Final high school football power rankings: Top 25 teams in South Sound
Nine weeks of high school football across the South Sound is in the books.
This season, The News Tribune’s high school sports team has ranked the top 10 programs in the area every two weeks. Now that the regular season is complete and teams are gearing up for the playoffs, here are our final rankings for 2022. This week’s list is expanded to 25 teams.
We considered a variety of factors when ranking teams throughout the season, not just wins and losses, and did the same for this final list.
Here’s the Top 25 at the end of the regular season:
THE TOP 25
1. Yelm (9-0) — The only team in a loaded 3A classification to surpass 500 points during the regular season, The Tornados outscored their opponents, 511-69, and won every game by at least 30 points. Yelm picked up signature nonleague wins over 4A programs Camas and Union before making a convincing run to an undefeated 3A SSC title.
2. Sumner (8-1) — One of only three teams in 4A to finish the regular season with eight wins, the Spartans regrouped from a slow start and a Week 3 loss to Emerald Ridge by rattling off six consecutive wins to secure their first 4A SPSL title since 2016. RB Matthew Spurbeck (190 carries, 1,545 yards, 15 TDs) led the South Sound in rushing.
3. Graham-Kapowsin (7-2) — The defending 4A state champions enter the postseason on a four-game winning streak after losses to Puyallup in Week 2 and league champion Sumner in Week 5. After graduating much of last season’s title-winning team, Eagles have proven they still have pieces to make a convincing playoff run.
4. Emerald Ridge (7-2) — Jaguars made a statement in 4A SPSL play as the only team to solve league champion Sumner with a 10-point win in Week 3. Emerald Ridge’s only losses — to Puyallup in the season-opener and Graham-Kapowsin in Week 8 — bookended a winning streak that reached six games during the regular season. QB Jake Schakel (155-of-220 passing, 2,175 yards, 26 TDs) and a high-scoring offense now look to lead the Jaguars to the first state playoffs appearance in school history.
5. Lincoln (9-0) — The Abes made a convincing run to a second consecutive 3A PCL championship, and enter the postseason as one of three remaining undefeated teams in 3A. The state’s top-ranked quarterback, Missouri commit Gabarri Johnson (87-of-124 passing, 1,775 yards, 19 TDs; 120 carries, 1,214 yards, 13 TDs), is averaging 332.1 total yards and 3.6 total touchdowns per game.
6. Kennedy Catholic (8-1) — The Lancers swept the 4A NPSL to secure a fourth consecutive undefeated league title, and enter the postseason on an eight-game winning streak after dropping their only regular season loss to 3A power Eastside Catholic in the season-opener. No team in 4A scored more points than Kennedy Catholic’s 396 during the regular season. One of only three teams in 4A to finish the regular season with eight wins.
7. Curtis (6-3) — A young Vikings program played 4A SPSL champion Sumner and defending 4A state champion Graham-Kapowsin tough in one-possession losses, and dropped their only other league loss to Emerald Ridge. A statement 34-point win over Puyallup last week, and a three-game winning streak to close out the regular season should give Curtis a boost heading into the playoffs.
8. Spanaway Lake (6-2) — Sentinels posted six consecutive wins between a season-opening loss to Gig Harbor — when they were without QB Dempsy James (47-of-94 passing, 647 yards, eight TDs; 60 carries, 421 yards, nine TDs) — and a loss to 3A PCL champion Lincoln in the regular season finale.
9. Lakes (6-2) — Lancers opened the season with five consecutive wins before back-to-back losses to Spanaway Lake and 3A PCL champion Lincoln. BYU commit Leo Pulalasi posted a career game (12 carries, 232 yards, five TDs) in last week’s win over Mount Tahoma to send Lakes to the playoffs.
10. Enumclaw (9-0) — The Hornets bested a pair of 3A programs in Peninsula and Silas to open the season, then rolled to seven more wins in league contests and an undefeated 2A SPSL title. The 458 points Enumclaw scored during the regular season led the 2A classification. The Hornets are one of two undefeated teams remaining in 2A, along with defending state champion Lynden.
