Chris Harlan stories, Page 62

Central Catholic has a new-look offense with ties to an NFL coach, but the Vikings haven’t abandoned what made them two-time defending WPIAL champions. Gannon Carothers rushed for 164 yards and two touchdowns Friday night and the defense didn’t allow a point after halftime as top-ranked Central Catholic defeated No....

North Allegheny maybe isn’t the trendy pick in WPIAL championship talk, but the next few weeks could change that discussion. At least, the Tigers hope so. Central Catholic and Mt. Lebanon remain the top teams in Class 6A, but NA faces them in back-to-back weeks. “The way we look at...

The WPIAL’s message is clear: Not every covid-related cancellation will be excused as no-contest. Many, if not most, will be forfeits. So far, only four football games met the threshold for a “no-contest” designation this fall, said WPIAL executive director Amy Scheuneman, while at least seven others will go down...

Carlynton canceled its nonconference football game scheduled for Friday against Serra Catholic because of covid-19 cases, but Serra needed little time to find new opponent. Freeport will host Serra Catholic at 7 p.m. Friday. Carlynton athletic director Nate Milsom said the football team didn’t have enough available bodies “with the...

In a helmet and shoulder pads, Eli Wilson looks just like thousands of other high school football players across Western Pennsylvania. But the Bishop Canevin senior has a remarkable life story that started tragically before turning triumphant. He’s mostly kept the story to himself. “I thought people were going to...

A regular-season contest canceled because of covid-19 can be declared a “no-contest” rather than a forfeit, but first the WPIAL intends to make sure teams aren’t bending the rules to avoid an opponent. “If you have able bodies to participate and you choose not to, then that’s a forfeit,” WPIAL...

Six weeks after decommiting from Penn State, Perry senior Tyreese Fearbry has a new plan for college. The 6-foot-5, 225-pound defensive end verbally committed Saturday to Kentucky, choosing the SEC school over his other finalists, Pitt and Auburn. Fearbry is a four-star prospect according to Rivals and ranked 13th overall...

Chartiers Valley junior defensive back Lamont Payne committed to Penn State on Saturday while on campus to watch the Nittany Lions’ win over Auburn. A 6-foot-1, 175-pound cornerback, Payne is a four-star prospect according to Rivals and ranked eighth overall among Pennsylvania’s 2023 graduates. Payne announced his commitment on Twitter....

Rebuilding a football program traditionally takes playbooks and practice, but Bishop Canevin coach Rich Johnson added tree pruners and paint brushes to his list. He spent time sprucing up the practice field in his two years there. “When everyone was in quarantine, me and my staff were down at the...

Class 6A Rk, Team, W-L, Last 1. Central Catholic, 3-1, 1 2. Mt. Lebanon, 4-0, 2 3. North Allegheny, 3-1, 3 4. Seneca Valley, 3-1, 4 5. Canon-McMillan, 2-2, 5 Out: none Class 5A 1. Moon, 4-0, 1 2. Gateway, 3-1, 2 3. Peters Township, 3-1, 5 4. South Fayette,...

When your boys and girls teams are both defending WPIAL and PIAA cross country champions, what do you do this fall for an encore? “I don’t know how to top it exactly,” said North Allegheny coach John Neff, “but we’re going to try to match it for sure.” Many of...

The point totals on Sto-Rox’s side of the scoreboard are often eye-catching, but the numbers next to their opponent have been noteworthy as well this fall. Two weeks in a row, that other number was zero. The Vikings are better known for their high-scoring offense under coach LaRoi Johnson, but...

The sprint to the WPIAL playoffs starts now. The nonconference portion of the football schedule is over for many WPIAL teams, meaning every week matters from here on out. But for the first time in years, all teams were able to ease into conference play with a preseason-like experience where...

The PIAA is worried teams may be using covid-19 issues as a way to avoid an unfavorable opponent, so the board on Wednesday debated at length a policy that would’ve made regular season cancellations forfeits. Ultimately, the board voted against the policy change and agreed to instead provide the information...

The PIAA does not expect its covid-19 vaccination mandate to cause a shortage of game officials since the new policy applies only to inter-district state tournament games. “Our inter-district tournament is so much smaller in number of games compared to what goes on across the commonwealth on a day-to-day basis....

The PIAA will require its game officials in all sports to be fully vaccinated against covid-19 to work any state postseason contests this fall. In a bulletin for football officials posted online Tuesday, the PIAA said: “All officials must be fully vaccinated to officiate any postseason inter-district contest. The terms...

North Allegheny linebacker Tyree Alualu is already making an impact as a first-year starter in the middle of the Tigers defense, but the sophomore standout nearly spent this fall playing football for another high school, likely in Florida. His father, defensive tackle Tyson Alualu, was searching for a new NFL...

Time inevitably erases memories from blowout games with lopsided scores, regardless of whether you’re on the winning or losing side. That has been Greg Perry’s experience in his 30 years of coaching, but the Keystone Oaks coach says memories from wild games like Friday night’s against Chartiers Valley stick around...

Class 6A Rk, Team, W-L, Last 1. Central Catholic, 2-1, 1 2. Mt. Lebanon, 3-0, 2 3. North Allegheny, 2-1, 3 4. Seneca Valley, 2-1, 4 5. Canon-McMillan, 2-1, 5 Out: none Class 5A Rk, Team, W-L, Last 1. Moon, 3-0, 4 2. Gateway, 2-1, 2 3. Penn-Trafford, 2-1, 1...

Landon Alexander wished for a win on his 18th birthday. The running back got that and more Friday night as Central Valley defeated rival Aliquippa, 21-12, in a nonconference win at the Quips’ Aschman Stadium. The senior rushed for 212 yards on 23 carries and scored twice in a rematch...

The cement stands may be weathered, the grass field might be bumpy and the vintage light towers have rust, but few WPIAL football venues can match the atmosphere of a big crowd at historic Aschman Stadium in Aliquippa. Yet, it’s been awhile. The pandemic drained some of that electricity from...

Man or machine? The WPIAL heard complaints for years about the way their computer program sometimes paired unequal opponents or created long bus rides for games, nonconference concerns the league’s administration vowed to address. As a result, the WPIAL has matchups this week between successful programs such as Central Valley...

Central Catholic transfer Debaba Tshiebwe, a basketball standout who arrived this summer from a private school in Ohio, is fully eligible for the regular season and playoffs this winter. The WPIAL held an eligibility hearing Wednesday and cleared Tshiebwe, a 6-foot-6, 265-pound junior who transferred from Grand River Academy in...

Ellwood City and Our Lady of the Sacred Heart each canceled their scheduled football games this week because of covid-related issues. OLSH would have hosted Beaver Falls. Ellwood City was scheduled to host Shenango. Both were nonconference games. Beaver Falls and Shenango were attempting to find replacement games. There were...