Are you ready for some football?
Welcome to the official blog on high school football for the 2012 season.
We want to know what game you are going to each week and let’s talk about matchups and how teams did.
Let us know what player(s) stood out each week.
1,061 Responses
@Mark, right 3 for unsportsman like conduct. I didn’t say unnecessary roughness. I’m not sure what your point is, but the 3 celebration penalties are equal to no class. They have been there before, act like it! Fans were well behaved, great. Coach pulled a kid for a late hit, great. Players act like classless fools, way to go mom and dad.
@jive 3 of the penaltys that Clairton had were for celebration, the one that was a late hit the Clairton coach pulled the kid from the game and he was done!I have to say Clairton fans were very well behaved and showed a lot of class
Also sad to see the season end, it’s always a great time coming on this site, especially around playoff time when things get really exciting and sometimes heated.
Special thanks to Josh and David, and everyone who contributed to my overall enjoyment of the site this year. See you next season.
Another season come and gone. Man I hate when it’s over. Dave & Josh, thanks again for all you do to promote PA High School football and the young men that play the game.
Wow, what a show put on tonight by North Allegheny. Turnovers killed Coatesville early, and it was all NA from there.
Kudos to Coatesville for a remarkable run, but many congratulations to NA on winning their 2nd title in 3 years!
@ Jay I have seen how poorly the WPIAL refs treat an eastern team playing up, even in a pre-season game, so I would not recommend going out of State, you may be playing a semi-pro team or hateful hosts. Additionally, if a team loses to a smaller school, they are penalized in rankings, so getting the games can be challenging.
@ Matt, well if you want to earn your way out of a less challenging section, move your AA team to AAA, because the league won’t let you move any other way & then get the section with all AAAA teams. Made for an interesting season and the wins and loses were hard fought. No excuses, just hard work day in day out. It’s what the coaches wanted and they got it.
Congrats to Wyomissing, always tough team to get through at AA District 3 and now a State Championship!
To Eastern PA Football, Thanks for all your work, it made for an informed season. God Bless the players and coaches, have a safe holiday season.
@Matt, great point about Clairton. While their win streak is impressive, they don’t exactly play a particularly rough schedule.
Maybe they could have one or two games at the beginning of the season against out-of-state or higher class tougher opponents before getting into their normal routine of Fort Cherry & Serra Catholic beatdowns… sort of like West Catholic (AA) who plays both Wood (AAA) and LaSalle (AAAA) or North Penn or LaSalle who took on Don Bosco Prep or Bergen Catholic in years past. Or how about kicking off each season with an Aliquippa-Clairton showdown? Other than “it would jeopardize the streak”, what is one good reason for them NOT to do something like this?
With all due respect to Dunmore (after all, they did make it to Hershey), even that game didn’t say very much. That may have been the most one-dimensional offense ever to make it to a state final… well, at least that I’ve seen. How many passing plays did they call? 2 or 3?! Didn’t take Clairton long to realize this and stop them the entire game.
This winning streak is nowhere near as impressive as CB West’s run in the 90’s.
well said JiveTurkey9, I said the same thing
not Imhotep hater, dont like non neighborhood teams.Plus I wan to hear about grades first then atletics second.
Only one more day of football and then what to do? I’m gonna slide right into basketball. For all of the Imhotep haters. Brandon Austin is a 6’7″ gaurd heading to Providence. He is a heck of a player and a treat to watch. Imhotep basketball plays a real tough schedule, and may not lose a game. They have 3 other players to watch for. Jr. Basil Thompson {transfer from MC&S} is a top Jr. in the city. Sr’s. Deryl Bagwell {transfer from Northeast} and Abraham Massaley {transfer from MC&S} could both go D1. These coaches must be the luckiest men on earth. Every time a stud player wants to transfer to Tep, they always seem to get picked from the enrollment lottery.
Did Clairton really have 4 or 5 personal fouls for unsportsman like conduct, in the last couple minutes of the game? Way to spoil a great run boys. Hell of a way to win with class!
Prediction time…
AAAA – North Allegheny 28, Coatesville 14
NA’s brutal, brawny, ball-controlling lines will win out against an athletic opponent. C’ville is peaking at the right time, but they haven’t played a team like NA – or faced a QB like Mack Leftwich. Make it 2 championships in 3 years for the Tigers.
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AAA – Cathedral Prep 41, Archbishop Wood 27
I like ECP’s recruits against AB’s recruits. Prep’s main test came against West Allegheny – it’ll be smooth sailing from here on in.
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AA – Wyomissing 21, Aliquippa 13
For all of Aliquippa’s storied tradition, the PIAA final hasn’t been particularly kind to the Quips. They typically have trouble with those tough, disciplined teams out east. And for the first time this year, the Quips are in a game where the best player – Alex Anzalone – is on the opposite sideline. Everybody wonders if Wyomissing can defeat the mighty Quips. Well, they already did – see last week’s throttling of Aliquippa mirror-image Imhotep Charter. Most people will call this an upset, but Wyomissing is simply the better team.
