Football

CTK ’16: New WPIAL Football Coaches

August 15, 2016

New Faces - New Places - New Hopes - New Dreams. While there were two fewer coaching changes this off-season then before the 2015 campaign, there were a couple of big names that hung up the whistle after last fall. Legendary McKeesport coach George Smith retired for a second time while record setting coach Tom Nola exited at Gateway. There are a lot of rookie head coaches getting their first crack, and some coaches who are just changing hats and addresses. Whatever the case, there are 17 coaching changes coming into this 2016 season. Here are the new football coaches that will be running the sidelines in the WPIAL this fall. CLASS 6-A: ALTOONA - Nick Felus replaces John Franco

This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 08/15/2016

High school football camps are now open around the WPIAL in preparation for the 2016 season as Countdown to Kickoff 2016 and Frontier League baseball continue this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We continue to prepare you every day for the upcoming high school football season with CTK '16. The Network is also the only place to turn for audio and video coverage of the Washington Wild Things, as they visit Traverse City for three games before returning home to CONSOL Energy Park to face Schaumburg this weekend, plus we have another great edition of Rappin' on Racin' ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, August 15th:

CTK ’16: WPIAL Saturday Football Schedule

August 14, 2016

While there is little doubt that high school football is king on Friday nights in Western Pennsylvania, Saturday high school football in the WPIAL is sadly becoming a dying breed with only five schools that play a majority of their home games on Saturday afternoons or evenings. But just when we thought the list would shrink with the absence of Wilkinsburg, along comes Imani Christian to join Summit Academy, Western Beaver, Riverview and Bishop Canevin in the Saturday fun. Here is a complete rundown of the Saturday schedule of high school football action in the WPIAL this 2016 football season. WEEK ZERO, AUGUST 27th:

CTK ’16: WPIAL 6-A Players to Watch

August 13, 2016

Countdown to Kickoff 2016 continues with a now six-day look at some of the top high school football talent in the WPIAL for this upcoming season. As always, this list just scratches the surface. We ask for your help in building a complete rundown of candidates. You can nominate a top player by clicking on NOMINATE TOP PLAYERS and submitting their name. Here is a look at some of the players to watch this 2016 campaign in 6-A. OFFENSE: Quarterbacks: Phil Jurkovec - Pine-Richland Troy Fisher - Pittsburgh Central Catholic Cameron Tarrant - Penn Hills Jack Cook - Seneca Valley Ethan Maenza - North Allegheny

CTK ’16: WPIAL 5-A Players to Watch

Countdown to Kickoff 2016 continues with a now six-day look at some of the top high school football talent in the WPIAL for this upcoming season. As always, this list just scratches the surface. We ask for your help in building a complete rundown of candidates. You can nominate a top player by clicking on NOMINATE TOP PLAYERS and submitting their name. Here is a look at some of the players to watch this 2016 campaign in 5-A. OFFENSE: Quarterbacks: Ross Anderson - Hampton Running Backs: Zane Dudek - Armstrong Thomas Vissman - Upper St. Clair

CTK ’16: WPIAL 4-A Players to Watch

August 11, 2016

Countdown to Kickoff 2016 continues with a now six-day look at some of the top high school football talent in the WPIAL for this upcoming season. As always, this list just scratches the surface. We ask for your help in building a complete rundown of candidates. You can nominate a top player by clicking on NOMINATE TOP PLAYERS and submitting their name. Here is a look at some of the players to watch this 2016 campaign in 4-A. OFFENSE: Quarterbacks: Drew Saxton - South Fayette George Martin - Ringgold Mikey Fine - Belle Vernon Running Backs: Quinton Hill - Thomas Jefferson