11. Tumwater (8-1) — The T-Birds opened with three nonleague wins — including topping a pair of playoff teams in 2A Olympic champion North Kitsap and 3A GSHL winner Kelso — but their chances at another 2A EvCo title ended with a loss to W.F. West in Week 5. Tumwater regrouped with four decisive wins to close out the regular season.
12. Puyallup (6-3) — Impressive wins over Emerald Ridge and defending 4A state champion Graham-Kapowsin the first two weeks gave the Vikings an early lead in the 4A SPSL standings, but a 30-point loss to Sumner in Week 4 started to even the league out at the top. A pair of losses to Bellarmine Prep and Curtis the final two weeks have the Vikings heading into the playoffs looking to regroup on the road.
13. Peninsula (7-2) — The Seahawks posted six consecutive wins by two or more possessions between their only two regular season losses — to undefeated 2A SPSL winner Enumclaw in Week 1 and undefeated 3A SSC champion Yelm in Week 8 — and enter the postseason on the heels of an overtime win against Timberline last week.
14. Federal Way (7-2) — After a loss to 4A NPSL champion Kennedy Catholic in late September, Eagles averaged 50.8 points per game over the final four weeks of the regular season. Two-way star Rahshawn Clark is a nationally-coveted recruit and Oregon State commit Andre Piper-Jordan has been the team’s top producer at receiver.
15. Eatonville (7-2) — Cruisers have had a weird schedule, playing just twice in October because of illness within the program and an opponent forfeit the following week. Still one of the state’s best offenses — QB Job Kralik (26-of-36 passing, 538 yards, six TDs; 60 carries, 562 yards, 16 TDs) is a playmaker.
16. Tenino (8-1) — After a late September loss to Eatonville, Beavers averaged 50 points per game during the final four weeks of the regular season. RB Dylan Spicer (141 carries, 1,481 yards, 19 TDs) has been one of the state’s most productive rushers.
17. Auburn (8-1) — Win over Auburn Riverside secured first league title since 2009 for the 3A NPSL champion Trojans. QB Amari Goodfellow (160-of-232 passing, 1,841 yards, 18 TDs; 136 carries, 785 yards, 14 TDs) is a dangerous dual-threat.
18. Timberline (6-3) — WR Jerrell Larkins is a legit big-play threat downfield and DL Darrell Gipson has been disruptive all season for the Blazers’ defense.
19. Gig Harbor (6-3) — Tides QB Will Landram, whose future is likely in basketball, quietly put together an impressive campaign, completing 136-of-211 passes for 2,036 yards and 23 touchdowns. Also rushed for 260 yards and seven touchdowns.
20. Bethel (4-5) — Tough defense earned Bethel a spot in the postseason. DL Zaydrius Rainey-Sale, a 6-foot-2, 215-pound sophomore, should see his recruitment take off.
21. Olympia (3-6) — For second straight year, Bears will feel there were games up for grabs in crowded 4A SPSL — Olympia’s losses to Curtis, Bethel and Puyallup came by a combined 14 points. Portland State commit Gabe Downing (227-of-337 passing, 2,716 yards, 23 TDs) had another productive season.
22. Bellarmine Prep (3-6) — Lions struggled to consistently put points on the board in 2022, but were able to play spoiler in late-season 13-12 win over Puyallup.
23. Mount Tahoma (4-5) —One of the state’s most improved teams, Mount Tahoma just missed out on the playoffs after losing to Lakes. QB Derrik McKinney (82-of-143 passing, 1,441 yards, 14 TDs; 102 carries, 792 yards, 11 TDs) was a matchup issue for defenses.
24. Auburn Riverside (4-5) — Ravens stumbled down the stretch, dropping three straight to Kennedy Catholic, Auburn Mountainview and Auburn. Carter Rhooms and Jace Villers combined for 12 receiving touchdowns during the regular season.
25. Washington (6-3) — After an 0-3 start, Washington hasn’t lost, beating every team except undefeated 2A SPSL champion Enumclaw in league play. QB Luke Elliott (88-of-172 passing, 1,628 yards, 17 TDs) targeted WR Breydan Fisher (46 catches, 902 yards, 11 TDs) often in the passing game.
PREVIOUS RANKINGS
Preseason | Week 3 | Week 5 | Week 7 | Week 9
