely because of his cat-like quickness to the ball or his ability to hang with receivers in one-on-one coverage. It’s the product of a full effort by the defense, which starts with pressure on the quarterback.
In practice, Maiava goes up against tall teammates in receivers Darius Antalan (6-2) and Derek Chase (6-1).
“On all of the interceptions, there’s been pressure on the quarterback,” Maiava said. “The coaches put me in the right place. All I have to do is catch the ball.”
Capital coach J.D. Johnson is more concerned about the size of his players’ heart and determination than their physical size.
“Like I tell them, it’s not about how big you are, it’s about how big you play,” Johnson said.
Maiava, the second-oldest of five children, has always been small for his position. He began playing football as an eighth-grader for Thurston County Youth Football League (TCYFL) and was a wide receiver until last year.
As a sophomore on the junior varsity in 2010, he played sparingly in some regular-season varsity games when the Cougars built big leads on foes.
Johnson remembers late last season when Maiava picked off then-starting quarterback Alex Everson in a practice. That’s when Johnson knew he had found a new starting cornerback for 2011.
He called Maiava a bright spot this season.
“He’ll do what you ask him to do,” Johnson said.
Maiava had the perfect mentor to help him relate to playing small. Older brother Jay – listed generously at 5-11 – was Capital’s leading tackler last season from his starting linebacker position. He was quick to advise Tad to stay mentally tough.
“Jay has been a big part,” Tad Maiava said. “He’s helped me out a lot with that. That’s a big part of the game.”
Not many teams can say their season turned around after a blowout loss that extended a losing streak to three games, but that’s exactly what has happened with Capital.
Since suffering a 57-7 loss to Lakes in Week 3 to drop their record to 0-3, the Cougars, with just nine seniors, have been on a tear. They’ve won eight consecutive games, and put up 40 or more points in four of their past six contests.
A victory today over the Irish would send Capital into the 3A state semifinals for the second year in a row and for the third time in four years.
“It would be really big (if we beat O’Dea),” Maiava said. “We knew we weren’t on our game the first time. If we win this game, it will be that much better. It’s always nice to prove people wrong.”
Meg Wochnick: 360-754-5473
mwochnick@theolympian.com
