High School category, Page 978
The Birdie happy to be back watching football in the A-K Valley
“It’s here! It’s here! It’s finally here!” The Birdie came into the Valley News Dispatch office Tuesday screaming at the top of his lungs and threw a Labor Day weekend’s worth of notes into the air in celebration. At least that was what he said he did. He forgot no...
Burrell, Valley looking forward to another ‘Battle of the Bypass’
Before last year, Valley had dominated the “Battle of the Bypass” rivalry with Burrell, winning six straight. But when the airways opened up last season, quarterback Alex Arledge and the Bucs took home their first victory in the rivalry since 2012 with a 20-0 shutout, and they are looking forward...
A-K Valley don’t-miss high school football matchups for Week 1
Here’s a look at some don’t-miss matchups in the A-K Valley for Week 1: Class 5A northeast Fox Chapel at No. 1 Pine-Richland 7 p.m. Friday, Pine-Richland Stadium, Gibsonia The Foxes and Rams meet for the first time since 2015 when both were members of the Northern Eight Conference in...
Trib HSSN football players to watch in Week 1
Here are four WPIAL football players to watch during Week 1: Khalil Dinkins North Allegheny, sr., WR/OLB Dinkins caught 16 passes for nearly 400 yards and six touchdowns last season for the Tigers, who are ranked No. 2 in Class 6A. A Division I prospect, Dinkins is the son of...
High school football schedule for Week 1
Friday WPIAL Class 6A Canon-McMillan at Central Catholic, 7 p.m. Hempfield at Norwin, 7 p.m. Nonconference Baldwin at Hollidaysburg, 7 p.m. Penn Hills at North Allegheny, 7 p.m. (HSSN) Class 5A Allegheny Six Bethel Park at Upper St. Clair, 7 p.m. (1020 AM, HSSN) West Allegheny at Moon, 7 p.m....
WPIAL football preseason rankings
Class 6A 1. Central Catholic (12-2) 2. North Allegheny (10-2) 3. Seneca Valley (4-7) 4. Mt. Lebanon (7-5) 5. Baldwin (5-6) Class 5A 1. Pine-Richland (10-2) 2. Gateway (12-3) 3. Peters Township (12-2) 4. Upper St. Clair (7-5) 5. South Fayette (10-2) Class 4A 1. Thomas Jefferson (16-0) 2. McKeesport...
Westmoreland County high school football players to watch for Week 1
Zach Cernuto Southmoreland, sr., QB Cernuto is a four-year starter who has thrown for 3,731 yards by completing 257 of 493 passes with 34 touchdowns and 31 interceptions. He lost his top receivers from a year ago and will break in a few new ones, including returning tight end Anthony...
Nevermind the calendar, conference title on the line when Jeannette, Clairton clash
When Jeannette dropped to Class A in 2014 and was placed in the Eastern Conference, the final game of the regular season against Clairton was for the conference title. Thanks to the coronavirus, that won’t happen again this season. Because of adjustments to the WPIAL schedule brought on by the...
Trib HSSN don’t-miss high school football matchups for Week 1
Class 6A Canon-McMillan (3-8) at No. #1 Central Catholic (12-2) 7 p.m. Friday, Graham Field in Wilkinsburg Coaches: Mike Evans, Canon-McMillan; Terry Totten, Central Catholic Players to watch: Ryan Angott, Canon-McMillan (Jr., 5-10, 185, RB); Edward Tillman, Central Catholic (Sr., 5-8, 165, RB) Four downs: 1. Junior Ryan Angott will...
Westmoreland County teams turn to freshman quarterbacks
Two freshmen are expected to start at quarterback for Westmoreland County football teams on opening night. Jeannette plans to open with Brad Birch, while Monessen will look to Shane Swope Jr. to lead the offense Friday. Jeannette, ranked fourth in Class A, hosts rival and top-ranked Clairton, while Monessen is...
Jeannette to honor late Tre Cunningham at season opener
Jeannette will honor former standout Tre Cunningham at its football season opener Friday night against Clairton. The Jayhawks will wear “TC 6” stickers on the back of their helmets in memory of Cunningham, a three-sport athlete who was killed in a motorcycle accident in July along Route 130 near Jeannette....
Waynesburg adds Ariz. wrestling champion as WPIAL sorts out-of-state transfers
For the second year in a row, Waynesburg’s wrestling team has added a state champion from another part of the country. The team’s newest transfer is junior Zander Phaturos, who won the 113-pound state title in Arizona last winter. The WPIAL processed his transfer paperwork Wednesday and granted him full...
