By Keystone Clutch Sports
Week 9 isn’t the end of the WPIAL football regular season. There’s one more Friday after this one. But it’s the week that turns a lot of “can clinch” scenarios into done deals. Across six classifications, 69 teams will reach the WPIAL playoffs, according to TribLive. Fifty-two earn their spots through the standings, and 17 get wild-card berths. Through Week 8, only about a third of those spots were locked up, and in Class 4A nobody had clinched.
Here’s what is confirmed about how the brackets get built, the dates to circle and the Week 9 games that move the needle in every class. Records are conference records from TribLive’s playoff picture through Week 8 (published Oct. 18) unless noted. Clinching scenarios are attributed to the outlet that reported them.
The calendar: Week 9 now, the finale Oct. 30
- Week 9: Most games are Friday, Oct. 23, at 7 p.m. Week 9 opens a day early, though, with Our Lady of the Sacred Heart at Beaver on Thursday, Oct. 22, at 7 p.m., and closes Saturday with a nonconference game, Serra Catholic at Burgettstown, at 1:30 p.m. (TribLive Week 9 schedule; NFHS Network listing for the Thursday game).
- Week 10, the regular-season finale: Friday, Oct. 30. The Observer-Reporter and TribLive both described the regular season as having two weeks left after Week 8, and the Beaver County Times called Week 9 “the penultimate week.”
- Wild cards and brackets: TribLive reports that the wild-card berths will be awarded “the morning after the regular season ends.” Lawrence County SportsNet says the brackets will be released on Halloween weekend. The WPIAL has not announced an exact release time.
- Playoffs begin: Friday, Nov. 6, according to WCCS. Postseason schedules and results will be posted on the WPIAL’s football page.
- Finals: The Class 6A and 4A championships are set for Saturday, Nov. 21, at Pine-Richland, at noon and 6 p.m., with the order of games still to be determined (TribLive). The 5A, 3A, 2A and A finals are set for Saturday, Nov. 28, at Acrisure Stadium (WPIAL announcement), at 11 a.m., 2 p.m., 5 p.m. and 8 p.m., with that order also to be determined, according to TribLive.
How teams get in
Most berths come from conference finishes. The rest are wild cards, and the WPIAL doesn’t fill those with a points formula. TribLive’s preseason format breakdown explains that for the past two seasons, the WPIAL football steering committee has chosen the wild-card teams “instead of using tiebreaker formulas.” This year there are 17 of them. Here is the structure by class, as TribLive laid it out:
- Class 6A (4 teams): The classification has only seven teams, and the top four qualify. There are no wild cards. All four get byes into the semifinals on Nov. 13, with No. 4 at No. 1 and No. 3 at No. 2.
- Class 5A (12 teams): The top three in each of three conferences qualify, plus three wild cards. Seeds 1 through 4 get first-round byes and then host quarterfinals. Seeds 5 through 8 host first-round games.
- Class 4A (8 teams): The top two in each of three conferences qualify, plus two wild cards. The three conference champions and the next-highest seed host quarterfinals.
- Class 3A (16 teams): The top three in each of four conferences qualify, plus four wild cards. There are no byes. The four conference champions and the four next-highest seeds host first-round games.
- Class 2A (13 teams): The top three in each of three conferences qualify, plus four wild cards. The top three seeds get byes and host quarterfinals. Seeds 4 through 8 host first-round games.
- Class A (16 teams): The top three in each of four conferences qualify, plus four wild cards. There are no byes. The four conference champions and the four next-highest seeds host first-round games.
TribLive’s breakdown says WPIAL officials will pick the sites for later-round games. The 6A and 4A champions enter the PIAA playoffs at the quarterfinal round, and the 5A, 3A, 2A and A champions enter at the semifinal round.
