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Welcome to the official forum on high school football for the 2025 season.
During the off-season let’s talk about players, recruiting news, teams, and everything about high school football.
During the season each week let’s talk about match-ups and how teams did. Let us know what player(s) stood out each week.
1,632 Responses
@Jeff H. – Appreciate your updates from the western part of the state. What are your thoughts on the potential WPIAL finals in 1A, 3A and 5A? Can Clairton keep Sieg in check? Will Avonworth be able to handle Imani’s team speed? And does the Peters defense have any shot of slowing down PR?
@Michael C – I thought Clairton was going to beat Ft Cherry last year, but Sieg willed them to victory in an instant classic. It would take a huge upset for either of them not to make the final again. One thing that has gone somewhat underreported is Sieg’s throwing shoulder has bothered him all season, and he doesn’t throw the ball nearly as much as he had in years past, if Clairton can contain their passing game I think they win the rematch.
In 3A Imani will likely have to beat a very good Elizabeth Forward team in the semi-finals, which is no sure thing, EF has an explosive offense with one of the best dual threat QB’s in the WPIAL, and I think that game will be very competitive. I do give Imani the edge on Avonworth in team speed, but I think the Lopes are much better in the trenches, and they will wear Imani down in the 2nd half.
As far as Peters defense shutting down PR’s offense I don’t see it happening, I was at the USC vs. Peters game and USC connected on some long passes, and that made me think that Khalil Taylor and Jay Timmons are going to have a field day against their secondary. I’ve seen PR twice in person and I would make them a 2 TD favorite over Peters. It will be interesting to see how the WPIAL seeds them, they could have Peters #1 and PR #2, I would have PR #1 but don’t be surprised if Peters is seeded #1, assuming they beat Bethel Park tomorrow night, they like to reward an undefeated team who wins the best conference, and hard to argue with that, but the eye test says PR is the best team in WPIAL 5A.
@D11 fan@D11 Matt
@anyone
predictions Friday SL v. NWL?
Does NWL keep the most wins streak going?
I believe they do. They just flat out execute better than anyone. Coaching, technique, execution. They just do it better than anyone haha. It’s special to watch
@CW I love my tigers but I think SL gets this one. I think NW has overall the better athletes but seeing what NS did in that 1st half against us, likely won’t end in the 2nd half against SL. I think SLs line is better than NS and we arent the biggest on the dline. I think SL controls the balls and line of scrimmage, SL 35 – NW 27. I hope I am wrong though and we can head into the playoffs on a high note
Very impressive by NWL
That is a very good Hs football program! They were out sized but never let up in the trenches!
They have some great players!
SL is also a good football team.
NWL is physical, balanced & well coached!
Should be a great one between top ranked teams in AAA and AAA in the state! I’ll go NWL 28-21. Just because they have decent history of getting it done. However, both should go far in their respective classes. I think both have a great chance of getting to cumberland valley.
What was once a true rivalry, turned into two of the worst programs in the state. Inevitably, it should be a close game between the Devils and Bears on Friday night. Give me the Devils in a slight upset!!
EC Watch, as they finally update early! There’s some great drama in two of these battles, & it may come down to the last game in each to find out who plays.
Small School
– Two 1A teams are in this battle: Nativity (.386) or Holy Cross (.371). Neither would be a lock, based on the numbers, unlike past weeks.
– Currently, it’s Upper Dauphin at (.431) who has the host seed. If Upper Dauphin (.435 in D3) beats Juniata or has a better rating than #4 Columbia (.440) in 2A, then the D2/11 1A loser plays.
– However, don’t rule out Columbia (.440) playing a curveball into this. Columbia plays Hamburg. Their opponent also has EC as a failsafe, but needs help via opt-outs. I’d assume a Columbia win keeps the spot. A Columbia loss & UDA upset changes the matchup.
– North Penn-Mansfield (.383) currently is in play to host or play. They get Wellsboro, who’s in the D4 playoff. A NPM win may push them in. Wellsboro is ineligible for EC, at the least.
– If NPM AND UDA are in, Mahanoy Area (.273) could slide in last second. They get Shenandoah Valley in their rivalry.
3A
– It’s a lock that the 5th & 6th place slots are playing, barring an opt out.
– Mid Valley, L-L, & C’dale are in the hunt.
– Tunkhannock & Pequea Valley are too far from contending. They’d need help with a win & opt-outs.
4A
– Wallenpaupack hosting Honesdale is most likely to happen.
– Crestwood losing to WVW & Paupack win over VV can flip the seeding.
– Hamburg (.317) plays Columbia, & would need an opt-out to play in another EC game against a LFC opponent. A Honesdale loss by West Scranton & a win over Columbia *could* squeak them past Honesdale, but it’s probably too little too late.
Big School
– Governor Mifflin (.546, EC) hosts, if the season ended over the weekend.
– But, GM isn’t far from #10 seed Cedar Crest in the 6A race (.565) & #9 Chambersburg (.572). But also #11 Dallastown (.558) & Central Dauphin (.547) could play a wrench in this.
– Currently, Pocono Mountain West (.543) is right there to potentially host or travel, but is in a playoff hunt in 6A. Emmaus losing to Parkland & a PMW win over PME would flip a matchup.
– Conrad Weiser (.518 5A/.514 EC) would travel to Gov. Mifflin (.554 6A), if PM West plays in districts.
– Governor Mifflin plays Ephrata, while Cedar Crest has Lebanon, Chambersburg has Central Dauphin, & Dallastown hosts Red Lion
– So, what happens if GM advances to the districts? Pocono Mtn. West would have to miss the 6A D11 playoffs, depending on wha happens against PM East & Emmaus vs. Parkland. PMW is at .544. Emmaus isn’t on the list. PM West vs. Weiser is the only other game left. William Allen would need either GM & PMW to make it in or have an opt-out. I don’t think they have a shot.
With that said, I’ll give the non-D2 predictions for EC Watch
– Columbia 28, Hamburg 17
– Wellsboro 24, NPM 14
– Mahanoy 21, Shen Val 16
– Juniata 34, UDA 14
– Eph 26, Gov. Mifflin 14
– CD 34, Chambersburg 13
– Dallastown 22, RL 19
– PME 25, PMW 10
– Parkland 33, Emmaus 14
So, I predict
– NPM vs. UDA
– Mid Valley vs. Carbondale (as C’dale has OF & L-L plays Dallas). Home venue goes to higher rating.
