Mikey Robinett is here to crush fools and take names. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
Evans Rankings rules, the rest of you drool.
Matt Evans, the seer of Washington state high school football, and his trusty computer, Newman, are the one outlet truly buying in to Coupeville’s gridiron giants being a state tourney threat.
As the Wolves await Sunday’s reveal of who, where, and when they will play in the 12-team royal rumble, a scan of various pollsters and rankers finds a fair amount of disrespect for a 7-1 CHS squad.
Now to be fair, when you’ve just won your first league title, and punched your first ticket to state, in 32 years, it’s easy to see why.
Out of sight means out of mind, and it’s easy for many to just plug in the same old names “cause they were there before.”
It happened to Coupeville boys’ basketball earlier in 2022, when a 16-0 record didn’t always earn the Wolves a full amount of respect.
After CHS hoops made its first state tourney trip since 1988 and played prime-time teams Kalama and Lake Roosevelt tough, however, several rival coaches had nice things to say about the Wolves.
Now they know who we are.
The same thing can happen for football, especially if the Wolves make some noise in the state tourney.
For now, Evans Rankings has Coupeville at #7 among 2B schools (I bow to my computer overlords), while the Associated Press and the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association both plunk the Wolves at #10.
SB Live leaves CHS out of its Top 10 but does have it third in its “next teams up.”
So, the Wolves, having punched a ticket to the 12-team state tourney, have already outplayed what is essentially a #13 ranking…
And Ryland Spencer, noted hamburger fiend and prep football savant?
He leaves Coupeville completely out of his Top 10 on Cascadia Preps, which proves Cow Town needs to produce a good enough burger to lure the man, the myth, the meat-eatin’ machine, to Whidbey to watch a game in the future.
Get on it, chefs!
In the end, of course, none of these pollsters or rankers, whether they be man or computer, matter as much as the guys who step on the field reppin’ the red and black.
Win, and they have to give you respect, whether they want to or not.
Associated Press 2B poll for Nov. 2:
1. Napavine – (9-0) – 90 poll points
2. Okanogan – (9-0) – 80
3. Lind/Ritzville/Sprague – (7-1) – 70
4. Toledo – (7-1) – 65
5. River View – (8-1) – 45
6. Chewelah (Jenkins) – (6-2) – 41
7. Columbia (Burbank) – (7-2) – 29
8. Pe Ell/Willapa Valley – (6-3) – 24
9. Raymond – (7-2) – 20
10-tie. Coupeville – (7-1) – 9
10-tie. Liberty (Spangle) – (6-2) – 9
Coupeville Sports 