Football
CTK 2013 – New High School Football Rules for 2013
August 3, 2013
A good way to kick off the high school football season is with a look at the rules and especially the rule changes for the 2013 season.Two of the biggest changes involve pass interference and enforcement of the penalty. When the defensive team commits the foul, it is not necessarily a first down. While it is still a 15 yard penalty from the line of scrimmage and replay the down, the offensive team must make the sticks to be awarded a first down. For example, it is third down and 22 for the offensive at the opponents 45, after a pass interference penalty against the defense, it will now be third down and 7 from the 30 yard line as the penalty yardage was not enough to make the sticks.CTK 2013 – New WPIAL Football Head Coaches
August 2, 2013
New Faces - New Places - New Hopes - New Dreams. While there was one fewer coaching change this off-season then before the 2012 campaign, there are many big name and legendary coaches who will be missing from the sidelines this upcoming season. Gone are long-time successful coaches Jack McCurray, Clair Altemus, Terry Smith, John Menhart and Bob Jacoby while one championship winning coach has come back-to-the-future. There are a lot of rookie head coaches getting their first crack, and some coaches who are just changing hats and addresses. In all, there 26 coaching changes that began days after the 2012 season ended and concluded with the last hiring last month. Here are the new football coaches that will be running the sidelines in the WPIAL this fall.CTK 2013 – 7:00pm Kickoffs in WPIAL
There are 125 schools in the WPIAL that field a high school football team and 119 of them play a majority of their home games on a Friday night. While there are still a good number of teams that kickoff at the 'traditional' time of 7:30pm, for the first time ever, that number is in the minority. in 2013, 65 schools will kickoff their home football games at 7:00pm. Here is a list of schools that will get the thirty minute head start on Friday nights.CLASS AAAA Foothills:Altoona Mountain LionsConnellsville FalconsHempfield SpartansMcKeesport TigersCLASS AAAA Northern Eight:Fox Chapel FoxesCLASS AAAA Southeastern:Plum MustangsCOUNTDOWN TO KICKOFF 2013
July 31, 2013
The countdown to the start of the 2013 high school football season is underway. High School football training camps throughout Western Pennsylvania open up on Monday, August 12th as teams prepare for a new season starting Friday, August 30th and Saturday, August 31st. As has been the case in the fourteen previous years here at MSA Sports, the ONLY place to turn for original DAILY updates that help prepare fans for all the excitement of the 2013 high school football season in the WPIAL is 'Countdown to Kickoff 2013' ONLY here at www.msasports.netALL UPDATED:--------------------------------------------------------------------------------This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 07/31/2013
Sure, we have plenty of baseball with both youth and pro diamond action as the month melts from July to August, but we start up a tradition like no other as well this week here on the MSA Sports Network. The Washington Wild Things begin the week at home before hitting the road for a short 3-game set, then returning to CONSOL Energy Park this weekend. We also have the start of the American Legion Baseball State Championships and the news from the world of auto racing with Rappin on Racin, plus with a pair of shows Tuesday from Kennywood Park, we begin our annual preparation for the upcoming high school football season with Countdown to Kickoff 2013 ALL here ONLY at MSAsports.netMonday, July 29th:TALK SHOW - Rappin on Racin at 6:00pm on MSAsports.netWPIAL Recruiting: New Castle’s Hooker Commits to Ohio State
July 30, 2013
One of the WPIAL’s top football recruits has made his decision. New Castle’s Malik Hooker chose football over basketball a couple of months ago and now he'll take his skills to Columbus, accepting a scholarship offer from Ohio State University on Monday.Hooker is also one of the top basketball players in the WPIAL, playing on two championship teams for the Red Hurricanes in his sophomore and junior seasons, averaging 16.7 points in 2012-13. The senior did not play football until last season, he immediately produced and caught the eye of several college programs, scoring eleven touchdowns and averaged over 9 yards per carry and 25 yards per catch.WPIAL Recruiting: USC’s Blair Commits to Pitt
July 28, 2013
This 'Cat may be changing colors, but he's not changing his stripes. The great comeback story of Upper St. Clair senior Rori Blair continued when he announced he would be going from the Upper St. Clair Panthers this fall to the Pitt Panthers next fall. Blair made a verbal commitment to the University of Pittsburgh on Friday after his family met with Pitt head coach Paul Chryst.The decision for the 6-3, 225-pound tight end/defensive end continues an incredible comeback that began with a near death experience 15 months ago.Two Former WPIAL Football Stars Transfer to New Colleges