– Honesdale vs. Wallenpaupack
– PM West vs. Governor Mifflin
Was this Friday a senior night game for Quakertown? Horrible if it was. May I suggest Chester or can they find another game this late in season? Just wondering
Looks like they did schedule Chester. Kudos to both schools and maybe the Admin of District One for making that happen. Think it was actually homecoming for Q-Town.
Kevin…Do you know by chance if Cheltenham had to forfeit the Truman & Qtown games since they were league games or were they just canceled?
Cheltenham season is over. Plug has been pulled due to alleged hazing allegation. Truman received a 2-0 FFW. No make-up game. I guess Truman could look for a contingency game, as they will not be making the playoffs.
wow…that was just a thought on my part…never saw that happening (lol) but that is one hell of a homecoming opponent…thx for update
Hi Kevin. I reached out to Chester and they were able to put this game together. Glad for both programs.
Kudos to you too!!!!
D2 Notes Time!!
Game of the Week (NP/DV): Oooooh boy. We knew it’d live up to the hype! It delivered & then some. Josiah Gray’s TD in overtime was enough for a 28-21 win & LFC 1 title for the Trojans. Their first since 2009.
Escaped The Trap (Pittston/Paupack): It was close to being a trap loss potential, but a blocked PAT was the difference maker in a 14-13 dub for Pittston over Paupack. The 4A race will be very interesting to follow, as we move through Week 10. Crestwood leads Paupack .485 to .466. Paupack must beat Valley View to have a puncher’s chance at surpassing Crestwood, but the WVC Comets have Valley West, so it looks like the Pike-Wayne Shrine Bowl will be a mini playoff game. You rarely get this in any sport, to my knowledge.
Clearer Picture (3A): It feels like we know the teams, heading into Week 10.
– Berwick handily has the #1 seed, after demolishing Selinsgrove. They get Tunk to end the season.
– Wyoming Area should keep the #2. They get a tricky game against Pittston.
– Scranton Prep gets the #3. They have North Pocono. They’re safe.
– Hanover Area is in & should keep their slot, with a win over Nanticoke next week.
– Mid Valley (.472), Lake-Lehman (.462), & Carbondale (.458) trail the Hawkeyes, but need help.
1A Watch: I can’t believe this, but three spots are up for grabs, with four teams in the hunt. One set is for home field. The other is for the format. Marian has the #2 (.538) over Tri-Valley (.499). A Marian loss may swap spots if T-V wins vs. Haven, but that’s a tall task. However, the one that you should keep an eye on is Nativity & Holy Cross. Nativity gets Marian (leading with .368). Holy Cross is at .369 & gets an easy game against Susquehanna. Nativity wins, they should be in. Nativity loses, Holy Cross controls their own destiny against a winless team.
Kindred Spirits (2A & 5A): While both aren’t set in stone, the #4 seed race could be interesting to follow. In the event Susquehanna upsets Holy Cross in the last game of the season, HC’s rival, Redeemer, would have to lose to Midd-West. I think 2A is fine
But in 5A, it’s Valley West vs. West: WVW leads .330 to .317. WVW gets Crestwood. Invader nation gets Honesdale. West has the better chance to win. A win puts West in. WVW wins, it’s a nothingburger. Both win or both lose? It’ll go by OWWP.
Last regular season picks of the week coming on Wednesday. Sorry that my non-D2 picks didn’t come through. Thought I sent them, but I must’ve forgot. That’s okay. I haven’t been into the state level stuff this year. Kinda focused more on the local & D4/11 side. I’ll at least be as all-in as possible during the playoffs (maybe after Halloween). EC talk tomorrow, because we have some spicy situations in 1A/2A.
I think I meant .386 for Nativity. That’s my bad.
Ohhhh Bonner, hang in there. Two down, one to go. Anybody have a team with a more brutal 3 game stretch?? Heck, can anybody offer up a more brutal regular season schedule for a team outside the PCL Red??
Last year the PCL red was ranked as the 2nd most difficult conference in the country by max preps and nothing has changed its just as tough this year. After this brutal stretch of games I wonder what Bonner will have left for the playoffs and if maybe a team like Southern Lehigh beats them.
Pine Richland sent a message to the rest of the state last night with their 67-0 thrashing of North Allegheny that has to be the worst loss in NA history. I expect PR to be the first wpial 5a champ to repeat and have a rematch against mcdevitt in western finals for the right to play RC in the final.
2600 kids in that school and they cant even find a dozen or so good football players. You can count NA as one of the most underperforming football programs in the State.
I don’t know if I would go quite that far, given they did make the state title game a few years ago, and have won 3 state titles in school history, but I agree they should have had better results over the years given the size of the district and their history. A lot of people around here think Art Walker Jr. is a great coach, but I never thought that, he’s average at best, and won when he had a lot of talent, especially the years when he had the Steelers assistant coaches kids. I would put North Penn in the category of most underperforming programs in the state ahead of NA.
So North Penn is just supposed to ignore that players get pulled to private/catholic/charter schools, but still should succeed? Obviously they lost games they should and could have won (just like anyone else), but to say they are most underperforming is pure arrogance. When some of your best players get pulled away, no matter what school you are, it is hard to replace that production.
@Local Reporter – Foleman summed up NP very nicely under Beck’s tenure, I stand by my comment that NP is one of the most underperforming big schools in the state, how have they not won a D1 title in the last 10 years?
Local Reporter, Dick Beck has been the HC at North Penn for 23 years. The 1st half of his career he was on fire-A State Championship and several District 1 Championships. The 2nd half of his tenure his teams have under performed, NP hasn’t even won A District 1 Championship in a decade! We are talking District 1 here, NP should be in the mix for a D1 Championship every year, they have the School Population-3200 kids, academics-ranked 17 in the State, and facilties that are as good as any HS in the area. The Privates and Charter Schools were around during Beck’s 1st 12 years, tell us what happened? Why are they not playing LaSalle anymore? A game every HS fan was looking forward to every year. They used to have well over 100 players on the roster, now they have 85.
I saw that score Friday night and had to do a double take. Then I thought, no, this can’t be right. Seen many scores live in progress and final on Friday nights that were incorrect and eventually corrected. But this one wasn’t one of those. Yikes!!
