Reigning 4A state champion Graham-Kapowsin went undefeated last fall. Can the Eagles defend their title in 2022?
Graham-Kapowsin High School football completed the perfect season last fall.
The Eagles started with a convincing run through the Class 4A South Puget Sound League — perennially one of the toughest and deepest league’s in the state.
They shut out five of their nine league opponents, and didn’t allow an opponent to score until Week 4, when Puyallup connected on a field goal late in the second quarter.
Curtis managed 12 points against Graham-Kapowsin the following week, and Sumner scored 14 against the Eagles late in Week 7.
But, that was it. The Eagles scored at least five touchdowns in each league contest, never trailed in a game and cruised to a third consecutive 4A SPSL title.
Then they routed two 4A NPSL teams in the district playoffs and first round of the state playoffs in Federal Way and Kentwood. Bothell scored 25 points against Graham-Kapowsin in the quarterfinals — a season-high for an in-state team — but the Eagles still won by a comfortable margin. The next week they shut out Kamiakin in the semifinals.
Graham-Kapowsin unleashed another dominant performance in the 4A state championship game the following week, routing Lake Stevens, 44-7, to secure the first state title in program history.
The Eagles lifted the trophy on a chilly December night in Tacoma, also becoming the first South Sound school to win the 4A championship since 2002.
Two weeks later, they won again. Playing Georgia 7A champion Collins Hill in the GEICO State Champions Bowl Series in Las Vegas, the Eagles charged down the field in the closing moments of the fourth quarter and delivered the winning touchdown with one second remaining.
There, the Eagles completed their perfect 15-0 season, filled with thrilling performances from beginning to end.
“It was just great all around to have those experiences,” Eagles senior Jalen Davenport said last week, as practices got underway ahead of the 2022 season.
Eight months later, where are the Eagles now? Looking to make another memorable run this fall.
“Everybody just has to buy-in, have the same mentality that they want to win and go win another ring,” Davenport said. “Same mentality as last year, really. Come in and just show everybody what we’re really capable of.”
Several key playmakers from last season’s Graham-Kapowsin team have graduated. Quarterback Joshua Wood, the state’s Gatorade Player of the Year and 4A SPSL offensive player of the year last fall, is now at Fresno State.
Wide receiver Julian Mason, the league’s co-MVP, along with defensive lineman of the year Curtis Hill and first-team defensive lineman Hunter Hill moved on to Idaho State. Co-offensive lineman of the year Vega Ioane is at Penn State.
Five more 4A SPSL first-team selections — leading rusher Zack Lee, another Division I-bound playmaker in tight end Andrew Savaiinaea, now at Florida, offensive linemen Josh Holder and Austin Siitia, and defensive back Myles Haywood — also graduated.
Still, the group returning expects to compete for another 4A SPSL title and at the state level again this fall.
“As seniors, we need to step up and fill those shoes,” Graham-Kapowsin safety Ethan Pletcher said. “ … We know what we have to do. We’ve been in the weight room the entire offseason. We know what it takes, because they set the path for us to pave.”
Eagles coach Jeff Logan is in his first season leading the program after taking over for longtime coach Eric Kurle, but is entering his ninth season on the staff after coaching quarterbacks for five seasons and guiding Graham-Kapowsin’s offense for three.
While the Eagles will have to reload at several positions — the Eagles return seven starters from last season’s team — many of their returners have game experience against tough 4A SPSL opponents and in the postseason, as well as matching up with former Graham-Kapowsin standouts who have gone on to play in college.
“We’ve got a lot of guys who’ve got experience,” Logan said. “They might not have as much experience as one of the seven guys that started for us full time, but they’ve gone against those guys for 2-3 years now.
“Our sophomore and junior class is kind of where we’re big, and so they’ve had a couple years of experience in practicing against some of those guys.”
The Eagles do bring back seven players who earned league honors last fall, and players on both the offensive and defensive sides looking to make an impact this season as the Eagles begin the defense of their league and state titles.
“Offensively, I’d say we’ve got a really talented quarterback in Daveon (Superales). We’ve got a really solid receiver corps. Everybody can go catch the ball and make spectacular plays,” Davenport said.
“Our defense is really strong, still. … They’ll all get after the ball and play aggressively.”
The Eagles are also looking forward to the return of Davenport — a standout running back and linebacker, and last season’s 4A SPSL co-MVP — this fall, who is working his way back from a knee injury against Collins Hill last December.
Davenport collected 674 rushing yards and scored a team-high 13 rushing touchdowns for the Eagles last fall, while also leading the program with 89 tackles, including five for losses and one sack.
He said last week he “can’t wait to get back out here” on the field with his teammates, and the process of working back to full strength has gone well.
“It’s definitely making me stronger and value taking care of my body a lot more,” he said. “It’s really tough sometimes, too, of course. There’s ups and downs moments of it. But, you’ve got to look at the bright side, and just focus on getting back and helping the team out.”
Graham-Kapowsin opens the season against Rogers on Sept. 1, and as the Eagles begin a fresh set of games looking to continue their recent stretch of victories — the program has an active 20-game winning streak the past two seasons — this group is “ready to go,” Logan said.
“I think these guys are ready to get going and show what they can do,” he said.
This story was originally published August 23, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
