TENINO — At this time two summers ago, the Tenino Beavers were in the midst of a messy offseason.
Head coach Darren Tinnerstet arrived in August of 2023, mere weeks before their season-opening game at Colville. He and his staff had no time to establish the culture they desired, and the Beavers went 2-8 that fall.
In each of the last two offseasons, Tinnerstet and his staff have taken tremendous leaps in crafting their ideal program in Tenino. The Beavers responded last year by winning three more games, and those within the program believed they’re poised to take another sizable step forward in 2025.
“Our goal this year is the playoffs. We are getting into the playoffs someday, one way or another. We’re gonna figure out some way to do it,” Tinnerstet said. “That is our ultimate goal this year because we missed them last year by just a thread.”
This sentiment is shared in the locker room, which features an experienced group albeit with only seven seniors. Leland White, senior wide receiver and outside linebacker, said the confidence of the team is at an all-time high after a five-win season that saw the Beavers knock off Rochester to secure the Scatter Creek Showdown trophy.
But losses to Montesano and Elma to start the Evergreen League season were insurmountable, and for the second straight year, the Beavers couldn’t punch their ticket to the playoffs.
“Based on our defense and the work on our offense, I think that we could get pretty far into the playoffs,” White said. “I think that if we lock in and work as a team, I think we could go far. We just want to get better. We want to show that Tenino is a good football team.”
There’s a reason why White mentioned the defense before anything else as a reason for confidence. Tinnerstet knew the Beavers would field a stout defense with playmakers at every level as soon as he watched them compete at a summer camp in Tumwater on June 20 and 21.
The head coach gave his defense an A- grade after the camp, which saw athletes “flying around” all over the field against bigger teams like Eastside Catholic, Bellevue and Lynden, he said.
“Our entire defensive group is locked in. Our linebacker couple is phenomenal. I think Austin Johnson had four or five picks at the camp in the secondary,” Tinnerstet said. “Our defensive line was in the backfield the whole time. As a unit, they’re clicking on all cylinders. It was like we opened the floodgates at camp.”
Tinnerstet and the defensive staff, led by defensive coordinator J.D. Johnson, track defensive metrics to measure the improvements year to year. He said the Beavers forced 20 turnovers in 2024, doubling their amount from 2023. They missed 200 tackles in year one but sliced that number down to 118 last year.
Tenino’s defensive success starts in the middle with senior linebackers Miguel Espinoza and White, along with defensive ends Jeremiah McKague and Sawyer Noonan, who Tinnerstet called “wrecking balls” off the edges. Johnson is an athletic cornerback poised to make plays in the defensive backfield.
“Our defense is unstoppable. We have a young group, but we’re building on it,” Espinoza said. “We have the most effort out of all of the units. We never give up on any drive.”
The offense won’t be too far behind, as junior quarterback Mason Metcalf is healthy after missing the second half of last season due to an injury. He started the first five games of the season and flashed his potential.
Austin Gonia, his top target from a year ago, is no longer a Tenino Beaver, but White and Johnson will be difficult for defenses to stop. Michael Vassar, the 2024 Evergreen offensive MVP, has also moved on, but Tenino will use junior Parker Minerich and senior Michael Lanning will take the reins of a running game that will be relied heavily upon this fall.
“We’re a power offense. We like to run the ball, but we also love to take shots. We love getting the ball to our playmakers,” Tinnerstet said. “I think the playbook will open up a little bit more.”