So my suggestion, and no offence to all other 5A teams in the state, this may work in your favor as well, but let’s just find a date, time and place, say early November, to get P-R and Roman together for the 5A state championship. This may be the most obvious final of all 6 classifications. The sooner we do this, the more time the other 5A schools can put together their own bracket for state bronze.
I think mcdevitt will give PR a game in the western finals but I agree it appears we are headed for a PR vs RC final.
Southern lehigh
Southern Lehigh is 4A
EC Outlook, heading into tonight
– 1A/2A should be Holy Cross vs. Upper Dauphin (with Nativity being the only challenger)
– Look at my D2 Notes for 3A. It’s basically the same. Mid Valley vs. Hanover Area
– 4A: Hang on. Wallenpaupack’s in the show. They lead EC & would play rival Honesdale, if the season ended last week. Crestwood is still in the running. Hamburg could sneak in, with Berks Catholic & Columbia. One win may shake things up.
– 5A/6A: Governor Mifflin & Conrad Weiser is all but a lock. William Allen is next up, if any opt out.
@Kevin X – a few weeks ago you asked about recognition for some under the radar programs that are having a good season, and at the time I mentioned Southmoreland at 6-0 in 3A. They are now 8-0 for the first time since 1964, per the TribLive, and they haven’t won a conference title since 1979. Tomorrow night they host 7-1 Elizabeth Forward in the biggest home game for the school in quite awhile, winner of this game will win the conference and could be the #3 seed in the WPIAL playoffs behind Avonworth and Imani Christian. This is a classic great defense vs. great offense game, with Southmoreland giving up just 6 ppg while EF is scoring 45+ per game. EF played a tougher non conference schedule and won this game last year 31-3, I think they have too much offense and will win again tomorrow, but the score will be a lot closer. Southmoreland does have a pretty famous alum in HOF guard Russ Grimm of “Hogs” fame with the great Washington Redskins teams of the 80’s.
You jinxed them dude!!! Actually double jinxed them (loss and score). A good and well deserved shout out tho!! I think I did the same thing to Coatesville. Loose your QB, haven’t scored since.
So the question is, can EF hang with the two big dogs in D7 3A, IC and The Lopes.
Last year the PCL red was ranked as the 2nd most difficult conference in the country by max preps and nothing has changed its just as tough this year. After this brutal stretch of games I wonder what Bonner will have left for the playoffs and if maybe a team like Southern Lehigh beats them.
Yep I jinxed them! EF is very good with one of the best QBs in the wpial but I would be surprised if they beat Imani they will likely be seeded to play them in the semi finals and have to beat them both back to back to win wpial title.
Week 9’s got some playoff implication games, especially in 1A & 3A
– Delaware Valley vs. North Pocono (LFC 1): Oh, we got the game of the week in NEPA here. I’m going to take North Pocono, as they’ve been the best team all year in the area, maybe outside of Berwick.
– Western Wayne vs. Mid Valley (LFC 2): Not the same implications as last year, but a must win it must be for Mid Valley in the 4-team bracket. I think they’ll get it, since it’s a rebuilding year in Lake Ariel.
– Carbondale vs. Susquehanna (LFC 3): It deserves a slot here. Both teams need wins to make it into their respective district playoffs. Carbondale’s a better team, but this is going to be important in 2A & 3A, just in case the dominoes topple in both’s favor.
– Wilkes-Barre vs. Crestwood (WVC 1): A huge game in the 4A playoff battle is right here. I’ll say Crestwood gets the home win, after coming off of a stinker against Dallas.
– Hanover Area vs. Lake-Lehman (WVC 2): Hang on. These two…for a spot in a four team field? The winner here likely has a puncher’s shot at the 4-seed. I’m going to do something I rarely do: take Hanover Area! It’s a new era south of the city.
– Riverside vs. Old Forge (LFC HM): I don’t care if either team is 8-0 or 0-8, or any record in between: It’s a Top 5 rivalry in this corner of the state. It deserves its flowers. With that said. I’m sorry, Pizzatown. The Vikings will house that tray of pizza as soon as it’s brought out to the table. Prove me wrong, though.
– Pittston vs. Wallenpaupack (WVC HM): It’s odd to have a Buckhorn home game in the WVC slot, but in the world that Paupack is in the running for a 4A playoff spot, it has to be included. This should be an easy win for Pittston, who lost this matchup last year. It’s also a trap game, potentially. Paul Russick wants revenge against the Buckhorns after losing to them all the time at Honesdale in the rivalry series. But if the Purple & White can upset, it may come down to Week 10 to catch a spiraling VV off guard & steal a spot, especially if Crestwood loses.
– Holy Cross vs. Lackawanna Trail (D2 HM): It’s a must-attempt to win game for Holy Cross. However, we all know it’s Trail, Riverside, then everyone else. Don’t expect anything different here.
– Jersey Shore vs. Scranton Prep (Crossover): It’s a marquee game in Week 9. The Shore will make a trek out to Dunmore for this big time battle. Prep wins a close one, with the hopes of not looking ahead to the North Pocono game.
– Schuylkill Haven vs. Nativity (1A Watch): The 1A battle & EC Watch is absolutely big in this one. Haven wins handily, but also makes Week 10 against Marian a major game for Nativity’s playoff hopes.
Scores
– NP 24, DV 21
– MV 35, WW 14
– Trail 42, HC 16
– Crestwood 24, WBA 14
– Hanover Area 21, L-L 14
– Riverside 34, Pizzatown 14
– Pittston 38, Paupack 10
– C’dale 31, Susq 7
– Prep 23, JS 19
– Haven 49, Nativity 13
Thursday’s Games (+ City League Tourney)
– Parkland vs. Whitehall: Parkland 34, Whitehall 14
– Westinghouse vs. Allderdice: Westy 45, TA 15
– USO vs. Brashear: USO 35, Brashear 6
Berwick might have the easiest schedule in the state in 3a. I expect Scranton prep to beat them in districts
I agree with you on both counts. Don’t know if Berwick has the easiest schedule in the state in 3A, but they do have a fairly easy schedule. Two toughest games were Wyoming Area and a single “A” Lackawanna Trail team, and both games were at home. Next two foes?? Nope. Their schedule vs. Scranton Prep’s?? It’s night and day.