Gov. Wolf says schools shouldn’t decide spectator limits for sportsVideo
Advocates for House Bill 2787 are ignoring reality, said Gov. Tom Wolf, who insisted Thursday that individual schools shouldn’t set their own attendance policies for athletics. Wolf plans to veto the bill. The state House and Senate each approved the legislation by a two-third majority, but Wolf said Thursday he...
Serra Catholic postpones football team’s season opener
Serra Catholic, which closed its school building for a couple of days this week, has also postponed its football team’s season opener. The Eagles were scheduled to host Steel Valley on Friday. Athletic director Bill Cleary announced the postponement Thursday. Serra moved all students to online learning after two students...
WPIAL football teams ready to embark on season like no other
After an evening of continuous collisions, two of the WPIAL’s top football teams wanted to show their respect for one another, but they weren’t exactly sure how. Players typically line up after a scrimmage, meet at midfield and shake hands. But as teams have learned, simple elements of football season...
Chick’s Picks ready for normalcy of Friday night lights
Welcome to Week 1 of the high school football season. As we approach kickoff Friday night, we can all safely say what we have endured thus far in 2020 has been one of the most trying, unsettling, uncertain times in our lives. The Friday night lights will certainly be a...
Trib HSSN preseason state football rankings
The 2020 high school football season kicks off Friday around Pennsylvania with words such as finally, normalcy, excitement and tradition being used to describe games that were up in the air as recently as two weeks ago. Add another word when it comes to state rankings — chaos. First the...
Central Catholic leads preseason Trib 10 football power rankings
Here is the first edition of the Trib 10 high school football power rankings for the 2020 season. These are the weekly rankings where you throw classifications out the window. We allow for some wiggle room for the smaller schools to participate. I mean, is Clairton or Beaver Falls going...
Westmoreland County don’t miss high school football matchups for Week 1
Here’s a look at some don’t-miss matchups in Westmoreland County for Week 1: Class 6A Hempfield vs. Norwin 7 p.m. Friday, Norwin Stadium, North Huntingdon A rivalry between neighboring schools that have struggled in Class 6A. Both teams will feature new quarterbacks and numerous other starters. … Christian Zilli returns...
Westmoreland County Week 1 matchups have Birdie grinning from ear to ear
The Birdie went to the dentist earlier this week for his six-month checkup, and, aside from getting his gums poked and prodded, accidentally swallowing some fluoride treatment and pocketing a free toothbrush, he received a boost of confidence. “The nice dental assistant noticed I still have my wisdom choppers. See,”...
A-K Valley high school football players to watch for Week 1
Dylan Cook Leechburg, sr., QB The veteran quarterback hopes for many opportunities in the Blue Devils’ new “air raid” offense. Cook returns after throwing for 949 yards and eight touchdowns last season as Leechburg went 5-5 overall and 3-3 in the Eastern Conference. Sophomore wideout Braylon Lovelace and senior tight...
Albert Gallatin continues to build as independent program
Before the Albert Gallatin School District decided to merge the district’s three high schools in 1987, its football teams were competitive. Albert Gallatin won two WPIAL titles and German Township one. Fairchance-Georges was also competitive but didn’t win titles or conference championships. It’s been a struggle for the southern Fayette...
Butler football ready to test waters in District 10
When Butler Area School Board members voted to leave the WPIAL for District 10 in football, they did it with a plan. Give third-year coach Eric Christy an opportunity to build up a program that has made the WPIAL playoffs once since Christy graduated from Butler in 1999. “Butler football...
Uniontown ready to right the ship after return to football field
When the Uniontown Area School District voted to cancel football and soccer seasons this fall back on Aug. 4 because of the fear of the coronavirus, football coach Cedric Lloyd accepted the decision. But athletes and parents did not and they wanted the district to reconsider. The district did last...
High school roundup for Sept. 9, 2020: Fox Chapel wins golf showdown
Aidan Oehrle and Zach Paper each fired an even-par 35 to lead Fox Chapel to a 183-189 nonsection win over Sewickley Academy in a battle of defending WPIAL boys golf team champions at Allegheny CC on Wednesday. Sewickley Academy’s Tim Fitzgerald was match medalist with a 3-under 32. Pine-Richland 202,...
