November football is finally here. And the sprint to Husky Stadium is officially underway.
Week 10 unveiled the “unofficial” seeds for the top four classifications and in Class 2B and 1B, a highly anticipated crossover round was finalized thanks to a coin toss.
By the time Sunday morning rolls around, we’ll have our field of 16 in Class 2A and 1B and the field of 12 in 1A and 2B.
Here is a capsule glance at the nine area Week 10 contests.
Class 2B Crossover: Toledo (7-2), vs. Napavine (6-3) at Centralia, 6 p.m.
One of the most anticipated games of the season will take place at Tiger Stadium in a win-and-in state tournament affair. It was nearly a year ago when the Riverhawks shut out the Tigers 42-0 in the state quarterfinals. Toledo will be without two-way star Nico Acosta, but Jaxyn Pelagio ran for 73 yards in Week 9 and Rhyder Buswell contributed in the running game as well. Napavine survived RSB 27-17 and slow starts have routinely shown up this season. The connection between QB Beckett Landram and WR Carter Edmonds has led the Tigers this season on offense and the front-seven has been the anchor on defense.
Class 2B Crossover: Rainier (4-4) at Adna (7-2), 6 p.m.
Two years ago these rivals met in the crossover and it was a blowout win for the Pirates. They’ve turned a corner since losing to Forks in Week 6, outscoring their opponents 149-6 to be in a three-way tie with Forks and Napavine. Beau Miller has scored multiple TDs since his return from injury. Rainier will take the field for the first time in 13 days after a Week 9 bye; it beat Toutle Lake comfortably in Week 8 to clinch the third spot in the C2BL East.
Class 2A Round of 32: Chief Sealth (0-9) at Tumwater (9-0), 6 p.m.
Heavy hearts will be on display at Tumwater District Stadium when the T-Birds put on a pregame ceremony to honor Coach Paul Snow. Snow, who was in charge of their PAT unit, passed away on Oct. 17. Tumwater is the unofficial No. 1 seed after completing an undefeated regular season where it has scored over 40 points every game to this point. Chief Sealth is winless after a gauntlet of a 2A/3A Metro League slate. The Seahawks’ closest margin of defeat was one point to Ballard in Week 3.
Class 2A Round of 32: Bremerton (5-4) at W.F. West (8-1), 7 p.m.
The Bearcats suffered their first loss of the season last week and now turn their attention to the Knights for potentially the last game in Chehalis this fall. As the unofficial sixth seed, W.F. West could be on the opposite side of Tumwater, Anacortes and Archbishop Murphy in the state bracket. Week 9 was the first time the Bearcats haven’t eclipsed 40 points since Week 3. Bremerton will play its third SW Washington program this year, it beat Elma in the season opener and lost to Rochester in Week 2.
Class 2A Round of 32: Black Hills (5-4) at Selah (8-1), 7 p.m.
It took a defensive stand in the fourth quarter, plus Hudson’s Bay beating Columbia River, to assure the Wolves a spot in the opening round of the playoffs. Jesse Keith scored two touchdowns against Aberdeen and Coen Reaves made an impact on both sides of the ball. Black Hills hasn’t won six games since the 2022 season. Selah has rolled this season with the lone loss being against Prosser by four. The Vikings allowed 20 points for the first time all year in Week 9.
Class 2B Crossover: Forks (8-1) at Onalaska (8-1), 7 p.m.
Forks ended up on the wrong end of a three-way coin flip in the C2BL West, and the result is a meeting between two top-10 8-1 teams with a state spot on the line. With a skill position group led by Bubba Hernandez (842 rushing yards, 11 touchdowns) and Cashtian Barajas (482 receiving yards, six touchdowns), Forks rolled to a 6-0 start, including a win over Adna, before suffering its only loss of the season to Napavine. Onalaska, as usual, has relied on a dominant ground game and won its last four regular season games by an average of 43.75 points per game.
Class 1B Crossover: Crescent (4-4) at Morton (6-2), Saturday, 1 p.m.
It’s a Saturday matinee in Morton, where the Huskies will be attempting to qualify for the state tournament as the Huskies for the first time since 1996 (according to the WIAA website). In their way is Crescent out of Port Angeles, which has had an up-and-down season. The Loggers were shutout in both of their last two games, but won their previous three after starting the season 1-2. The last time Crescent made the state tournament? Also 1996, when it won the state title.
Class 1A Round of 24: Riverside (4-4) at Tenino (7-2) , Saturday, 6 p.m.
After a strong finish to the regular season, Tenino earned a top-12 spot and the right to host a Riverside team that is also playing its best football as of late. The Rams won four of their final five regular season games after an 0-3 start, including a win over Lakeside (9 Mile), another state team. The Beavers, led by league OPOY Parker Minerich and Offensive Lineman of the Year Jeremiah McKague, have won five of six, with their only loss being a one-point loss to No. 4 Rochester.
Class 1A Round of 24: Castle Rock (4-5) vs. Rochester (9-0) at Centralia, Saturday, 7 p.m.
Speaking of Rochester, the Warriors are in line for a bye to the state quarterfinals if they are able to put together a strong showing in Centralia on Saturday. The unbeaten Warriors are led by Maddox Rodgers, the league MVP that has already eclipsed 2,000 yards on the year, and league DPOY Owen Simpkins and league Defensive Lineman of the Year Josh Long. The Rockets enter the state tournament on a four-game losing streak, and they have lost those games by an average of 39.5 points per game.