Issue with Prep tho just might be their scheduled. Jersey Shore and North Pocono to finish out the season. Thinking they need to win one of those two games to secure the third or fourth spot in the D2 3A playoffs. If they loose both, guess we’ll have to see how the other games play out. If they win both games, I’ll double down on them winning the 3A D2 title again.
Problem too about Berwick is that this year is the end of their title window, so if Prep makes a comeback run to the 3A title, they will likely defend that title for many years as Prep had a rookie QB
A triple a school playing an a school and it being there toughest game is all that needs to be said
It’s great to see Berwick returning to its original way. I was surprised seeing them few years ago they were just on the field going through the motions. Watching them play this year Seeing the consistency, good coaching they showed improvement. Great running back and the team is playing more like a unit.
To be honest seeing NWL play they are young and talented very receptive to the coaching.
I don’t see them losing the east.
It’s gonna be
Avonworth / NWL in final
NWL plays southern Lehigh 2 weeks
That game should be NWL statement for playoffs.
@CW – I agree with you on the Avonworth vs NWL rematch I said that a month ago after Avonworth dominated Aliquippa and TJ in back to back weeks. Although I will say Imani Christian is very good and deserving of their top 5 state ranking they should test Avonworth in wpial final.
A question for the D3 folks, Berks Catholic loss to TW doesn’t look nearly as bad now after what happened to Wyo and their other loss is to 4A Beca by 7. There hasn’t been much talk about them as a contender but they are on the eastern side of the bracket.
Does anyone think BC can compete with ND, NW, Berwick etc in the east? I haven’t heard much about them but seems like they have a legit chance.
D11, Berks Catholic can score points but their defense is suspect. The lost a 48-42 shootout to Bethlehem Catholic. They would be underdogs to any of the 3 schools mentioned. Their league doesn’t have any good team in it, they no longer play Wyomissing or Exeter. This was supposed to be the year that BC contends for a 3A crown, however, arguably their top 3 players are no longer with the program, 2 transferred out and the other kid decided to concentrate on basketball. Kids transferring out of the school the last several years has hurt the program. They did get a running back transfer from Reading HIgh-Camara, who is very good and eligible for the playoffs. His father was the Head Basketball coach at Reading HIgh and was fired despite having a winning record, District 3 made the right call on that one.
Looking at the Bracket in 3A…A potential Northwestern Lehigh vs. Berwick game is interesting. The winner has a good chance to go to Cumberland Valley.
I was going to ask if anyone thinks Berwick has a realistic shot against NWL, they have certainly been impressive thus far, but not sure how they would match up with NWL, I agree the winner of that game likely gets to CV for the title game.
Berwick definitely has a shot to get to CV, especially if Ty’Meere Wilkerson goes off. I wouldn’t say Berwick is better than NWL, but I think it’s a lot closer now than I thought heading in. However, we could all be seeing Scranton Prep in the 3A state rounds, at the same time.
This might be the year D2 returns to the final & I might need to reassess my 1-6A ranks from last year to confirm whether they have the best case.
First, NW will likely need to beat NS and ND, also they play SL in week 10, if they make it through there, they will be battle tested and the favorite to come out of the east.
I had a chance to watch the some of the Berwick and Wyoming Area game today and I think the biggest hurdle for Berwick is the lack of a passing game. Knowing the NW coaching staff, they will take away what Berwick does best, I also dont think Berwick has seen a team with the overall speed of NW. I would love to see that game though, hoping Berwick can get past SP.
I want to vent a little about coaching malpractice. In the game I was at on Friday McKeesport raced to a 35-10 halftime lead, capped by a 66 yard TD pass to Kemon Spell in the waning seconds, why Mars didn’t call a TO when they lined Spell up wide with 17 seconds to go is a great question as they still had a TO left, Spell ran by the DB like he was standing in quick sand and the QB hit him in stride and instead of it being 28-10 at half it became 35-10.
Mars was trying to climb back into the game and started the second half with 2 quick scores to cut it to 35-24 before McKeesport answered to make it 42-24. Mars was stopped on their next possession just inside of McKeesport territory and had fourth and long late in the third quarter, so the play was to punt them in the hole and hope the defense got a stop and play field position. The one thing they COULD NOT do was punt the ball to Spell, I told everyone sitting around me they should punt the ball out of bounds because way too much risk to let Spell touch it. That’s just basic HS football 101, and hard to believe a 2 time state champion coach would not tell his punter to make sure to kick the ball out of bounds, instead he kicked it straight down the left hash, and a few broken tackles and a great stiff arm later the end result was a predictable 86 yard return for a TD, which all but finished the game at that point and made it 49-24.
McKeesport was clearly the better team, but very surprised with the poor coaching by Eric Kasperowicz in those 2 situations, he really dug a huge hole for his team with those 2 mistakes. In fairness maybe he did tell the punter to kick it out of bounds and he didn’t execute, but there is no excuse for not calling a TO late in the first half to adjust the defense when they went with an empty backfield and lined Spell up wide.
D2 Notes after Week 8
Game of the Week: Crestwood/Dallas was kind of fun. A defensive struggle of whoever could score first winning, & Dallas was the team that had to do just that. Plus, two interceptions also helped.
Notables
– Pittston won its first WVC 1 title in over a generation (2003), after a DOMINANT win over Hazleton.
– Ty’Meere Wilkerson just keeps setting records. He put up 390 yards & 5 TD in a dominant 63-19 over Billtown.
– DV had their best game of the season, shutting out VV, 41-0. Really didn’t see it coming at all.
– Abington Heights beat Paupack, 31-14, in a game that was a lot closer than expected, based on the way the Buckhorns played.
Playoff Look (By Importance)
3A
– Berwick’s on cruise control to 10-0. However, if Berwick loses out, Wyo Area has an outside chance at the 1.
– Wyo Area is safe in 2nd, barring a massive upset next week & a loss to Pittston.
– Scranton Prep (.521) can either challenge for #2, stay at #3, or drop to #4/out of the race.
– L-L (.495) leads Hanover Area (.483) for the final seed.
– Mid Valley (.451) & Carbondale (.440) need help, but aren’t out of either districts or EC.
– Tunkhannock, WW, & Montrose will be going to Cancun after the season.
1A
– Trail should keep home field, regardless of the format
– We have 2-4 now being the D11 teams, so if it stays put, this is a repeat of last year’s
– Tri-Valley seems to be the other home team (.534), while Marian (.522) could overtake if they steal two wins.
