Chris Harlan stories, Page 106
Allegheny 8 co-champions Moon, Peters Township rematch in WPIAL quarterfinals
The WPIAL football playoffs often bring together unfamiliar teams, so their coaches spend hours studying one another on film. But that’s not always the case. Allegheny Eight co-champions Peters Township and Moon meet for the second time in six weeks Friday night in a Class 5A quarterfinal at West Allegheny,...
After 2 winless seasons, Butler football might leave WPIAL for independent schedule
Mired in a 20-game losing streak, Butler’s football team might leave the WPIAL for an independent schedule next season. “We are considering it,” athletic director Bill Mylan said Thursday, “but we haven’t made any kind of decision one way or the other.” The school district’s administration will meet later this...
5 things to watch in Week 11 of high school football: North Allegheny, Mt. Lebanon looking to flip script
How much can change in 14 days? That’s what North Allegheny and Mt. Lebanon want to find out Friday night. Their WPIAL Class 6A semifinals are rematches from Week 9, with North Allegheny facing Pine-Richland for the second time in three weeks, and Mt. Lebanon facing Central Catholic. Neither was...
PIAA football realignment: What classification will teams call home in 2020, 2021?
PIAA football teams learned Thursday which classification they’ll call home next season. Among those switching classes are defending WPIAL champions Pine-Richland and South Fayette, who both appear headed to Class 5A, while Baldwin will jump to the largest classification, according to information released by the PIAA. Updated class parameters —...
Former WPIAL basketball star Donovan ‘Puff’ Johnson commits to North Carolina
Former WPIAL basketball star Donovan “Puff” Johnson committed Tuesday night to North Carolina, choosing a school where older brother Cameron played. The 6-foot-7 standout watched closely as his brother became a Tar Heels star over the past two seasons, and that familiarity ultimately led him to Chapel Hill. “He enjoyed...
WPIAL announces football playoff sites for Week 11: Class 5A rematch at West A
Peters Township and Moon, co-champions in the Allegheny Eight, will play for the second time in six weeks when they meet Friday night in a WPIAL Class 5A quarterfinal at West Allegheny. The WPIAL revealed Week 11 playoff sites Monday. Moon won 21-13 at home in Week 6. But that’s...
Pine-Richland lineman Miguel Jackson adds 3rd Division I offerVideo
Pine-Richland’s Miguel Jackson, one of the WPIAL’s top pass rushers, added his third Division I offer this week. The 6-foot-2, 240-pound junior announced an offer Friday from Toledo, his thirdMid-American Conference school. The guard and defensive end already holds offers from Akron and Bowling Green. Jackson has 8½ sacks, 47...
2 WPIAL seniors receive 1st Division I offers from Rhode IslandVideo
Two WPIAL football players received their first Division I offers this week from the same FCS school. Rhode Island extended offers to Mt. Lebanon senior Mason Ventrone and Moon senior Brenden Luffey, the players announced on Twitter. Leading the Rams’ recruiting efforts around the WPIAL is first-year assistant coach Josh...
5 things we learned in Week 10: McGuffey, West Greene celebrate 1st WPIAL playoff win in decades
McGuffey waited 25 years for Friday night’s celebration. West Greene waited 26. New Brighton waited 18. Cornell had waited forever. Sometimes, a WPIAL playoff win arrives only once in a generation, a fact McGuffey junior Evan Wright and a few of his teammates understand well. McGuffey’s wait ended when the...
QB Ethan Dahlem exits, but fast start leads Upper St. Clair past North HillsVideo
Like a scene from scary movie, Upper St. Clair quarterback Ethan Dahlem’s head and helmet were twisted around in the wrong direction as he crossed the goal line. Dahlem, with a laugh, called it a horror-movie moment. But for the most part, he was the one turning heads Friday night....
Upper St. Clair out to deny North Hills its 1st playoff win since 2010
North Hills and Upper St. Clair haven’t played one another in nearly a decade, but a first-round matchup has stirred some nostalgia. “It seemed like back in the day, that’s who we were matched up with quite a bit,” said North Hills coach Pat Carey, a 1988 graduate. “That’s back...
Home-field advantage weighs heavy in WPIAL playoffs
North Hills’ Rowdie Rooters, the team’s famed hilltop cheering section, hasn’t celebrated a home playoff game at Martorelli Stadium in almost a decade. But when the WPIAL football playoffs start Friday night, North Hills will be among the teams playing on home turf, an advantage that’s proven to be significant....
2nd WPIAL football playoff game moved to artificial turf
Friday’s forecast predicts drier weather, but Thursday’s rain was enough to force two WPIAL football playoff games to be moved off grass. The WPIAL announced that Our Lady of the Sacred Heart and Clairton will play their Class A first-round game at West Mifflin. They were schedule to play at...
