Prediction time: Graham looks at Week 10 of Kitsap football, headlined by playoff games

Each week during the high school football season, I'm inviting a guest to join me in predicting the winner of each West Sound game, as well as the Seahawks, UW and WSU.

For Week 10, our guest picker is the former Kitsap Sun football player of the year Howard McDonald, who led Central Kitsap to the state semifinals in 2008.

More: Fall playoffs kick into high gear for West Sound high school teams

In Week 9, I finished 8-1, missing out on a perfect week because I went with my heart instead of my head and picked my beloved New York Giants over the Seahawks (my wife is happy, though). Kitsap Sun public safety reporter Andrew Binion finished 7-2 as Bainbridge upended Meadowdale and Central Kitsap edged North Thurston to pick up its first win of the year.

For the season, I'm 66-18 in the picks department, while guests are a combined 62-22. We've got a lighter slate of games this week since three West Sound teams opted against trying to schedule Week 10 opponents. Ending the season in Week 9 were North Mason (1-8), Kingston (3-6) and Bainbridge (4-5).

Thursday

Rogers (0-9) vs. Central Kitsap (1-8) at South Kitsap HS, 4:30 p.m.: The Cougars snapped a 10-game losing skid last week with a 24-21 win at North Thurston and will be favored in this game against the winless Rams, who lost 42-0 against South Kitsap in Week 2: Jeff: Central Kitsap; Howard: Central Kitsap

Kentwood (2-7) at South Kitsap (1-8), 7:30 p.m.: Personally, I would have loved to see South Kitsap and Central Kitsap hook up this week. That old Narrows League matchup was always competitive. Instead, the Wolves take on Kentwood, which features the teams that played the first game I covered for the Kitsap Sun, way back in 2006. The Conquerors won that one in overtime, 26-20. Jeff: South Kitsap; Howard: South Kitsap

Friday

Franklin Pierce (5-4) at Olympic (7-2), 6:30 p.m.: The Trojans, the Olympic League 2A runner-up, can qualify for state for the first time since 2015 with a victory. If Friday evening brings rain and wind, as weather forecasts suggest, this could be turn into a ground-and-pound battle. Olympic lost to Franklin Pierce 17-14 in the district round in 2019, so the Trojans would like to earn some payback. Jeff: Olympic; Howard: Olympic

Renton (5-4) at North Kitsap (8-1), 7 p.m.: The Olympic League 2A champion Vikings should be licking their chops at this matchup. Renton lost 28-7 in Week 2 against Olympic — the same Olympic team that North Kitsap just shut down 42-0 on the road last week. North Kitsap beat Renton 42-7 in this game last season, so don't expect this one to be close. A win would put North Kitsap in the state tournament for the eighth consecutive season. Jeff: North Kitsap. Howard: North Kitsap

Bremerton (7-2) at Fife (6-3), 7 p.m.: This is a major opportunity for Bremerton, which is looking to qualify for the 2A state tournament for the first time since 2012. The Knights' seven wins this season all came against teams with losing records, so this is a chance to make a statement against a Fife team that reached the semifinals in 2018 and is regularly one of the best in the South Puget Sound League 2A. Jeff: Bremerton. Howard: Bremerton

Oregon State (6-2) at Washington (6-2), 7:30 p.m.: The Huskies are coming off a bye and face an Oregon State team with one of the best secondary groups in the Pac-12. Jeff: Washington; Howard: Oregon State

Saturday

Washington State (4-4) at Stanford (3-5), 12:30 p.m.: The Cougars are looking to snap a three-game skid while facing the last-place team (the Cardinal are just 1-5 in conference) in the Pac-12. Jeff: WSU: Howard: WSU

Klahowya (1-7, 1-3 in Nisqually League 1A) at Cascade Christian (6-3, 4-0), 7 p.m.: The Eagles finish off their season by trying to knock off the Nisqually League-leading Cougars. Jeff: Cascade Christian; Howard: Cascade Christian

Sunday

Seattle Seahawks (5-3) at Arizona Cardinals (3-5), 1:05 p.m.: Seattle's defense has played like one of the NFL's top units for a few weeks now and Geno Smith is entering the MVP discussion. Jeff: Seahawks: Howard: Cardinals

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Kitsap Sun predicts Week 10 of high school football, Seahawks game