– Nativity holds the final spot by a .385 to .364 over HC.
– Pizzatown is eliminated, but did go to 20-0 over Holy Cross.
4A
– North Pocono is the #1, also on 10-0 watch
– Valley View & Dallas are on a race for the home seed. VV leads .575 to .548. VV has Valley West & Paupack, while Dallas has Hazleton & the Old Shoe game.
– Wallenpaupack’s on the outside looking in & MUST win at least one of the final two to possibly overtake Crestwood. They trail .490 to .473.
– Honesdale is rooting against their rival to keep an EC spot (.386).
– Greater Nanticoke is eliminated.
2A
– It’s a toss up between Riverside & Lakeland for the 1 seed. The team up on Chapman Lake has it, .685 to .661. The Vikes have Old Forge & Trail, but Lakeland has a West Side & Mid Valley.
– Dunmore’s safely at #3
– Holy Redeemer & Susquehanna are right there for the final seed. HR leads the team up on 171, .202 to .189. May have to think about adding a matchup in the final two for a game to watch.
5A
– It seems like Pittston may have an inside track to the #1, if they win out. Just have to beat Paupack & Wyoming Area, which is easier said than done. They lead .702 to .667
– Abington Heights is comfortably at #2 & has Scranton & Hazleton to go. If the Comets sweep, they may overtake.
– DV is safely #3 & will face North Pocono & Scranton to end their season. They have .590. AH must lose at least once & DV has to win out to swap seeds.
– WVW leads West .338 to .313. WVW has VV & Crestwood, while WS has Lakeland & Honesdale. This is going to be tight.
6A
– Wilkes-Barre & Williamsport will duke it out for the 1-seed in Week 10, if Wilkes-Barre loses to Crestwood.
– I believe Scranton & Hazleton will keep the seeds they’re in. All four are in, anyway, but they can flip.
And Jeff H, meant to reply Friday Night. I probably should’ve looked into the McK/Moon game. Went with the better record. 4A does feel wide open in WPIAL, so I think it’s going to be one heck of a tournament.
@D2 Fan – forget the record, their 3 losses were against very good teams (including 2 5A contenders in Peters and USC) and Spell did not play in any of those games (he reinjured his ankle on the first series against TJ and missed the rest of the game and the following 2 games). McKeesport is maybe the biggest favorite in any class in the WPIAL, outside of PCC in 6A, I would be shocked if they don’t roll to the WPIAL 4A title. All Spell did on Friday was produce 420 in total offense and 6 TDs, including a 66 yard reception and 86 yard punt return in addition to 4 rushing TDs, he’s as good as advertised, Delaware Valley found out how good he is in the week 0 game at the Wolvarena.
@Foleman, I was definitely surprised to see this result, thought it would be closer. Does D3 in 4A play in the eastern or western, last year I believe D3 4A was in the west bracket? If anyone has a link to full state brackets for this year including districts, that would be awesome.
Back to Wyo though, in my opinion, its very surprising to see a school with such great lineman and athletes to be running the wing T. I understand smaller schools running it where maybe they don’t have the horses, line or athletes and they need to rely on misdirection and deception but I wonder how much better Wyo could have been over the last decade or so if they adopted a more modern offense.
D11 ..I applaud wyo and their coaching staff for sticking with the wing t which is a great scheme and when played at its best is really fun to watch. If anything it makes them even tougher to beat cause its very hard to prepare for especially in a short week of practice. everyone else seems to just want to follow the leader and run the same spread offenses even when many times its not what is probably best for being successful for many programs.
D11, Wyo is actually a small 3A school forced to play 4A due to the competition factor. The Wing T is drilled into the Wyo Pee Wee, elementary and Jr High programs and by the time they get to HS it’s perfected. Wyo has won a state championship, finished runner-up twice and would have won another state Championship if not for a last second Hail Mary. They have beaten Imhotep, Aliquippa, S. Columbia 3X Berks Catholic and many other top programs with the Wing T. They only throw the ball 6-7 times a game, when they have a good passing QB they throw it more. Wyo will probably get a rematch with Twin Valley in the D3 playoffs, I can think of only 1 school-Lampeter Strasburg that has beaten Wyo twice in one year, Wolfrum is amazing at making adjustments, however, I think that Twin Valley is just too strong and will pull out a close game in the rematch. D3 will play the West winner in the semi’s could be a Twin Valley/McKeesport game which would be very interesting.
,
@Irish1 and @Foleman, I agree it is fun to watch and can be potent, my high school ran it right up until we got to varsity. Appreciate the background on the youth program too and its nice to see that continuity from youth to varsity, a key that you’ll find in many of the successful programs.
I am not implying they should run the spread or would have won more if they ran the spread. However, I also think there is something to be said about an offense that is more multiple, while still being a run first offense, especially when you have the personnel that is able to do more. It made me ponder what they could look like against the real good teams they had lost to in past.
It is definitely not common to see Wyo lose to a D3 school, let alone by 3 scores so it will be interesting to see how the rematch goes. Not as familiar with TW, haven’t seen many highlights of them but will have to try and catch up.
4A will be interesting between those 3 teams out west and then BP, SL, Shamokin in the east, maybe throw township or NP in as having an outside shot.
Drill back to posts on Oct. 7th. There are two bracket links there.
“BREAKING 2027 4-star LB Gabe Jenkins has decommitted from Penn State.”
Jenkins is a junior at Imani Christian Academy of the WPIAL.
I suspect this trend will continue despite the firing.
The good news is his teammate David Davis has reaffirmed his commitment to PSU as has Matt Sieg from Fort Cherry, as of now both are still planning on enrolling in January.
Ummm, not so fast……again…..
“Imani Christian 4-star ATH David Davis tells KDKA Radio he will be taking two official visits: Pitt and West Virginia.”
Jeff H. Penn State lost 3 more recruits from 2026 class to decommit overnight, including their only QB commit. They need to get a new coach in place ASAP, Transfer portal is already lining up, need someone to recruit and get transfers, all begins Jan 2nd this year.
The transfer portal is a two way street. It can work both ways. Obviously kids leaving, but depending on the next coach, there could be an influx of kids liking and following the new coach and staff, kids see an opening to play where they may be in a system that isn’t living up to their expectations, or even kids who originally thought about PSU but weren’t keen on Franklin and maybe now give it a shot.