PIAA overturns WPIAL, makes Clairton’s Wayne Wade III eligible for football playoffsVideo
Clairton senior Wayne Wade III can participate in the football playoffs, the PIAA decided Thursday, overturning a WPIAL decision on the eve of the postseason. Wade had his appeal heard Thursday morning at the PIAA office in Mechanicsburg. The WPIAL had ruled Wade ineligible for the postseason under a PIAA...
Weather forecast forces Cornell to move football playoff game to West Allegheny
The Cornell football team was hoping to play its first home playoff game since 1983, but a rainy forecast has changed those plans. Instead, Cornell and California will play at 7 p.m. Friday at West Allegheny in the first round of the WPIAL Class A playoffs. The Raiders affectionally call...
Choosing Washington or Avonworth for No. 1 seed among WPIAL’s toughest bracket picks
Choosing the No. 1 seeds was maybe easier than usual for the WPIAL football committee with one exception: Class 2A. There, the committee had three undefeated teams to pick from. Avonworth (10-0) played the strongest schedule with wins over six playoff teams. Burgettstown (9-0) had the stingiest defense, allowing only...
Breaking down the 2019 WPIAL football playoffs
Class 6A Favorite: It’s hard to say. Central Catholic, Pine-Richland and North Allegheny finished in a three-way tie for the conference title. The WPIAL needed tiebreakers to determine their spots in the playoff bracket. Central Catholic received the No. 1 seed because it ranked first among the three in the...
WPIAL bracketology: Chris Harlan, Don Rebel predict 2019 football playoff pairings
The field is set for the WPIAL football playoffs and the six brackets will be revealed Monday night. As always, everybody has an opinion on how those brackets should unfold. Many will guess and take stabs at what they feel will be the first-round matchups before the district makes them...
5 things we learned in Week 9: Cornell earns 1st home playoff game since 1983
Many at Cornell couldn’t remember the football team ever hosting a playoff game, coach Ed Dawson said, but that’s understandable after more than three decades. Those memories are fuzzy because it happened just once — 36 years ago. It became a hot topic after Cornell clincheda first-round home game in...
WPIAL football rankings through Week 9
WPIAL Football Class 6A 1. Central Catholic, 9-1, 2 2. Pine-Richland, 9-1, 3 3. North Allegheny, 9-1, 1 4. Mt. Lebanon, 6-4, 4 5. Seneca Valley, 4-6, 5 Out: none Class 5A 1. Penn-Trafford, 9-1, 1 2. Gateway, 8-2, 2 3. Penn Hills, 9-1, 3 4. Moon, 8-2, 4 5....
Pine-Richland defeats rival North Allegheny, creates 3-way tie for conference titleVideo
Pine-Richland quarterback Cole Spencer scanned across North Allegheny’s defense, spotted a safety out of position and turned that mistake into a 79-yard touchdown pass. A few minutes later, the junior noticed a one-on-one matchup he liked and used it to throw a 78-yarder. Those are decisions Spencer might not have...
North Allegheny, Pine-Richland chasing 1st-round byes along with conference title
North Allegheny coach Art Walker hasn’t studied playoff scenarios or counted tiebreaker points ahead of Friday’s regular-season finale at Pine-Richland. This is all Walker cares to know: Win and North Allegheny claims the conference title outright. “That’s it,” he said. “We haven’t done any equations. We’re just worried about the...
5 things to watch in Week 9: Aliquippa, Central Valley battle for conference title
Only one team has defeated Aliquippa in the past two seasons combined: Central Valley in Week 9 last year. That’s one loss in 706 days. It’s also the only loss in Aliquippa coach Mike Warfield’s two-year tenure. “You don’t have to remind me,” Warfield said, laughing. The Beaver County rivals...
Karen Arnold named athletic director for Pittsburgh City League
Karen Arnold was named athletic director for Pittsburgh Public Schools on Thursday, making her the first woman to hold that position. Arnold, a former coach in the City League, will transition from her job as principal at Pittsburgh Fulton PreK-5, an elementary school in Highland Park. She replaces Mike Gavlik,...
WPIAL finds evidence ‘credible,’ but won’t punish Connellsville, Allderdice for slurs
The WPIAL found the evidence “credible,” but Connellsville and Allderdice won’t be punished for the racial and anti-gay slurs allegedly exchanged in a boys high school soccer match last month. Instead, both schools must implement “anti-discrimination, diversity and sensitivity training,” the WPIAL announced Tuesday, a day after players, coaches and...