Class 6A: two spots left
Central Catholic (4-0) and Hempfield (4-1) have clinched, and Seneca Valley (0-5) has been eliminated, according to TribLive. That leaves two spots for four teams. Canon-McMillan (3-1) can clinch Friday by beating Central Catholic at home, or if Mt. Lebanon (1-3) loses to North Allegheny (2-2). The Observer-Reporter and TribLive both report that scenario. TribLive says North Allegheny clinches by winning at Mt. Lebanon on Friday and against Norwin (1-3) in Week 10.
Week 9 games to watch: Central Catholic at Canon-McMillan; North Allegheny at Mt. Lebanon; Norwin at Seneca Valley. All are Friday at 7 p.m.
Class 5A: four in, eight spots to settle
Big East: Penn-Trafford (4-0) has clinched. Woodland Hills (4-0) clinches with one more conference win, based on the current standings, according to TribLive. Friday’s game between the two at Penn-Trafford (7:30 p.m.) decides first place going into Week 10. We previewed it here: Big East on the Line. TribLive lists Latrobe (4-1) as able to clinch with a win over Penn-Trafford in Week 10, another Gateway conference loss, or a Woodland Hills win Friday. Gateway (2-2) hosts Fox Chapel on Friday.
Northeast: Pine-Richland and North Hills (both 3-0) have clinched and meet Friday at North Hills. TribLive reports that Moon (2-1) clinches with a win at Armstrong (1-2).
Allegheny Six: Upper St. Clair (3-0) has clinched and hosts Thomas Jefferson (2-1). The Observer-Reporter says the winner of West Allegheny (2-1) at Trinity (1-2) “will have the inside track to a postseason berth.” It also notes that Peters Township (1-2), which plays at Bethel Park, can still get in.
Class 4A: nobody’s in yet, and only two wild cards
This is the tightest bracket in the WPIAL: eight teams, two wild cards, and no clinches through Week 8.
Parkway (Beaver and Lawrence county interest): According to TribLive, Montour (2-0) clinches with a win over Mars (0-2) on Friday, and that win would also guarantee Montour at least a share of the conference title. New Castle (2-1) hosts Central Valley (0-2) on Friday at 7 p.m. in the Steelers High School Showcase Game of the Week. It’s the Red Hurricanes’ last conference game, according to Lawrence County SportsNet. In TribLive’s preview, Central Valley quarterback Braddock Ambrose said the Warriors “gotta win two in a row now.” Blackhawk (2-1) plays a nonconference game at Kiski Area on Friday, then hosts Montour on Oct. 30. Lawrence County SportsNet’s Week 9 scenarios lay out the title math: Montour wins the conference outright by beating Mars and Blackhawk, and New Castle can’t win it outright but could share it.
Big Six: South Fayette and Ringgold (both 3-0) each clinch with a win Friday, South Fayette against Uniontown and Ringgold at Chartiers Valley (2-1). If both win, they meet Oct. 30 for the outright title. TribLive and the Observer-Reporter agree on this.
Greater Allegheny: McKeesport (2-0) clinches with a win at Indiana, and Shaler (2-0) clinches with a win over Hampton, per TribLive. McKeesport and Shaler meet in Week 10.
Six teams get in through the standings and only two through the committee. One loss can be especially costly in 4A, because a team that slips out of the top two in its conference has to win over the committee for one of just two wild cards.
Class 3A: 16-team bracket, races in all four conferences
Western Hills: Aliquippa and Hopewell (both 3-0) have clinched and meet Oct. 30. The third automatic spot is open. Beaver, Ambridge and Our Lady of the Sacred Heart are all 1-2, and Ellwood City is 0-3. Beaver hosts OLSH on Thursday night, Ambridge plays at Hopewell on Friday, and Aliquippa visits Ellwood City (0-3) on Friday.
Allegheny Seven: Highlands and North Catholic (both 4-0) have clinched, according to TribLive. Freeport (3-1) plays at Highlands, and Burrell (2-2) plays at Deer Lakes (1-3).