Indiana just gave their current coach an insane extension, thinking this Franklin firing just lit a fire under the college coaching market and will make a whole lot of top level coaches a lot more wealthy down the road.
…..and this:
Matt Sieg 4 ⭐️ ATH
@matt_sieg
Oct 13
I love Penn State and am still open to being a Lion, but with the uncertainty of the current situation, my family and I are trying to make sure we make the best decision for the future. Please respect our decision.
“Update from 4-Star Penn State Safety commit Matt Sieg:”
““At this time, I am still committed to current staff at Penn State. However, due to the recent changes and uncertainty, I have decided to re-open my recruitment.””
That doesn’t sound like a 100% commitment.
No it sure doesn’t and that is different than what he was quoted as saying on triblive over the weekend but his prior comments may have been before Franklin was fired.
I told several of my buddies Pitt needs to capitalize on this situation and go really hard on these wpial guys which I assume they are but they need to flip some of these kids.
Kevin X Penn State has lost all 6 of their 2027 recruits. A week ago they had the #3 ranked recruits, today they have none. They have also lost 5 recruits from 2026 class, dropping from a #9 class to the #16 class and it will continue to drop, kids commit to coaches and cash, if the coaches are gone, they kids need to make a move, the early signing period is coming up as is the Transfer Portal is now Jan 2nd to the 16th this year. A WHOLE LOTTA CHANGES COMING!
Yeah they been dropping like flies. Just stopped posting each one. Otherwise I’d crash this forum.
Transfer portal is going to be wild, especially depending on who they name next permanent coach.
Kevin X Agreed, Transfer Portal is going to be a complete bail out, the kids commit to coaches, if Penn State somehow gets a great coach, maybe they will only lose 50% of their current team.
Twin Valley 28 Wyomissing 6 Was very impressed with TW, they are big and strong up up front and they have several running backs who run straight through you. TW wore down Wyo in the 2nd half and stopped their vaunted Wing T cold. TW, in my opinion is the best 4A team in the East, I did not see any weaknesses. I’m sure we will see a rematch in the D3 playoffs, Wolfrum-Wyo’s Head coach will make adjustments, But TW looks too strong, whoever they play out West, if they get that far will have their hands full with this team.
@Foleman – D3 winner plays in the west and will play the wpial winner in the west finals. As I posted Friday night McKeesport is a big favorite to win wpial 4a and trust me whoever wins D3 will absolutely have their hands full dealing with Kemon Spell and company all he did Friday against a solid mars team was gain 42O in total offense and score 6 TDs there’s a reason he’s ranked as the #1 RB in the country in class of 2027 he’s as good as advertised.
Jeff H, would love to see Spell head to South Bend, he could be the next Jeremiah Love who might be the 1st player taken in the next NFL draft. Wyo has a 4.4 kid who’s a junior with several Div 1 offers-Justice Hardy, he was stopped cold, only had 23 yards, I was surprised how big strong and fast TW was. Now Hardy is not Spell, no one in HS is so it will be interesting if TW and McKeesport meet up in the Semi’s. This is what makes HS football so great, debating East Vs West. Remember Perry Traditional academy years ago….no one scored on them the entire season, they ran the score up on everyone and looked unstoppable. They met East powerhouse Berwick in the finals who scored the 1st time they had the ball and the 2nd time they possessed the ball to win the game. I don’t think any fans out West outside of Perry parents were rooting for Perry that game.
I would love to see Spell go to Pitt, LOL! As of right now it appears McKeesport will play the winner of the TV/Wyomissing rematch in the West final. The way to beat McKeesport is to keep their offense off the field and play ball control, which either of those teams are capable of doing. I thought TJ was going to beat LS last year, especially when they led 16-3 at half, but LS made adjustments and took it to them in the 2nd half and won 20-16. One advantage for McKeesport is they have played a very tough schedule, certainly more difficult than either TV or Wyomissing, and played 3 full games and all but the first series of the TJ game without Spell, giving playing time to other backs, and I think they have grown as a team as a result. I said on here a couple of weeks ago that despite their record McKeesport is a very dangerous team when fully healthy, and they were firing on all cylinders on Friday night.
Foleman…I join you in hoping he decides to head to South Bend
You mentioned TV is the best 4A team in the east. Geographically you can say that, but come playoff time, they will be in the western bracket. I’m guessing Jeff H. may have another opinion with that. As far as geographical 4A teams, I did take myself over to the La Salle/Bonner game yesterday afternoon. Only stuck around for the first half (35-0 and iffy weather will get me heading home early). Won’t get into La Salle, other than they were as good as advertised, if not better. Which makes me scratch my head with Bonner’s performance. Which was meh at best (I’m trying to be nice). All of one first down in the first half, if I recall correctly?? So was it a case of running into a massive tsunami, or are they just not as good as last year?? Next up for them are Prep and Roman, not seeing much better results or getting a better read on them. I wouldn’t be surprised if the get tripped up by one of their fellow 4A PCL teams early in the playoffs. Guess what I am saying is that the 4A bracket in the east is open for anyone’s taking. North Pocono, Southern Lehigh, PJPII, Shanahan, Bonner, other PCL team (Ryan is getting interesting) got a good a shot as anybody. Maybe we’ll see one of them in the 4A finals against TV.
Kevin X…. Bonner lost some very good players to graduation, still a good team but not close to last yr. PJP has been hurt by some keys injuries along both lines and havent been the same team the last few weeks after basically dominating a good Shanahan team for most of the game before Shanahan made it interesting late. Will see what happens but they are probably a year away. But i agree the other teams you mentioned cant be taken lightly.
Tough to evaluate Bonner as they play much larger schools that are ranked among the best in the US. They clearly are not as good as last year though.
District One and the PCL is fun. Sometimes I feel for some of you guys across the state (OK, not really). How does D-Town East gives up 33 points and loose last week, granted to a very good Rustin team, but then last night shut out a powerful undefeated Coatesville team?? I get Ortega (QB) went out of the game early with an ankle injury, but still?? Not surprised DTE won, but via shutout?? I had next week’s D-Town West @ Coatesville on my calendar from the beginning of the season. Now looking very iffy.
