Week 10: Previews, predictions for high school football playoffs in the South Sound
Read team previews and score predictions for five games across the South Sound in Week 10. Plus: our picks for every Week 10 playoff game involving South Sound teams.
Richland Bombers (6-3) vs. Yelm Tornados (7-2)
7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 8 at Yelm High School
Which Yelm defense shows up: the Tornados’ group that held QB Sione Kaho and the Lincoln Abes to 13 points, or the one that gave up 57 points to QB AJ Tuivaiave and the Graham-Kapowsin Eagles? That answer likely determines whether Yelm moves on to the state tournament or the season ends against a pass-happy Richland team this week. Richland sophomore QB Jackson Woodard (2,338 yards, 32 TDs, six INTs) is going to let it fly to receivers Colson Mackey (675 yards, 10 TDs) and Preston Bryant (543 yards, seven TDs). Yelm’s best defense may be ball control with its offense, running the football with QB Parker Myers and RB Nathan Ford. We take the Tornados at home in a close one.
TNT pick: Yelm 35, Richland 31
Auburn Trojans (5-4) vs. Sumner Spartans (8-1)
7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 8 at Sunset Chev Stadium
We’ll say it again – arrive early. The Sumner faithful regularly packs Sunset Chev Stadium to capacity and then some, spilling into standing room areas in the west endzone. That won’t change when nearby-Auburn visits town for the opening round of the playoffs at one of the better high school football environments around. Sumner handled each and every in-state opponent this season (loss at Oregon power West Linn, 34-27) and rolled through the 4A SPSL unblemished. Plenty of playmakers surround QB Nate Donavan, but it’s an elite defense that’s put Sumner at or near the top of the state landscape. It’ll an uphill battle for Auburn on Friday night. Trojans QB Baylen Erdmann and WR Lucas Whitehall-Gilkes form a valuable scoring battery, enough to put the latter into school history books with a single-season receiving record – it’s just too early to call a shocker in Sumner.
TNT pick: Sumner 38, Auburn 10
Rainier Beach Vikings (3-5) vs. Lincoln Abes (7-2)
7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 8 at Lincoln Bowl
The road to glory begins at Lincoln Bowl for Abes QB Sione Kaho and a standout defense that’s won six straight games (three of them over playoff teams). They stumbled early and dropped home games to Yelm and Camas, but the investment of scheduling a grueling non-league slate appears to have paid dividends in Tacoma. Kaho’s arm is blossoming of late, too. The sophomore is completing over 66 percent of his passes throughout the six-game heater (compared to just 54 percent in three games prior) along with the dual-threat’s 43-325-5 regular-season rushing total. The issue for opposing coordinators? Adjust for Kaho’s arm, and Lincoln’s run game gashes you for a big night on the ground. The Abes are questionable to return RB Jadeon Scranton (undisclosed injury), but Dominique Ervin and Maurice Gosby ran wild for 251 combined rushing yards and three touchdowns in the lead back’s absence last weekend at Peninsula. Three-star LB Dre Sio-Fetaui holds Division-I offers from Arizona and Nevada, a heavy hitter in the middle of Lincoln’s defense. Rainier Beach enters Tacoma similarly battle-tested with recent losses to fellow contenders Roosevelt (Oct. 18) and Eastside Catholic (10.25), but we like the Abes at home.
TNT pick: Lincoln 35, Rainier Beach 10
Skyline Spartans (6-3) at Emerald Ridge Jaguars (6-3)
7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 8 at Sparks Stadium
New head coach, new quarterback, same winning ways at Emerald Ridge. The defense is flourishing under first-year HC Torey Donovan as the Jaguars won five of their last six games (the loss to Sumner) to secure a home playoff game in the Round of 32. TE/LB Logan Lipscomb is excelling on both sides of the football, the team’s leading receiver (33-530-5) along with 34 tackles and two interceptions, a complement for Emerald Ridge’s two-headed rushing attack between freshman Malcolm Akuffo and senior Joshua Moultrie. Skyline’s offense runs through RB Joshua Menold (150-779-9), averaging 31 points per game across a three-game win streak. We think Emerald Ridge’s defense lifts them into the state bracket.
TNT pick: Emerald Ridge 17, Skyline 14
Mount Spokane Wildcats (5-4) vs. Mount Tahoma T-Birds (5-4)
2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 9 at Mount Tahoma Stadium
Gonzaga Prep and Mead were the class of Spokane football this year, but Mount Spokane improved as the season went on, winning its last five games of the season. They’ll face a team that has hit a similar hot streak in Mount Tahoma, which has won four straight, including an overtime win against previously undefeated Lakes last week. We think Keith Terry’s aggressive non-league scheduling makes Mount Tahoma battle tested. We like Mount Tahoma’s balance on offense, too: RB Felix Diaz (645 yards, five TDs) and QB Mikkah Cordero (seven rushing TDs) can both run the ball, and WR Elijah Durr (353 yards, five TDs) is a home run threat. We’ll take the T-Birds at home in a close one.
TNT pick: Mount Tahoma 20, Mount Spokane 17
SOUTH SOUND PLAYOFF PREDICTIONS
CLASS 4A
Camas 42, Stadium 14
Sumner 38, Auburn 10
Kennedy Catholic 35, Mount Si 7
Lake Stevens 49, Tahoma 14
Glacier Peak 28, Curtis 14
Bothell 24, Olympia 14
Yelm 35, Richland 31
Puyallup 28, Eastlake 21
Emerald Ridge 17, Skyline 14
Graham-Kapowsin 42, Jackson 14
CLASS 3A
Decatur 35, Bishop Blanchet 7
Lakes 35, White River 14
Roosevelt 42, Capital 14
Lincoln 35, Rainier Beach 10
Kennewick 28, Peninsula 14
Enumclaw 42, Southridge 14
Monroe 34, Bellarmine Prep 21
Mount Tahoma 20, Mount Spokane 17
Federal Way 28, Ferndale 21
CLASS 2A
Tumwater 56, Renton 0
Franklin Pierce 56, Columbia River 7
W.F. West 35, Sequim 7
Orting 35, Toppenish 21
Prosser 28, Steilacoom 21
Ridgefield 21, Fife 14
CLASS 1A
Life Christian Academy 42, Rochester 24
Cascade Christian 21, Castle Rock 14
This story was originally published November 6, 2024 at 1:22 PM.
