Week 2: High school football games to watch in the South Sound, predictions
Voting is now closed for The News Tribune’s high school football game of the week poll.
This game of the week, as voted on by fans is:
Curtis vs. Sumner
Look for our game coverage of the 4A SPSL matchup Friday night.
Read about the top five games in the South Sound in Week 2 below, plus our pick for the state game of the week.
4A SPSL
Curtis Vikings (1-0) vs. Sumner Spartans (1-0)
7 p.m. Friday, Sunset Chev Stadium, Sumner
Both teams are coming into this matchup with all the confidence in the world after blowout wins in Week 1. Sumner blanked Bellarmine Prep, 40-0, while Curtis blew out Olympia, 45-13. Sumner will need to slow down dual-threat Curtis QB Rocco Koch, who finished 11-of-12 passing for 207 yards and five touchdowns and added 128 yards and another score on 15 carries against Olympia. All three of WR Xavier Ahrens’ catches went for touchdowns against the Bears, and he racked up a pair of interceptions on defense. WR Parker Mady also had a pair of receiving TDs.
Can Curtis match up with Sumner up front? The Spartans are always difficult to slow down in the run game, paced this year by OL Dylan Sikorski. Reigning 4A SPSL MVP Matthew Spurbeck is starting at linebacker and taking on a reduced load at running back this year, but he still racked up 77 yards and three touchdowns in last week’s win. RB Steele Isaacs added another. Sumner coach Keith Ross has to love what he saw from first-year starting QB Tristen Rebar, who completed 12-of-15 passes for 258 yards and a pair of TDs in the win.
TNT pick: Sumner 28, Curtis 27
4A SPSL
Graham-Kapowsin Eagles (1-0) vs. Puyallup Vikings (0-1)
7 p.m. Friday, Sparks Stadium, Puyallup
The Vikings stunned the Eagles — then the defending 4A state champions — on the road last season, posting a 30-13 victory and snapping Graham-Kapowsin’s 27-game league winning streak. How will this year’s meeting between perennial 4A SPSL powers play out? The Eagles are gearing up for another state run after advancing to the 4A semifinals last fall and opened their 2023 season with a 49-10 victory over Rogers last week on the road. QB Daveon Superales (18-of-23 passing, 289 yards, six TDs) and WR Malachi Durant (three catches, 92 yards, two TDs; 90-yard kickoff return TD) have the Eagles’ new high-flying offense rolling early. The Vikings, led by QB Kaden Rolfsness (9-of-14 passing, 150 yards, TD; 13 carries, 127 yards, TD), will look to even their record following a 36-23 season-opening loss to school district rival Emerald Ridge last week.
TNT pick: Graham-Kapowsin, 35-24
Nonleague
Eastmont Wildcats (1-0) vs. Timberline Blazers (1-0)
2 p.m. Saturday, South Sound Stadium, Lacey
Timberline impressed in Week 1, routing Kelso at home, 31-3. Ronaldo Gonzalez-Salazar paced the Blazers offense with 126 rushing yards and two TDs on 18 carries. Timberline will have a unique challenge in Week 2 against visiting Eastmont, which beat Mead, 28-19 in Week 1. Eastmont returns a senior-heavy team and runs a double wing offense with a lot of running backs getting touches. Senior Gunnar Peterson leads the way — he rushed for 149 yards and a pair of touchdowns in last week’s win over Mead. Timberline’s defense should be up to the task, with plenty of team speed and a physical front seven, led by LB Darrell Gipson.
TNT pick: Timberline 27, Eastmont 17
Nonleague
Union Titans (0-1) vs. Yelm Tornados (1-0)
7 p.m. Friday, Yelm High School, Yelm
Yelm’s two-week series against 4A southwest Washington schools concludes this week with a home matchup against Union, which lost 40-0 to O’Dea in Week 1. Thanks to a last-second field goal block from Anthony Kiamco, Yelm held on for an 8-7 road win over Camas at Doc Harris Stadium last week. Yelm’s defense was lights out and as good as advertised in the season opener against a traditionally strong Camas program, highlighted by UCLA commit Isaiah Patterson’s 13 tackles. We’d expect the Tornados’ offense to bounce back this week. Yelm RB Brayden Platt, who announced his commitment to Oregon on Monday, was limited to six carries against Camas, dealing with an injury.
Union will face an uphill battle trying to move the ball after losing QB Mitch Ratigan to a knee injury on the third play from scrimmage in last week’s loss to O’Dea; Jake Cole and Blake McDonald split reps after Ratigan’s injury. Whoever starts against Yelm, they’ll look to target Chase Lofton, the team’s top receiver.
TNT pick: Yelm 42, Union 7
Nonleague
Tumwater T-Birds (1-0) vs. North Kitsap Vikings (1-0)
7 p.m. Friday, North Kitsap High School, Poulsbo
The T-Birds and Vikings combined for 14 points in this matchup last September in Tumwater, in which two of the top defenses in 2A went head-to-head. The T-Birds’ defense scored what turned out to be the game’s winning points with a safety in the first quarter, and the offense added a passing touchdown just before the break to make it 8-0. The Vikings responded with a passing touchdown in the fourth, but couldn’t tie the game on the two-point try, and the T-Birds eventually secured a close 8-6 victory. How will the rematch between 2A state contenders play out this weekend? Tumwater enters the game following a convincing 49-8 win over Burlington-Edison in last Friday’s season-opener. North Kitsap, last year’s 2A state runner-up, posted a 24-21 victory over a tough 3A PCL program in Mount Tahoma on the road last weekend in Tacoma.
TNT pick: North Kitsap, 20-17
STATE GAME OF THE WEEK
Lake Stevens Vikings (1-0) vs. Bellevue Wolverines (0-1)
7 p.m. Friday, Bellevue Memorial Stadium, Bellevue
Lake Stevens posted a 37-28 win over Bellevue last September, in the first of 12 consecutive in-state wins for the Vikings on their way to the 4A state crown. The Vikings will look to win back-to-back contests against the perennial 3A state power Wolverines this weekend — this time on the road — in a matchup of two programs that could contend for the 4A and 3A titles, respectively, later this fall. The Vikings opened their title defense with a convincing 48-21 win over another 3A contender in Garfield last week, paced by six passing touchdowns from QB Kolton Matson. The Wolverines will look to rally from a 48-27 season-opening loss to Oregon 6A power Central Catholic — which reached the state semifinals last fall, losing to eventual champion West Linn — last week on the road.
TNT pick: Lake Stevens, 35-31
This story was originally published September 5, 2023 at 4:49 PM.
