After an abrupt firing from his position as Kahuku football head coach in 2025, Sterling Carvalho is thriving.
The man who led the Red Raiders to three consecutive Open Division state championships from 2021 through 2023 is now very much making his presence felt on the world stage.
Indeed, Carvalho is the head coach for the American Samoa national flag football team.
And, let it be known, his team is on fire. Check it out. The American Samoa squad:
>> Despite entering as the lowest-ranked team, finished fifth in the 16-team world championships in Düsseldorf, Germany, in August, but fell short of securing one of two Olympic berths.
>> Scored a massive 38-32 upset of the United States — the unquestioned No. 1 team in the world. The U.S. hadn’t lost a game since 2012, and after recovering from the surprising defeat, has now captured six straight world titles.
>> Is focused on the future, continuing its quest to qualify for the 2028 Summer Games. Three Olympic berths are still up for grabs.
“This is super important,” Carvalho said about the preparation the team is going through. “Everybody dreams of the Olympics. Even professional players consider a gold medal to be just as important as a championship in their respective sport. We are working on being the best in the world.”
Still very much an underdog, American Samoa did more than topple the U.S. It also beat world No. 7 Japan and No. 8 Australia while finishing 4-2 in Düsseldorf.
Those wonderful Kahuku title years are in the rearview mirror for the coach who hails from Kauai, where he started playing football and quarterbacked the Kauai High Red Raiders in the early 1990s.
“I am so grateful now,” the coach said during a Tuesday phone interview. “If I (hadn’t been fired) I would never have had this opportunity to be coaching a country’s national team, let alone go to a world championship with 16 of the best teams in the world. God has a plan.”
It just so happens that Taulia Tagovailoa, who played part of his high school career at Kapolei, is American Samoa’s quarterback. The brother of Atlanta Falcons QB Tua Tagovailoa has a solid resume, too, having starred at the University of Maryland before pro stints in the Canadian Football League, the United Football League, and in Europe.
“Taulia has had so much success in college and (has been in) the pros, so it took some of our players by surprise just how much of a down-to-earth, super coachable guy he is. He could easily say things like, ‘No coach, we’re going to do it this way,’ but instead he says to the others, ‘Guys, let’s listen to coach, this is how he wants us to do it.’ He’s won the respect of all of his teammates.”
The Tagovailoa connection is no coincidence. Carvalho’s chance to coach American Samoa came after a phone call from Galu Tagovailoa, the patriarch of that quarterbacking family.
“Galu called about a year ago, wondering what I was up to,” Carvalho said. “He said they were putting the national team together and asked if I could help out. I showed up and I came to find out he assigned me to be the head coach and offensive coordinator. The team was put together from scratch.”
After Carvalho recruited five players from California, American Samoa played in its first tournament, the Asia-Oceania championships in China, with 14 teams in the field.
“We didn’t practice until two days prior,” the coach said. “So for two days we would have a film session at 5 a.m., breakfast, practice, lunch, another film session and a walk-through.”
Despite the rush to get ready, American Samoa placed third behind Australia and Japan and qualified for worlds, which led to the dramatic victory over the U.S.
“We shocked the world,” Carvalho added. “Everybody outside the U.S. wants to beat them, but nobody could for 14 years.”
For international 5-on-5 tournaments, teams are allowed to have a roster of 12 with two alternates. At the Olympics, teams can have only 10 on the roster.
With anywhere from 16 to 24 players in their training pool, American Samoa holds its practices in California, and the roster changes often.
At a recent open tryout, some “studs” showed up, according to Carvalho, including former Campbell and UCLA standout receiver Titus Mokiao-Atimalala.
“Titus didn’t miss a step,” the coach added. “It was great catching up with him. He’s as advertised. Spot-on for what we want. We’re looking for character guys like him, who are not just representing the team, but also a whole country.”
American Samoa’s Olympic hopes are helped by the fact that the three world championship medalists — the U.S., Italy and Canada — have already qualified and will not compete in the upcoming qualifying series. The U.S. received an automatic berth as the host nation.
To get to the Olympics, American Samoa must first earn one of two qualifying positions available to Oceania teams at the 2027 Asia-Oceania championship in Australia, which is expected to be held in October. If they advance, they will be competing at Olympic qualifying series events in Montreal and Orlando, Florida, in June 2028, with three Olympic spots available.
Carvalho helping the HPU women’s program
There’s more to Carvalho’s flag football life. He and two other former Hawaii high school football head coaches have been involved in the development of the Hawaii Pacific University women’s team.
“They’re making history, the first college flag football team here,” Carvalho said about coach Kanda Korver’s program.
Reggie Torres and Wendell Say are also helping out. Torres coached Kahuku to top-tier state championships in 2006, 2011 and 2012, while Say led Aiea to the 2003 D-II state title.
The Sharks begin intercollegiate competition in spring 2027.