Bellingham, Sehome to wrap up football seasons on Thursday
Granite Falls (1-8) at Bellingham (5-4)
When: 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5
Site: Civic Stadium
Tigers update: Granite Falls finished out of the postseason picture, fourth among the Cascade Conference’s 2A programs. It suffered a 28-8 loss to Lakewood on Thursday, Oct. 29. Eric Helm led the Tigers with 101 yards rushing, and tight end Kory Glover caught a TD pass from Griffin Chapman in the third quarter. The Granite Falls defense yielded 141 yards rushing to Lakewood’s Sean Dawson, while Tyler Courtney rushed for three TDs.
Red Raiders update: Bellingham made some key defensive adjustments and forced four turnovers to grab a 33-7 win over Highline on Friday, Oct. 30. The Red Raiders handled an offensive formation change by the Pirates and limited them to a second-quarter TD. Dakota Johanson led Bellingham with 66 yards rushing and scored three TDs, while Connor Wallace added 57 yards on 11 carries Joseph Worley also caught a TD pass from Nick Knutson.
Key to the game: While the game is meaningless in the postseason picture, Bellingham does have something to play for Thursday. A win would secure the Red Raiders’ first winning season since they went 5-4 in 2008.
Player to watch: Zach Lorenz is Bellingham’s leading receiver with 15 catches for 434 yards and five TDs. Look for the senior to have a big night in his final game for the Red Raiders.
Sehome (2-7) at Cedarcrest (5-4)
When: 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5
Site: Cedarcrest High School
Mariners update: After winning its Northwest Conference 2A/3A opener against Anacortes on Sept. 19, Sehome has dropped six straight, including a 27-12 loss to Burlington-Edison on Friday, Oct. 30. The Mariners dug themselves a 20-0 hole by halftime, despite holding the Tigers to 161 yards of total offense. Tanner Patrick and Michael Evans scored Sehome’s only points on runs of 3 and 15 yards, respectively.
Red Wolves update: Cedarcrest missed advancing to the district playoffs after falling 49-14 to Archbishop Murphy on Thursday, Oct. 29. Quarterback Cody Banks threw for 196 yards and two touchdowns in the game, but ATM scored the first 35 points of the game and Kerry Jackson ran for 121 yards and three TDs. Before the loss, the Red Wolves had won three straight.
Key to the game: Sehome’s defense has played well through good portions of the season, including last week when coach Bob Norvell was pleased with their hitting. But offense has let the Mariners down, as they have averaged just 7.67 points per game during their six-game losing streak.
Player to watch: This will be the last time to see University of Washington commit Taylor Rapp in a football uniform for Sehome. While Rapp has been strong on defense, he’s been limited to 377 yards of total offense this season (223 receiving, 78 passing and 76 rushing).
This story was originally published November 4, 2015 at 7:22 PM with the headline "Bellingham, Sehome to wrap up football seasons on Thursday."