Game I was at last night, Pennridge also gets knocked from the ranks of the unbeaten by a very determined and gritty CB West team. Rivalry renewed next week, CB West at North Penn. Feeling like I will be at that one.
Two OT games in the PCL, SJ Prep prevails and get’s back in the win column over Roman. La Salle beats the Prep, Prep beats Roman, Roman beats La Salle. Around and round we go. See if I make it over to Warminster this afternoon for Bonner and La Salle.
Lansdale Catholic over Wood also in OT. How long will Lansdale Catholic remain under the radar in 2A??
Any further news on Ortega injury? Shanahan grad here who grew up in Coatesville area watching great teams from 70s until now. Seems like never a down year and they are approaching 800 wins which know one in SE PA has reached.
Nothing that I am aware of. Maybe hear something later this week. I’ve found high school football injury info is very hit or miss. Understandable. Not tho like the NFL where there are weekly injury reports.
Talk about running up scores. Look what Haven did to Pinegrove Shame on them! Unnecessary. They won’t do that to Southern if they meet up in the future. 72 points come on man!
Dennis- what’s the score of the Bloomsburg vs Southern game? You willing to make the same comments about Southern and their coaching staff?
Yes! The starters played 2 minutes in the 2ND half. Roth pulled them out and put in the freshmen for rest of game. Roth will not run up the score. Never! He has to much class to do that.
What was the score at halftime??? Only the freshmen played the second half?? No sophomores, juniors or seniors?? Went for the extra point after every score? You better watch the tape. 61-0. My point is that it happens. There is not much you can do as a coach. Easy to call out coaches except when your team does the same thing.
I agree 100%! A decent team would have called off the dogs midway through the 2nd qtr. (North Schuylkill did that exact thing against Bangor last week.) Pine Grove has been bad for quite a few years. One thing about Coach Farr, he loves to pad his players stats. Yes, they practice all week like anyone else. But, sportsmanship against a far weaker opponent means alot.
I’m really surprised that Pine Grove, Shenandoah Valley, & Mahanoy aren’t playing independent football at this rate. This is a common occurrence for them & it feels like they need some time to do what Albert Gallatin, Montrose, & Redeemer are doing (& CMVT).
Makes me kind of wish we had a league of the weaker teams in D2/4/11, so they can play the right opponents: Pine Grove, Shen Valley, Mahanoy, CMVT, Redeemer, Montrose, Wilson Area, & Midd-West. Find a way to keep rivalries, but give them a chance to gain confidence.
Honestly I’ve always felt that Shen Valley SD should merge into Mahanoy Area. Both districts are small and geographically they fit perfectly into each other. It might not help a ton in football (at least in the short term) since it would push them up to 4A, but they would be a basketball powerhouse.
Before today’s games, EC rankings have been updated.
– 1A/2A: Upper Dauphin vs. Nativity. Holy Cross is also in the hunt.
– 3A: Danville vs. Pequea Valley, but they did not account the 4-team bracket. It means Carbondale would most likely be the rep, but Hanover Area would also be in the hunt.
– 4A: No Wallenpaupack, so it’s Hamburg vs. Honesdale. Safely this matchup.
– 5A/6A: Governor Mifflin vs. Conrad Weiser, & no one seems to be close.
@ Jeff H.
“Stunning news as Khalil Taylor decommits from Penn State.”
I also saw that Mr. Spell will be visiting Georgia after an offer was extended.
Ahhhh…the exodus has begun……
who does the recruiting, who is the face of Penn State, the coaches, the recruiters, if there is an uncertainity they will be there, the recruits will be gone, wait until the transfer portal opens, if Coach Franklin and staff are still under fire, 1/2 the team will enter the portal and Penn State will be lucky to be 6-6 next year.
Brought to you by the Fans to Fire Franklin Committee.
Their former AD gave Franklin a 10 year extension! Who does that? 50 Million dollar buyout to get rid of a coach who cant win a big game to save his life! Other programs are all over PSU’S recruits, putting it in their heads that Franklin won’t be the Head Coach much longer. I doubt Spell goes there a long with several others, PSU football is a sinking ship!
Normally I would feel bad for a coach going thru what he is going thru but as a lifelong ND fan and being as Franklin couldnt stop running his mouth with all the ND should have to join a conference bs, I don’t feel bad at all. Go Irish!
Agreed Irish. My Dad is a 61 ND grad along w a few other family members and echo your sentiments about Franklin. Last years playoff win over PSU was better thank the SnowBowl plus add in the Love Leap and epic td run carrying players into the end zone.
@irish & Chris – as a lifelong and diehard Pitt fan who grew up in the 70’s-80’s detesting Penn state I enjoy any drama and turmoil surrounding the program maybe some of their wpial commits will reconsider and go to Pitt! I was at the McKeesport game last night and heard Georgia is really heavily recruiting Kemon Spell and he’s scheduling a visit if the Georgia mega boosters are smart they will open up the checkbook and make him an NIL deal he can’t refuse he is a special player.
And Khalil Taylor is very good and will be an excellent receiver wherever he ends up very impressive last week against Penn hills I know he would look good in Pitt blue and gold!
Yep I am at the McKeesport game now and was told Georgia is hot on him he already has 4 TDs they are beating a very good mars team 35-10 at half he’s as good as advertised a special talent best back I have seen in the wpial since Miles sanders.
Rest of the Slate. If I’m missing any sneaky playoff implications games, inform me & I can take a gander.