A pair of WPIAL football stars from the last two high school football seasons have officially transferred to different schools. Both Rushel Shell, a 2012 graduate of Hopewell High School and Chavas Rawlins, a 2013 graduate of Monessen High School are coming and going from West Virginia University.The WPIAL and PIAA's all-time leading rusher ends what turned out to be a tumultuous five months in which he left the University of Pittsburgh, enrolled at UCLA, decided against playing his college ball in California, had Pitt close the door on his chances to return and now will sit out this fall and have three years of eligibility left in Morgantown.2012-2013 WPIAL Champions on Parade
July 16, 2013
We celebrated America's Birthday earlier this month with various parades and fireworks. You'll forgive us if we celebrate the 2012-2013 school year with just a parade and no pyrotechnics. It was been another great high school sports year in District 7 of the PIAA. All of us here at the MSA Sports Network and Management Science Associates thank our sponsors and fans for their support during the school year. As we get ready for another great scholastic campaign in 2013-2014, we look back at all the WPIAL team champions on parade from this past school year.Football:Class AAAA - North Allegheny TigersClass AAA - West Allegheny IndianaClass AA - Aliquippa QuipsClass A - Clairton Bears
2012-2013 MSA Sports Male Athlete of the Year – DEVIN WILSON
June 28, 2013
Devin Wilson likes to debate many topics and hopes to be a lawyer someday. As for the mystery of who is the best male athlete in the WPIAL, Wilson took the case and built a mountain of evidence for himself.WPIAL Coaching Changes
June 27, 2013
Three district coaching vacancies have been filled as a new football coach was hired at a Class A school while boys basketball coaches were appointed at a Class AAAA school and a Class AA powerhouse.* The change on the coaching staff at Carmichaels was more a switch of titles than anything else. John Menhart ended his second stint as head coach of the Mighty Mikes (1989-2002 and (2009-2012) after last season and will become an assistant coach at Carmichaels. So it only seemed right to take one of his assistants and slide them into the leadership role. Offensive coordinator Ryan Krull has been named new head coach of the Mighty Mikes, keeping it all in the family. Krull is Menhart's son-in-law.This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 06/18/2013
June 18, 2013
With the high school baseball season now over, the focus is on pro baseball the rest of the summer as Washington continues a long home stand at CONSOL Energy Park this week here on the MSA Sports Network. The Wild Things host both Traverse City and River City this week in Frontier League baseball, plus we have top senior football players in District 6 battle in the Central Pa Coaches Association Lezzer Lumber Classic along with plenty of news from the world of auto racing with Rappin on Racin ALL here ONLY at MSAsports.netMonday, June 17th:TALK SHOW - Rappin on Racin at 6:00pm on MSAsports.net Tuesday, June 18th:Clairton’s Tyler Boyd Shines Again in PA Win Over Md in Big 33
June 16, 2013
The last four years, Tyler Boyd of Clairton has concluded each football season with some gridiron magic at Hersheypark Stadium in leading the Bears to four straight state crowns. So it was only fitting he would cap off a dream scholastic career with a huge game in Chocolatetown in leading Pennsylvania to a 58-27 victory over Maryland in the annual Big 33 Classic high school football all-star game.Boyd ran back the opening kickoff 91-yards for a touchdown to get the ball rolling. he caught a pair of touchdown passes, both from North Allegheny quarterback Mack Leftwich of 16 and 5 yards, he had a scoring run from 4-yards out and just for good measure, he threw a 68-yard touchdown pass to Brian Lemelle of Bishop McDevitt.Scholastic Notebook – 05/31/2013
May 31, 2013
The South Park baseball and Riverside softball teams did something unusual this week – win a WPIAL title with a perfect record.On Monday, both begin a quest to do something even more rare– win a PIAA title with a perfect record.Since the PIAA started softball and baseball championships in the 1970s, no WPIAL baseball team has won a PIAA title with an undefeated record. Elizabeth Forward came the closest, making the PIAA Semifinals in 2011.While no WPIAL baseball team has won a PIAA title with an undefeated record, three WPIAL softball teams have won PIAA titles with perfect records, but it has been 14 years since it happened.
