Finals factoids ahead of 2024 WPIAL Class 6A, 4A football championships

By: Don Rebel
Friday, November 15, 2024 | 9:57 AM

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On Saturday, the WPIAL will crown two football champions with the playing of the district Class 4A and 6A title games.

This will be the fourth straight year and the sixth time in the last seven years that the 6A championship game will be played at Norwin Knights Stadium in North Huntingdon.

This also marks the first time outside of the covid-19 season of 2020 that the 4A finals will be played somewhere other than Three Rivers Stadium, Heinz Field or Acrisure Stadium in more than four decades.

Let’s acknowledge some championship anniversaries from both Class 6A and 4A in the WPIAL.

• This is the ninth Class 6A championship game in WPIAL history, and the fourth time it has come down to North Allegheny against Central Catholic.

• The only 6A championship game that did not include the Tigers or Vikings was in 2018 when Pine-Richland defeated Seneca Valley, 34-7.

• The first 6A championship game was in 2016 when Central Catholic rolled past Seneca Valley, 42-7.

• Five years ago in the lowest scoring 6A final, Central Catholic edged Pine-Richland, 10-7.

• WPIAL Class 4A turned 44 this season.

• In the first Quad-A title game in district history, Mt. Lebanon knocked off rival Bethel Park, 30-14, in 1980.

• 40 years ago, Mt. Lebanon captured its fourth title in five years and the final one for legendary coach Art Walker Sr., beating Gateway in the 1984 title game, 20-12.

• 30 years ago, McKeesport captured its third district championship and first in 56 years by beating Upper St. Clair in the 1994 finals, 21-14.

• 25 years ago, Woodland Hills beat rival McKeesport in the 1999 championship game, 21-7, in what would be the first of three titles in a four year span for the Wolverines.

• 20 years ago, in what some consider one of the best teams in WPIAL history, Central Catholic blanked Gateway to win the 2004 championship, 28-0.

• 10 years ago, Pine-Richland won the fourth of eight district crowns with a win over Central Catholic in the 2014 4A finals, 21-13.

So to prepare for the two WPIAL championship football games Saturday, we open up a fresh tin of WPIAL football championship factoids.

WPIAL Class 6A: North Allegheny Tigers (10-1) vs. Central Catholic Vikings (9-2) at Norwin at 6 p.m. Saturday (audio on Trib HSSN)

• This rivalry is as close as it gets. This is the 31st all-time meeting between the two big school powers and North Allegheny has 15 wins, Central Catholic has 14 victories and there was a scoreless tie played in 1981.The Tigers won the first meeting 9-7 in 1975.

• This is the ninth time the two have played each other in the WPIAL playoffs and the fourth time they have met with gold at stake. Central Catholic beat North Allegheny in the 2020 6A finals, 38-24. In the last two 6A championship games, the Tigers defeated the Vikings, 35-21, in 2022 and 44-41 last November. In non-championship postseason games, Central Catholic won playoff meetings in 1988, 2001 and 2015 while North Allegheny prevailed in postseason clashes in 2000 and 2010.

• This is the first time in WPIAL history that the same two teams have met in the finals in the highest classification three straight years.

• Last year, North Allegheny became the third school to repeat as WPIAL 6A champion. Pine-Richland accomplished it in 2017 and 2018 and Central Catholic did it in 2019 and 2020. No team has won three straight 6A crowns.

• The Tigers are in search of their seventh district crown. NA’s first championship was 34 years ago in 1990 under coach Jim Rankin. The Tigers followed with a three-peat in 2010, 2011 and 2012 and back-to-back championships in 2022 and 2023.

• NA coach Art Walker is trying to win his eighth WPIAL championship. He has won five as the North Allegheny head coach and also led Central Catholic to back-to-back district championships in 2003 and 2004.

• The Vikings are hoping to win their ninth WPIAL championship, which would move them alone into fifth place on the all-time district list. Central Catholic captured its first WPIAL crown 21 years ago in 2003. It repeated in 2004 and won more gold in 2007, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019 and 2020.

• Now in his second year as Central Catholic head coach, Ryan Lehmeier is trying to become the third coach to lead the Vikings to a WPIAL championship, joining Art Walker and Terry Totten.

• When these two teams met Sept. 27, Central Catholic trailed in the second quarter, 14-8, only to score the game’s final 19 points to win 27-14. Elijah Faulkner carried the ball 27 times for 127 yards and a touchdown for the Vikings. NA quarterback Brady Brinkley threw for 141 yards in the Tigers’ only loss of the season.

WPIAL Class 4A: McKeesport Tigers (8-4) vs. Thomas Jefferson Jaguars (11-0) at Norwin at noon Saturday (audio on Trib HSSN)

• This is only the sixth all-time meeting between these two district powers with McKeesport having won three and Thomas Jefferson two. Four of the five previous meetings were 4A Big Eight Conference matchups between 2020-23.

• In Week 2 this season, Thomas Jefferson erased a 28-7 halftime deficit to come back and win in overtime over visiting McKeesport, 34-31. Tyler Eber rushed for 186 yards and three touchdowns for the Jaguars while Kemon Spell had two touchdowns and Anthony Cromerdie returned an interception 37 yards for a touchdown for the Tigers.

• These two teams nearly won gold together twice. In 2005, McKeesport defeated Woodland Hills to win the 4A title; however Thomas Jefferson was stunned in the 3A championship game by Franklin Regional, 31-14. Eleven years later, the Jaguars blanked New Castle to win the 4A crown, but the Tigers lost the first 5A championship game, a game they thought they had won in regulation, 38-37 in overtime to West Allegheny.

• McKeesport has won five WPIAL football championships with its first outright title coming 86 years ago when it beat Johnstown to win the 1938 3A title, 38-20. The Tigers also won outright championships in 1994 when they beat Upper St. Clair in the 4A final, 21-14, and in 2005 with a 19-7 victory over Woodland Hills.

• The first football championship McKeesport won was a unique title 92 years ago. It was the only time in WPIAL football history that the district awarded tri-championships when the Tigers, Jeannette and New Castle shared the Class 3A crown in 1932.

• This is the third WPIAL championship game for the Tigers since Matt Miller took over as head coach for the legendary George Smith in 2016. In his first year as the helm, McKeesport thought it had won 5A gold, only to lose a heartbreaker in overtime to West Allegheny, 38-37. Then last year, the Tigers fell in the 4A finals to Aliquippa, 35-21.

• A win would move Thomas Jefferson into a tie for third most WPIAL football championships with New Castle at 11, trailing only Aliquippa (20) and Clairton (14).

• Bill Cherpak could move all alone on top of the coaching championship list with 10. He is currently tied with Bob Palko at nine each.

• Bap Manzini was the head coach of TJ when the Jaguars won their first WPIAL title in 1980, beating Aliquippa, 28-8. Twenty years ago, Cherpak won his first championship when Thomas Jefferson blanked rival West Mifflin, 20-0. Since then, the Jaguars have won district gold in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2020.

Tags: Central Catholic, McKeesport, North Allegheny, Thomas Jefferson