PIAA football realignment: What classification will teams call home in 2020, 2021?
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Thursday, November 7, 2019 | 2:52 PM
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 — the top and bottom enrollment number for each classification — were revealed Thursday, part of a realignment process that the PIAA undertakes every two years to group together like-sized schools.
The PIAA released updated parameters for all team sports.
In 2020 and ’21, the largest football classification will include schools with male enrollments greater than 582 in grades 9-11. According to unofficial enrollment numbers posted and later removed from the PIAA website last month, Pine-Richland has 571 boys (down from 631 in 2017-18) and Baldwin has 586 (up from 530).
Official enrollment numbers won’t be announced until the PIAA board meets in December, and the numbers posted last month could change slightly, PIAA executive director Bob Lombardi said.
“I don’t think they were 100% accurate,” said Lombardi, adding that the numbers were posted inadvertently. “Some was dirty data because they didn’t have the 10% (for home-school and cyber-school students) added in, but a lot of them were probably accurate. Unfortunately, it was a glitch in our system.”
However, the class parameters posted Thursday are official.
For the next two seasons, Class A football includes teams with fewer than 130 boys, Class 2A has 130-196, Class 3A has 196-274, Class 4A has 275-398, Class 5A has 399-582 and Class 6A is for teams above 582.
Schools have until Dec. 4 to decide whether to “play up” in a higher classification.
There are a number of notable moves when comparing the unofficial PIAA enrollment numbers from last month with the new parameters issued Thursday.
Defending WPIAL Class 4A champion South Fayette (440) will move to Class 5A, joining Class 6A champion Pine-Richland in a classification that’s already deep.
Uniontown (303), which owns the WPIAL’s longest active losing streak, moves up to Class 4A.
Valley (209), East Allegheny (206), Avonworth (205), South Allegheny (204) and Brownsville (203) would jump from Class 2A to 3A.
Plum (395), Armstrong (391), Chartiers Valley (386), Albert Gallatin (382), Mars (355) and Hampton (350) are all in position to move down to 4A, but that could change if the enrollment numbers are adjusted. Plum is only four boys below the 5A cutoff and Armstrong is eight under.
Similarly, the unofficial numbers for Blackhawk (272) and Ambridge (254) tentatively drop them to Class 3A.
Beaver Falls (186) and Sto-Rox (130) would move to Class 2A.
Once the PIAA finalizes the classifications, the WPIAL will divide teams into new conferences and sections.
Unofficial PIAA enrollment numbers
NOTE: The PIAA posted updated enrollment numbers on its website last month before removing them. Here are those tentative numbers. Official numbers won’t be released until the PIAA board meeting in December.
Class 6A (583 and above)
North Allegheny 1,063
Seneca Valley 882
Butler 797
Canon-McMillan 695
Hempfield 686
Mt. Lebanon 651
Norwin 620
Central Catholic 617
Baldwin 586
Class 5A (582-399)
Pine-Richland 571
Upper St. Clair 537
Peters Township 523
Fox Chapel 522
Bethel Park 518
Penn-Trafford 517
Latrobe 499
North Hills 497
Connellsville 494
Shaler 487
Kiski Area 454
Moon 441
South Fayette 440
Franklin Regional 430
Gateway 430
Penn Hills 421
Woodland Hills 413
West Allegheny 407
Class 4A (275-398)
Plum 395
Armstrong 391
Trinity 390
Chartiers Valley 386
Albert Gallatin* 382
Mars 355
McKeesport 353
Hampton 350
Thomas Jefferson 347
Indiana 344
Laurel Highlands 335
Ringgold 320
New Castle 319
Highlands 313
West Mifflin 310
Greensburg Salem 305
Belle Vernon 304
Uniontown 303
Beaver 303
Montour 297
Knoch 283
Class 3A (196-274)
Freeport 273
Blackhawk 272
Central Valley 271
Elizabeth Forward 265
Ambridge 254
Quaker Valley 252
North Catholic 247
Burrell 241
Yough 234
Deer Lakes 230
South Park 219
Southmoreland 215
Derry214
Hopewell 214
Keystone Oaks 213
Mt. Pleasant 211
Valley 209
East Allegheny 206
Avonworth 205
South Allegheny 204
Brownsville 203
Class 2A (130-195)
McGuffey 190
Beaver Falls 186
Freedom 181
Charleroi 180
Mohawk 178
Ellwood City 172
New Brighton 170
Steel Valley 169
Waynesburg 169
Shady Side Academy 166
Neshannock 162
Riverside 161
Apollo-Ridge 158
Washington 157
Summit Academy 153
Beth-Center 147
Seton LaSalle 147
Brentwood 145
Laurel 142
Frazier 140
Carlynton 139
South Side 136
Chartiers-Houston 135
Sto-Rox 130
Class A (1-129)
Shenango 126
Northgate 120
Serra Catholic 119
Aliquippa 117
Carmichaels 114
Jeannette 113
Burgettstown113
Fort Cherry 111
Bentworth 109
California109
Springdale 107
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart 101
Greensburg Central Catholic 96
Monessen 94
Riverview 94
Jefferson-Morgan 93
Clairton 87
Union 81
West Greene 79
Western Beaver 77
Rochester 72
Leechburg 71
Bishop Canevin 68
Avella 67
Mapletown 64
Cornell 60
Vincentian Academy* 45
Imani Christian 32
*Team didn’t play WPIAL football in 2019
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.
Tags: Ambridge, Avonworth, Baldwin, Beaver Falls, Blackhawk, Brownsville, Central Valley, East Allegheny, Pine-Richland, Plum, South Allegheny, South Fayette, Sto-Rox, Valley
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