Interstate: Belle Vernon (4-0) and Waynesburg Central (4-1) have clinched and play each other Friday at Waynesburg. Elizabeth Forward (4-0) clinches with a win at Mt. Pleasant, per TribLive.
Three Rivers: Propel Braddock Hills (3-0) has clinched. Avonworth (3-0) clinches with a win at South Park. Propel’s Week 9 game at Yough is off. Yough’s athletic director told TribLive that the school requested a cancellation because of a player shortage, and TribLive’s schedule lists the game as postponed. How the WPIAL will record the result has not been announced.
Class 2A: the Midwestern Athletic Conference takes center stage
MAC (Beaver and Lawrence counties): Western Beaver (4-0) has clinched. It plays at Beaver Falls (3-1) on Friday, and TribLive says Beaver Falls clinches with a win in that game. Neshannock (4-0) clinches with a win over Riverside (2-2), and Western Beaver visits Neshannock on Oct. 30. Lawrence County SportsNet notes that Riverside can’t share the title, but a win Friday would strengthen its wild-card case. It also lists New Brighton, Freedom and Mohawk as eliminated. TribLive lists only Mohawk as eliminated.
Allegheny: Ligonier Valley and Apollo-Ridge (both 4-0) each clinch with a road win Friday, Ligonier Valley at Steel Valley and Apollo-Ridge at South Allegheny. Both of those hosts are 3-1. Ligonier Valley and Apollo-Ridge meet in Week 10.
Century: Seton LaSalle and Bishop Canevin (both 4-0) have clinched, according to TribLive, and meet Oct. 30. Chartiers-Houston (3-1) hosts Bishop Canevin on Friday. The Observer-Reporter points to McGuffey (2-2) hosting Chartiers-Houston on Oct. 30 as the likely decider for the last automatic berth.
Class A: four conferences, four wild cards
Big 7: Shenango and Laurel (both 5-0) have clinched and meet in Week 10 at Shenango. Friday, Laurel plays at South Side and Shenango hosts Summit Academy. Union and Northgate are both 3-2 and play each other Friday at Northgate. TribLive says the winner clinches.
Eastern: Jeannette (4-0) has clinched. Clairton (2-0 in conference games played) plays at Greensburg Central Catholic (3-1) on Friday. Clairton’s conference games against Springdale and at Leechburg were postponed because of those teams’ roster shortages. A WPIAL spokesperson told KDKA-TV that the games were postponed, not forfeited, that the schools have until Oct. 31 to make them up, and that the league will decide whether unplayed games become forfeits.
Black Hills: Washington (4-0) has clinched. Fort Cherry (3-1) clinches with a win over Brentwood, and TribLive and the Observer-Reporter agree on that. The O-R adds that Burgettstown (3-2) may need a Week 10 win over Bentworth (2-2) to lock up the last automatic spot.
Tri-County South: Beth-Center and California (both 5-0) have clinched and meet Oct. 30. California plays at Avella (4-1) on Friday.
What about Butler?
Butler isn’t in the WPIAL bracket conversation. The Butler Eagle reported in March that Butler will remain an independent for at least two more seasons. Butler plays at Erie on Friday and hosts Central Clarion on Oct. 30 (Butler Eagle weekly schedule and season schedule). Several other teams on the Butler Eagle’s local schedule are in WPIAL races. North Catholic has already clinched in 3A, Freeport plays at Highlands, and Mars visits Montour with Montour’s clinch on the line.
The bottom line
Week 9 settles a lot of the automatic berths, but the committee’s 17 wild cards mean plenty of teams will still be waiting after Oct. 30. The automatic spots to watch closest locally are the Parkway’s two in 4A, the third Western Hills spot in 3A, and the MAC race in 2A. For a game-by-game look at Friday’s matchups in Beaver, Lawrence and Butler counties, see our Week 9 preview. Keystone Clutch Sports will update the picture after Friday’s games.
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