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Heinz Field
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WPIAL football finals include surprising matchup in Quad-A
By: Kevin Gorman
When the WPIAL football playoff pairings were announced Oct. 24, it wasn't a reach to think that the top-seeded teams would ultimately meet for the four WPIAL championships at Heinz Field.
Now, only the WPIAL Class A and AA games will feature a No. 1 seed against a No. 2. Two No. 5 seeds, Woodland Hills and Franklin Regional, and a No. 6, McKeesport, will play in Saturday's finals.
"It always seems there's one or two teams that comes up from nowhere and pushes someone out, so it's really difficult to make it," said Thomas Jefferson coach Bill Cherpak, whose second-seeded Jaguars will play Franklin Regional, a 24-21 winner over top-seeded West Mifflin, in the AAA final. "After I saw them on film against Pine-Richland, there was no doubt in my mind they were one of the top teams. I wasn't surprised at all that they beat West Mifflin."
Thomas Jefferson is making its third consecutive trip to Heinz Field. The Jaguars lost to Pine-Richland in 2003, then defeated West Mifflin last year.
While playing in the WPIAL championship is becoming an annual trip for Thomas Jefferson, it's been a once-a-decade opportunity for Franklin Regional coach Greg Botta.
Botta was an assistant at Swissvale in 1985, when it lost to Riverside in the Class AA final and the head coach at Franklin Regional in 1995, when the Panthers lost to Belle Vernon in the AAA final.
"I was talking to my son, Greg, about that. He told me we'd be destined to go down there," Botta said. "We've just got to change the outcome."
The most unusual match-up, according to seeding, is in Class AAAA. Despite winning the Quad Southwest title, McKeesport was seeded sixth, one spot behind Quad East third-place finisher Woodland Hills.
After winning four titles in a seven-year span, Woodland Hills is back in the WPIAL final for the first time since 2002. McKeesport has reached its first final since losing to the Wolverines in 1999.
Their meeting is not totally unexpected. Woodland Hills started the season atop the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review rankings, while McKeesport was ranked fourth. Both teams had to avenge earlier losses to reach the championship, as McKeesport defeated North Hills in the quarterfinals and Woodland Hills beat Central Catholic in the semifinals. The Tigers' bracket became easier when No. 2 seed Penn Hills was upset by Trinity in the first round.
"They are a very good football team," Woodland Hills coach George Novak said of McKeesport. "Offensively and defensively, they are very good."
South Park, the top seed in Class AA, hasn't been to the WPIAL final since its 1997 PIAA-title run. The Eagles' opponent, No. 2 Greensburg Central Catholic, is the only WPIAL finalist making its first appearance.
Rochester, the No. 1 seed in Class A, is making its sixth trip to the WPIAL final since 1998. The Rams have won five of the past seven Class A crowns, beating Duquesne in 2002. The Dukes, seeded No. 2, haven't won a WPIAL title since '93.
No matter the history, all eight are savoring the chance to play for a WPIAL title and at Heinz Field.
"It's better than not being in it," Cherpak said. "You have to have a good team and get breaks along the way." |
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Woodland Hills
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4
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