CTK ’16: WPIAL 3-A Players to Watch

August 10, 2016

Countdown to Kickoff 2016 continues with a now six-day look at some of the top high school football talent in the WPIAL for this upcoming season. As always, this list just scratches the surface. We ask for your help in building a complete rundown of candidates. You can nominate a top player by clicking on NOMINATE TOP PLAYERS and submitting their name. Here is a look at some of the players to watch this 2016 campaign in 2-A. OFFENSE: Quarterbacks: Alex Smith - Keystone Oaks Darius Wise - Beaver John Yester - Mount Pleasant Marcus Czulewicz - McGuffey Ryan Everly - Yough

CTK ’16: WPIAL 2-A Players to Watch

August 9, 2016

Countdown to Kickoff 2016 continues with a now six-day look at some of the top high school football talent in the WPIAL for this upcoming season. As always, this list just scratches the surface. We ask for your help in building a complete rundown of candidates. You can nominate a top player by clicking on NOMINATE TOP PLAYERS and submitting their name. Here is a look at some of the players to watch this 2016 campaign in 2-A. OFFENSE: Quarterbacks: Frank Antuono - Neshannock Josh Hughes - Bentworth Brad McLaughlin - Burgettstown Geno Pellegrini - Charleroi Michael Trent - Brentwood

CTK ’16: WPIAL 1-A Players to Watch

August 8, 2016

Countdown to Kickoff 2016 continues with a now six-day look at some of the top high school football talent in the WPIAL for this upcoming season. As always, this list just scratches the surface. We ask for your help in building a complete rundown of candidates. You can nominate a top player by clicking on NOMINATE TOP PLAYERS and submitting their name. Here is a look at some of the players to watch this 2016 campaign in 1-A. OFFENSE: Quarterbacks: Gio Vonne Sanders - Jeannette Austin Scott - Bishop Canevin Sammy Carey - Springdale Ian Kouba - Rochester Running Backs:

This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 08/08/2016

Countdown to Kickoff 2016 and Frontier League baseball continue during heat acclamation week here on the MSA Sports Network. We continue to prepare you every day for the upcoming high school football season with CTK '16. The Network is also the only place to turn for audio and video coverage of the Washington Wild Things, as they host Lake Erie for three games before hitting the road to Windy City this weekend, plus we have another great edition of Rappin' on Racin' ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, August 8th: TALK SHOW - Rappin' on Racin' at 6:00pm on MSAsports.net

CTK ’16: New High School Football Rules in 2016

August 7, 2016

It’s time once again to check in on the guys in the striped shirts with a look at the rule changes in the WPIAL and PIAA play for the upcoming season. Just one major change was passed by the National Federation of High Schools rules committee entering the 2016 campaign. The committee eliminated clipping from the game. Clipping was still allowed in the free blocking zone, which is four yards laterally from the spot of the snap and three yards behind the line of scrimmage, with certain conditions. Now all blocks below the waist and from behind are now illegal and will result in a 15-yard penalty from the spot of the foul. It is still legal to clip a runner from behind or a player pretending to be a runner.

CTK ’16: WPIAL A 2015 Football Flashback

The good news for Clairton was they added another WPIAL title notch to their championship belt. The bad news is though that after winning four straight PIAA crowns from 2009 through 2012, the state gold drought expanded to four years last fall. The Bears roared through the regular season and district playoffs before crushing Jeannette to earn a 12th school football crown and the seventh championship in the last eight years. Here is a look back at the WPIAL Single-A in 2015. 2015 WPIAL SINGLE-A HEADLINES:

CTK ’16: WPIAL AA 2015 Football Flashback

August 6, 2016

Playing in the teams record eighth WPIAL Class AA championship game in a row, obviously Powerhouse Aliquippa was no stranger to Heinz Field. What was strange was to see a team have the Quips number. Aliquippa was facing South Fayette for a third straight year and for the fourth time in six years, however the Lions were a perfect 3-0 in head-to-head battles for gold on the North Shore. The fourth title game between the green and the red was another instant classic, but this time Aliquippa prevailed for their sixth district crown in the first 16 years of this century. Here is a look back at the WPIAL Double-A in 2015. 2015 WPIAL DOUBLE-A HEADLINES:

CTK ’16: WPIAL AAA 2015 Football Flashback

August 5, 2016

In the early part of this century, there was no better football program year in and year out than what Bill Cherpak had at Thomas Jefferson High School. The Jaguars won three straight WPIAL Class AAA titles from 2006 through 2008 plus had it not been for a stunning upset loss to Franklin Regional in the 2005 title game, it would have been five in a row for TJ, which also won the 2004 championship. The Jags also won three PIAA state titles from '04 to '08. Even in years they weren't winning district or state titles, they were winning conference crowns and going deep into the postseason. The golden drought had hit six years before Thomas Jefferson returned to the top in 2015. Here is a look back at the WPIAL Triple-A in 2015.

CTK ’16 – WPIAL AAAA 2015 Football Flashback

August 4, 2016

Expansion is a big part of this upcoming year, so lets start by going back to the last time the PIAA and thus the WPIAL expanded to four classifications in 1980. While always seeming to be in the playoffs and part of the title discussion each year, it took Pittsburgh Central Catholic 23 years to win a district football title (they did win the first ever PIAA AAAA crown in 1988). However since that WPIAL crown in 2003, the Vikings have been kings of the castle five times now, with the one for the thumb coming last fall. Here is a look back at the WPIAL Quad-A in 2015. 2015 WPIAL QUAD-A HEADLINES:

CTK ’16 – WPIAL Football Alignment Changes

August 2, 2016

We all knew it was coming. A major change to the WPIAL high school sports landscape based on the PIAA's decision last year to increase from four to six classifications in among other sports, high school football. With the increase in classes comes a change in the WPIAL Football Playoff format as well, with eight teams in 6-A, 5-A, 4-A and 3-A making the postseason (top four teams in each conference in 6-A, 5-A and 4-A and the top two teams in each conference plus two wild card teams in 3-A) with three weeks of playoffs and 16 teams qualifying in 2-A and 1-A (top 5 teams in each conference plus a wild card) with four weeks of postseason play. This will also be the alignment for the 2017 football season. Class 6A

COUNTDOWN TO KICKOFF 2016

August 1, 2016

The countdown to the start of the 2016 high school football season is underway. We have major changes this year with the expansion from four to six classifications and teams having the option to have a second scrimmage on Friday, August 26th/Saturday, August 27th or playing an actual non-conference game that has been labeled Week Zero. Week One is set for Friday, September 2nd/Saturday, September 3rd. Training camps for the new campaign open up in Western Pennsylvania on Monday, August 15th.

This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 07/31/2016

July 31, 2016

The start of August means one thing for high school football fans...the start of Countdown to Kickoff 2016 this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We are live from Kennywood Park on Wednesday with the annual presentation of arrows during the MSA Sports/Kennywood Park Preseason All-Star Team Awards Show preceded by a special season preview during This Week in the WPIAL.

MSA SPORTS CUP RESULTS – A New Champ Wins Double-A

July 9, 2016

For only the fifth time in the thirteen years of the MSA Sports Cup Class AA chase, the torch has been passed to a new champion. Greensburg Central Catholic won the first three years, followed by a five year run by Shady Side Academy and three of the last four years the AA Cup has gone to Quaker Valley with a one year run at the top by Seton-LaSalle two years ago. Now the AA crown is coming to Beaver County thanks to Beaver High School. After a couple of close calls in recent years, the Bobcats were lifted to the top spot in part because of district championships won in each season...girls tennis in the fall, ice hockey in the winter and a second straight WPIAL title in girls track & field in the spring.

MSA SPORTS CUP RESULTS – SF Three-peats in Triple-A

July 7, 2016

In the first ten years of the MSA Sports Cup, while there were a couple of dominating schools in the other three classifications, the chase for the Class AAA Cup had been up for grabs with eight different schools earning The Cup. However in the last three years of the season long competition, Triple-A has become the pride of the Lions. After finishing as the runner-up in 2012-2013, South Fayette has staked its claim on top in Class AAA as the Lions are the first school in this classification to win a third consecutive MSA Sports Cup.

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