Contrary to what some opponents might believe, there is only one No. 29 playing defense for Iolani School's football team.

It just seems like there's more because linebacker Jon Takamura — who wears that jersey number — appears to be all over the field and is in on almost every tackle.

Likewise on offense, the Raiders' No. 7 (Mike Hirokawa) is in every foe's scouting report and shows up repeatedly on game film in various capacities. The 5-foot-9, 165-pound running back can hurt you by running, catching or throwing the ball, not to mention returning kicks.

When it comes to being "impact players," seniors Takamura and Hirokawa fit the description perfectly.

"Jon has been all over the field in every game, and we expect him to make a lot of plays," Iolani coach Wendell Look said. "Mikey's strength is his versatility, so we try to get the ball into his hands in as many ways as we can."

Moanalua, the Raiders' opponent in the Division II state semifinals, will no doubt see a lot of Nos. 7 and 29 at Iolani's Eddie Hamada Field on Saturday.

In Hirokawa's last appearance there, against Damien on Nov. 4, he rushed for 213 yards and three touchdowns on 24 carries, caught a TD pass and threw for another touchdown in the Raiders' wild 57-49 victory for the Interscholastic League of Honolulu Division II championship.

"Mikey is kind of a low-key guy and he doesn't get a lot of recognition, but he gets the job done," Look said. "I really think he's one of the best running backs, not just in our league, but the whole state."

The statistics back up that assessment.

Hirokawa has rushed for 1,059 yards, good for third place in Hawai'i after Damien's Kealoha Pilares (1,741) and Moanalua's Stanford Leti (1,092). He has eight rushing touchdowns and averages 7.7 yards per carry; caught 21 passes for 380 yards and six touchdowns; and also had a 93-yard kick return for a touchdown.

His explosive bursts through the line of scrimmage and 4.4-second speed in the 40-yard dash allow him to break long runs, but he also has surprising strength.

"Our line is undersized and relatively inexperienced, but he's able to break tackles and absorb and deliver physical punishment," Look said. "Physically and mentally, he's really blossomed since his sophomore year."

The same can be said for Takamura, who at 6-2 and 210 pounds is the fourth-biggest player on the team. Working behind a small defensive front, he shoulders a heavier load than most linebackers.

"Most people don't see the kind of conditions he has to work with, playing behind a small line," Look said. "We ask him to do a lot, moving him around even into the secondary, and he draws a lot of one-on-one blocking. But he never complains about it, and he's always been an intelligent player. He's a role model to a lot of kids on the team and in school."

Takamura, who also is Iolani's punter and blocked a punt against Saint Louis, has been a key member of the Raiders' past two state championship basketball teams and carries a 4.2 grade point average while taking advanced placement biology, AP government and Calculus III.

For football, he is being recruited by Washington, Utah, Oregon State and Texas-El Paso, but also is considering Harvard, Brown, Yale and Cornell.

Hirokawa, who also plays baseball, has a 3.7 GPA with a schedule that includes four AP courses (biology, calculus, statistics and economics). He already completed AP physics and his college choices include Occidental, Claremont McKenna, Cornell Princeton and Dartmouth.

Hirokawa and Takamura are both interested in medical school, and both are quick to credit their teammates when dissecting their own on-field success.

"Our defensive line amazes me with the plays they make," Takamura said. "It's been a total team effort."

Hirokawa says the same thing about the offense.

"Coach spreads it out and gets everybody involved," Hirokawa said. "My line is busting their (behind) for us, so I gotta do my part, too."

Reach Wes Nakama at wnakama@honoluluadvertiser.com.