5 things to watch: Class 6A football teams 1 win away from WPIAL finals

By: Chris Harlan
Friday, November 12, 2021 | 11:45 AM

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No player on Mt. Lebanon’s football roster was yet born the last time the Blue Devils reached the WPIAL finals.

That was 21 years ago. But top-seeded Mt. Lebanon, along with the three other Class 6A semifinalists, is only one win away from a trip to the WPIAL championship game.

At 7 p.m. Friday, No. 1 seed Mt. Lebanon hosts No. 4 North Allegheny in one semifinal, and No. 2 Central Catholic plays No. 3 Seneca Valley at Baldwin in the other. The Class 6A playoffs are a round ahead of the other WPIAL classifications, which have quarterfinal games Friday.

The WPIAL 6A champion has to enter the state playoffs a week earlier than the others, so the big-school champion has to be crowned a week earlier. The WPIAL 6A final is Nov. 20 at Norwin.

Of the four semifinalists, Mt. Lebanon has waited by far the longest for another trip to the finals. The three others all reached the finals in the past four years. Central Catholic and North Allegheny met in last year’s championship game, and Seneca Valley was the runner-up in 2018.

Central Catholic has reached the finals 11 times since 2000 and won eight WPIAL titles in that span.

Mt. Lebanon, which owns seven WPIAL titles overall, once was a frequent presence in the finals. The Blue Devils won WPIAL titles in 1980, ’81, ’83 and ’84 under then-coach Art Walker. Coincidentally, his son, also Art, stands in the Blue Devils way this year as North Allegheny’s coach.

Both Class 6A semifinals are rematches from Week 5 of the regular season. Mt. Lebanon won 51-20 over North Allegheny, and Central Catholic defeated Seneca Valley, 35-0.

District champion Butler?

This is championship weekend for one former WPIAL football team. Butler plays Erie McDowell at 7 p.m. Saturday in the District 10 Class 6A final at Erie Veterans Stadium.

After years of struggles and consecutive 0-10 seasons, Butler opted out of WPIAL football before last year and instead became an associate member in District 10.

The Golden Tornado went 5-4 this season.

District 10 has only three Class 6A football teams. Butler earned a spot in the district finals by defeating Erie High, 27-23, on Oct. 29. The championship is a rematch from Week 3, when Butler lost 38-21 at McDowell (7-2).

The winner qualifies for the state playoffs.

Welcome to the playoffs

Which is better, rest or routine?

The first round of the WPIAL playoffs included an all-time high of 15 byes. After taking last week off, those teams now join the playoffs Friday night. Might there be some rust?

The list of teams off last week included five of the six No. 1 seeds in Mt. Lebanon, Moon, Belle Vernon, Central Valley and Clairton. The WPIAL added byes this season as a way to expand the playoff bracket in most classifications.

There were four byes in both Class 5A and 3A, with three byes in 6A and 4A. Class A had one bye and 2A had none.

Rewind to Week 2

Friday’s schedule has six regular-season rematches including two of the four semifinals in Class 5A.

Moon defeated Woodland Hills, 15-0, with short touchdown runs by Jeremiah Dean and Dylan Sleva. The Tigers had led 7-0 at half in a low-scoring nonconference game.

Gateway’s win over Penn Hills wasn’t nearly as close.

The Gators built a 27-0 halftime lead and won 41-13 behind quarterback Brad Birch, who threw for three touchdowns and ran for another. Cincinnati recruit Patrick Body caught two of the touchdowns.

Both 5A rematches are from Week 2.

McKeesport vs. Armstrong in Class 4A, and Beaver Falls vs. New Brighton in 2A are also regular-season rematches. McKeesport won 24-14, and Beaver Falls won 39-18.

City and states

Three City League teams are active in the state playoffs, but only two have games this week.

Westinghouse (9-1) has a PIAA Class 2A regional game against Windber at 7 p.m. Friday at Somerset. The winner faces the District 10 champion next weekend. Farrell (9-0) and Wilmington (8-2) meet Friday in the D10 finals.

In Class 4A, University Prep (3-5) faces Juniata at 1 p.m. Saturday at Altoona.

In Class 6A, Allderdice has another week off before hosting the District 10 champion Nov. 19 at Cupples Stadium. The Dragons will learn their opponent Saturday when McDowell hosts Butler.

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.