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A – Clairton 22, Dunmore 20
This will be closer than most people think. Dunmore’s size will give Clairton fits, but it’s the Bears’ big-play ability – a constant theme in their 4-year reign – that will once again carry the day. Ask Riverside or Southern Columbia if Clairton can turn the tide in a hurry. The winning streak goes to 63. Memo to the press: whatever happens, can we please stop those “Gritty, Inspiring Football Team Is The One Last Hope For A Crumbling, Once-Bustling Western PA Steel Town” stories? It’s beyond tripe, guys. We get it – Clairton’s a crummy, crime-ridden place with a helluva high school football team. Message received.
One more thing…Clairton’s streak is noteworthy, no doubt. It’s the longest current winning streak in the country. But while 62 consecutive wins is impressive at any level, the Bears’ streak doesn’t compare to Concord (CA) De La Salle. The Spartans once reeled off 151 wins in a row, at times playing against the best teams in America. Clairton, you’ve played many of these 62 games against…Avella, Chartiers-Houston and Frazier.
And it must be noted – Aliquippa could play A-ball, but they choose to play up. So does Jeannette. How come you guys didn’t? I guess pasting Serra Catholic 63-7 every year never gets old, huh?
General
The credentials for the West this year are unbelievable. All four come in undefeated. The A, AA, & AAA representatives are the top three scoring machines in the state. The four west teams bring 6 division one college prospects, and colleges such as Michigan and Michigan State. All four west teams bring the top defense in the state in their class for teams still playing. Statistics do not measure heart and effort in a one-day game, but a sweep for the west certainly seems possible. The word “upset” may still have meaning in high school football, however.
You can chat on here for each game this weekend.
Here are my pics. This year the west has a shot at a sweep. I think the AA game is our best shot. I will be rooting for all the EAST teams!
NA over C’ville
ECP over Wood
Aliq. over WYom.
Clairton over Dunmore
@Buddy
You probably knew, or certainly had a good idea, of the answer to the first of your queries of December 11th. The North Penn Knights have appeared in 37 playoff games, going 29-8 for a .784 winning average. Neshaminy was in 25, going 17-8 for .680. Ridley has appeared in 22, going 13-9 for .591. I cannot imagine anyone else in D1 4A with more appearances than these three teams. Total wins in the period I have not tackled as yet.
predictions please!!!!!!!!
WOW Just seen alot of the posting. To see that there is still no respect for Coatesville is kinda crazy. No one mentioned the fact in the Lasalle game, The players that got hurt were in a battle and if you have never been in a fight or seen one. Getting injured is a part of a game, The only way you can get hurt is if you are engaged. Basically everybody was properly equipped “The Refs Checked that”lol and should have been well prepared. So it comes down to being prepared physically Lassalle has never been a game like that this year. You guys act like the players got injured by tripping over the Refs, cramping, or some unexplained occurrence. They got hit hard, blocked hard, Or pulled a muscle trying to catch that speed. lol
And Also I did see posting talking about the worse officiating in America. They called back 3TD. So if they didn’t call that, the score would’ve been 63 to whatever. But if ,, “IF” was a 5th we all would be drunk.
NA 41, C’ville 23
ECP 35, WOOD 33
Aliq., 38, Wyom., 24
Clairton 37, Dunsmore 20
GOOD LUCK TO ALL!!!!
@Buddy
Thank you for the compliment of which I am likely unworthy. My written records are primarily for Bucks County schools and those that have ducked in and out of various Suburban One divisions since 1985. My long analysis on the championships since 1988 are on just the winner-loser in each class. I would have to research all the playoffs in the last 10 years to answer your question; which I am certainly willing to do; but I would imagine that Josh, based on his concise pre-2012 championship writeups with the statistics he included, would be able to more quickly answer your most interesting question.
Hate to say this, but I think the only winner from the East might be Wyomissing, and that’s a big maybe.
I think Prep will beat Wood, outside chance I could be wrong, but I doubt it.
Not sure how Wood has been winning, all they got is a running game.
But I guess that’s why they actually play the games.
At the beginning of this thread, you said Imhotep is not good because they don’t play anybody. Now you say they’re good because they’re a ‘private/charter’ school. Well, if charter/private schools are so much better then public schools and have an unfair advantage, how is it that Imhotep didn’t play anybody when 10 of their 14 wins were against the same charter/private schools whom you say have an unfair advantage and need their own ‘5A’ classification? Ironically, a public school beat Imhotep in the state finals and over half of the teams representing the 4 championship games this weekend are all public.
Best of luck to the area teams representing the East this weekend in Hershey. The West squads are all tough but I’m looking forward to seeing some great games.
Picks:
Clairton
Wyomissing
Erie Cathedral Prep
Coatesville
@ Rollie Ciffo Bravo Bravo well said
Best of luck to the Dunmore Bucks on your quest to become STATE CHAMPS. Remember you are not just representing Dunmore but now you represent all of the east.Your program is one that brings great pride to our area and know this..all of Riverside will be supporting you and finish for us the job that we almost completed in 2010.. end the streak and bring back home the STATE CHAMPIONSHIP!!!