TNT’s Week 7 all-classification power rankings: We have a new No. 1

Six weeks are in the books in the high school football season in the South Sound and across Washington state. The News Tribune’s high school sports crew is ranking the top teams again this fall.

Teams from every classification are considered for the Top 10 list, which will be updated throughout the season. We’ll consider a variety of factors when adjusting rankings, not just wins and losses. Did a team lose because its star quarterback was hurt and didn’t play? Maybe that team won’t slide. Is a team lower in the standings than other teams in the league because of a more difficult non-league schedule? We’ll consider that, too.

Here’s our Week 7 Top 10, plus ‘The Next Five.’

1. Puyallup (6-0) — A 58-22 win over reigning 4A state champion Sumner catapults the Vikings into the top spot. Loaded roster at every position; junior QB Noah Smith didn’t miss a beat when stepping in after sitting four games.

2. Graham-Kapowsin (6-0) — An injury to sophomore starting QB AJ Tuivaiave (ankle) kept things tight against Bethel, but he should be back in time for G-K’s playoff run. Eagles wrap up schedule with Olympia and Spanaway Lake before 4A SPSL championship showdown with Puyallup.

3. Sumner (3-3) — Spartans will go as bulldozing RB Lance McGee goes. Can Keith Ross get more out of his defense, though? In three losses, Sumner has given up an average of 40 points per game.

4. Mount Tahoma (6-0) — WR/DB Elijah Durr keeps showing why he’s one of the state’s top two-way players, but this team is primarily winning games up front with nasty line play.

5. Tumwater (5-1) — No 4A team has played Puyallup as tight as Tumwater did in Week 1. Since that narrow loss, five straight blowout wins for the T-Birds. Fun stat: last week’s win over district rival Black Hills marked three straight games with a Tumwater pick six from a defensive lineman (Nate Lowery against Nooksack Valley, Landon Anchors against Union and Black Hills).

6. Lakes (6-0) — Another year, another contending team under longtime head coach Dave Miller. Freshman QB Jadis LeFono is completing nearly 70 percent of his passes, and the defense has allowed 34 total points through six games.

7. Enumclaw (6-0) — “Claw Dawgz” are the 3A NPSL’s still-unbeaten top dogs, setting up a potential 3A NPSL championship with crosstown-rival White River on Halloween. Hornets have rushed for 1,299 yards and 27 total touchdowns on the ground.

8. Curtis (5-1) — Vikings have rushed for 300+ yards in consecutive games with Ryland Geldermann and Tyce Kinley, including an impressive 46-13 rout of Emerald Ridge. Heavyweight matchups with Sumner and Puyallup loom.

9. Kennedy Catholic (4-2) — Lancers have won four straight, each by 25+ points, after opening losses to Bothell and Sumner. Kennedy Catholic’s last 4A NPSL loss? Oct. 18, 2018.

10. Bethel (4-2) — Three-star recruit Ramzak Fruean is cementing his status as the state’s top linebacker. The Bison blanked Spanaway Lake and held Olympia to three points, part of an earlier four-game win streak.

The Next Five

Orting, Franklin Pierce, Lincoln, White River, Tahoma

This story was originally published October 15, 2025 at 5:00 AM.