D11
– Bethlehem Catholic vs. Nazareth: Naz 30, Beca 18
– Liberty vs. Easton: Easton 32, Lib 14
– Northampton vs. Freedom: Freedom 33, N’ham 13
– PM East vs. Pleasant Valley: PME 23, PV 19
– Palisades vs. Notre Dame: ‘Sades 28, NDGP 26
– Saucon Valley vs. Pen Argyl: PA 34, Saucon 17
D4
– Southern Columbia vs. Montoursville: SCA 35, Montoursville 20
– Shikellamy vs. Bloomsburg: Bloom 28, Shik 21
– North Penn-Mansfield vs. Troy: Troy 34, NPM 17
– South Williamsport vs. Muncy: SW 24, Muncy 22
D1
– Pennridge vs. CB West: P’ridge 34, CBW 28
– Upper Moreland vs. Wissahickon: Wiss. 38, UM 17
– Coatesville vs. D’Town East: C’ville 28, DTE 27
– D’Town West vs. Bishop Shanahan: DTW 24, Shanahan 22
– Haverford vs. Ridley: HHS 29, Ridley 19
D12
– St. Joe’s Prep vs. Roman: Roman 23, SJP 20
– Bonner-Prendie vs. La Salle: LaS 32, B-P 26
– Bartram vs. Belmont Charter: BC 21, JB 20
– Thomas Edison vs. Audenried: TAE 20, Audenried 16
D3
– Bishop McDevitt vs. Central Dauphin: McD 30, CD 18
– Shippensburg vs. Red Land: RL 33, Ship 16
– Susq. Twp. vs. Big Spring: STWP 34, Big Spr. 13
– West Perry vs. Trinity: Trin 27, WP 20
– Halifax vs. Newport: Newport 20, Halifax 17
– Ephrata vs. Muhlenberg: Muhl 27, Eph 21
– Twin Valley vs. Wyomissing: Wyo 38, TV 24
– New Oxford vs. West York: NO 27, WY 23
– Spring Grove vs. York High: SGA 25, WP 14
D5/6
– Guilfoyle vs. Forest Hills: BG 33, FH 20
– Tyrone vs. Penn Cambria: PC 28, Tyr 20
– Everett vs. Tussey Mtn.: Everett 26, TM 16
– Windber vs. Berlin: Windy 25, BBros 20
– Cambria Heights vs. Conemaugh Twp.: CH 38, Cone Twp. 14
WPIAL/City
– Norwin vs. Central Catholic: PCC 42, Norw 10
– Peters vs. South Fayette: Peters 34, SF 19
– Bethel Park vs. USC: USC 30, BP 20
– Mars vs. McKeesport: Mars 27, McK 24
– Hopewell vs. Freeport: Free 27, Hope 16
– Mt. Pleasant vs. Southmoreland: S’more 25, Mt. P 24
– Apollo-Ridge vs. South Allegheny: South A 33, A-R 14
– Bishop Canevin vs. Fort Cherry: FC 27, BC 26
– Jefferson-Morgan vs. Bentworh: J-M 35, Bent 13
– Leechburg vs. Clairton: Clairton 36, Leech 18
– Westinghouse vs. USO: Westy 33, USO 10
D9/10
– Conneaut vs. Sharon: Sharon 27, CASH 13
– Girard vs. North East: NE 24, Girard 19
– Saegertown vs. Greenville: G’ville 38, Saeg 12
– Brockway vs. Karns City: KC 34, Brock 13
Crossover/Non-PIAA
– Butler (7/10) vs. Allderdice (8): TA 27, Butler 24
– Executive (11) vs. Future (12): Future 19, EE 14
– McDowell (10) vs. Austintown Fitch: Erie McD 26, Fitch 24
– Malvern Prep vs. Germantown: MP 23, GA 19
– Penn Charter vs. Haverford: HS 21, WPC 15
@D2 Fan – was out of town today and didn’t see this until now but would have definitely picked McKeesport by 2-3 scores I am at the game and they are winning 35-10 at half Mr. Spell is back and has 4 TDs when they are healthy like they are now they are by far the best team in 4a in wpial. Mars is a very solid team but McKeesport is dominating.
Week 8 is here & we have playoff implications written all over a few of these.
– Valley View vs. Delaware Valley (LFC 1): You know when these two valley named schools of the LFC play each other, you kind of have to throw out the record books. My senses tell me DV finds a way to win it, in a tight battle. DV’s defense hasn’t been great, but I think their offense can keep up & beat the Cougars.
– Mid Valley vs. Scranton Prep (LFC 2): This is a seeding implication game with a pretty predictable outcome. Prep should handily help their case to be the #3 seed.
– Riverside vs. Carbondale (LFC 3): C’dale has not looked good against LFC 3 teams this season, but this is a test they need to do well in, if they’re looking to challenge for a district playoff game. The Vikes should be all over this one.
– Crestwood vs. Dallas (WVC 1): Sneaky game that can flip seeding, if it goes a way. A Crestwood win can give Paupack a little hope to sneak in. A Crestwood loss puts them in a fight for who plays North Pocono. I think Crestwood’s going to be the better team, so give me the WVC Comets.
– Wyoming Area vs. Lake-Lehman (WVC 2): This game means more for L-L. Playoffs & seeding are going to be important here, especially in the tight 3A battle for 3-6. Wyo Area should dominate this.
– Abington Heights vs. Wallenpaupack (LFC HM): Paupack’s homecoming might be their most important game yet. The Buckhorns are not far behind Dallas for the last spot in the playoffs after a season-saving adjace win against Scranton. Dallas losing to Crestwood can open a door. I don’t see them beating the LFC Comets, but with some help from the WVC Comets, it may leave a door open to have a chance to sneak in by doing what is the unthinkable: winning over either Pittston or Valley View.
– Williamsport vs. Berwick (WVC HM): This is a former WVC battle, but it’s my WVC HM. I don’t make the rules for my designations. It’s just the way it is. The Berwick Bulldogs will keep barking up the right tree.
– Old Forge vs. Holy Cross (D2 HM): Pretty important game in the 1A race. While Old Forge has one win, they can play spoiler against the Crusaders. HC needs this to keep their hopes for a subregional slot & I think they’ll get it & beat Old Forge for the first time…ever!
– Minersville vs. Nativity (1A Watch): Don’t look now but here comes Nativity! They’re in a race with Holy Cross for the last spot & to determine the subregional’s system. This is a game that Nativity loses, but this is a battle that can determine who ends up as District 2 1A champion.
– Williams Valley vs. Marian (1A Watch): Only one thing can be said: Marian has reached the gauntlet. It’s not going to be easy, but they need to fight, fight, fight to avoid any chance of playing Trail, in a true 4-teamer. The Vikings will control this game.
Scores
– DV 26, VV 23
– Prep 41, MV 14
– Riverside 38, C’dale 12
– Crestwood 28, Dallas 16
– Wyo Area 35, L-L 14
– AH 30, Paupack 13
– Berwick 33, Billtown 16
– HC 24, OF 21
– Minersville 31, Nativity 19
– WV 32, Marian 10
Thursday Football
– Blue Mountain vs. North Schuylkill: NS 30, Blue Mtn. 14
– Souderton vs. CR South: Soudy 27, CRS 23