Trib HSSN WPIAL football championship factoids for Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025

By: Don Rebel
Friday, November 21, 2025 | 6:39 PM

It is appropriate that the city of Pittsburgh will celebrate Light Up Night on Saturday because inside Acrisure Stadium on the North Shore, things will be looking festive all day with plenty of green and red being displayed during Championship Saturday.

The WPIAL football finals in Class A, 2A 3A and 5A will take place all day Saturday.

Representing gang green will be Laurel in A, Seton LaSalle in 2A and Pine-Richland in 5A.

The red will come from Avonworth in 3A, Peters Township in 5A and Steel Valley in 2A. (Maroon is part of the red family.)

Black and gold Imani Christian in 3A and black and orange Clairton in A will offer some variety to the title game festive rainbow.

You can listen to all four district title games starting at 11 a.m. here on Trib HSSN.

Two new champions will be crowned in Class A and 2A while two teams look to repeat as champions in 3A and 5A.

Avonworth and Pine-Richland are two of the three champions from 2024 that are still alive for back-to-back district gold here in 2025.

Central Catholic already claimed a repeat title in Class 6A.

This is the 10th WPIAL Class 5A championship game but only the fifth one to be played at the big house on the North Shore.

This marks the third straight year and the fourth time this decade that Pine-Richland will collide with Peters Township in the district finals.

Before we roll out the factoids, let’s acknowledge some championship anniversaries from Class 5A, 3A, 2A and A.

• One-hundred years ago in the lone classification that existed back then, Washington knocked off Wilkinsburg to win the 1926 Class 3A championship, 26-0.

• Seventy-five years ago, Butler was declared 1950 Class 3A champion. That same season in 2A, Canonsburg and New Brighton were declared co-champions.

• Fifty years ago in 1975, for a second straight year in Class 3A, there were co-champions after New Castle and Upper St. Clair played to a scoreless tie. In 2A, Beth-Center won its first and only district crown with a shutout of Kittanning, 13-0. In a Class A title game thriller, Monaca edged Avella, 20-19.

• Forty years ago, Aliquippa blanked its rivals from across the river in Ambridge in the 3A finals, 13-0. Also in 1985, Riverside knocked off Swissvale for 2A gold, 21-15, and Monaca defeated Brentwood in the Class A title game, 21-13.

• Thirty years ago, Belle Vernon knocked off Franklin Regional in the 1995 Class 3A title game, 22-6, Burrell edged Washington in a 2A overtime thriller, 14-13, and Farrell won the first of back-to-back Class A crowns by rolling past Monessen, 30-14.

• Twenty-five years ago, in the final high school football championships played at Three Rivers Stadium, West Allegheny repeated in 3A with a win over West Mifflin, 21-7. Also in 2000, Aliquippa ended Waynesburg Central’s title reign with a win in 2A, 14-6, and Rochester beat rival Monaca for the first of three straight Class A championships, 13-6.

• Twenty years ago in 2005, Franklin Regional stunned defending champion Thomas Jefferson in the 3A finals, 31-14, South Park held off Greensburg Central Catholic in 2A, 24-20, and Duquesne captured its final district Class A football championship by beating Rochester, 14-6.

• Ten years ago in the final year before expansion to six classifications, Thomas Jefferson knocked off defending champion Central Valley to win Class 3A gold, 20-7. Also in 2015, Aliquippa finally defeated South Fayette to end the Lions’ two-year 2A reign, 44-38, and Clairton repeated in Class A with a shutout of rival Jeannette, 40-0.

• Five years ago in the covid-restricted season of 2020, Pine-Richland blanked Peters Township to win the 5A crown, 35-0, Central Valley won the second of three straight 3A championships by shutting out Elizabeth Forward, 35-0, Beaver Falls outscored Sto-Rox in the 2A title game, 43-30, and Jeannette knocked out defending Class A champ Clairton, 45-14.

To prepare you for the four games Saturday, we open up a fresh tin of WPIAL football championship factoids.

Class 5A

No. 2 Peters Township Indians (12-0) vs. No. 1 Pine-Richland Rams (11-1)

8 p.m. Saturday at Acrisure Stadium

• This is the 12th all-time meeting between Pine-Richland and Peters Township with the Rams holding a commanding lead in the series, 9-2.

• This is the sixth time the two have met in the WPIAL postseason and the fourth clash for district gold in the last six years. In the finals, Pine-Richland won the 2020 Class 5A championship by blanking Peters Township, 35-0. The Indians avenged that title game loss by beating the Rams in the 2023 Class 5A finals, 43-17. Then revenge was gained last November when Pine-Richland shut down Peters Township, 20-9.

• Pine-Richland won the other two playoff games against Peters Township, winning in the 2002 Class 3A first round, 56-20, and again in the 2021 Class 5A quarterfinals, 20-14.

• Pine-Richland is trying to win its 10th WPIAL football championship. The Rams’ first title came 56 years ago when old Richland HS shut out New Brighton in the 1969 Class 2A finals, 30-0. P-R also won district titles in 1970, 2003, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2024.

• The Rams are the only school to win WPIAL football championships in five classifications. Their 1969 and 1970 championships were in 2A, the 2003 title was in 3A, 2014 was 4A, 2020, 2022 and 2024 were in 5A and 2017 and 2018 were in 6A.

• Pine-Richland coach Jon LeDonne is trying to win his fourth district championship after leading Penn Hills to gold in 2018 and the Rams to the title in his first season at P-R in 2022 and in his third year in green and white in 2024.

• Peters Township is trying to win the school’s second WPIAL football championship. The first came two years ago when the Indians beat the Rams, 43-17. A 21-point second quarter broke open a close game as Peters quarterback Nolan DiLucia threw for 184 yards and three touchdowns.

• After coming close at both South Fayette and Peters Township in recent years, Indians coach T.J. Plack is trying to win his second WPIAL championship.

• The teams are a combined 23-1 this season. The Rams have won 10 straight games since their only loss of the season to Central Catholic back in Week 1, 34-20. The Indians have won 11 of their 12 games by double-digit points with the lone exception being a Week 5 triumph over Upper St. Clair, 24-20. The Indians have five shutouts; the Rams have one.

Class 3A

No. 2 Imani Christian Saints (12-0) vs. Avonworth Antelopes (12-0)

5 p.m. Saturday at Acrisure Stadium

• This is the second meeting between Imani Christian and Avonworth with the first coming in the postseason a year ago.

• In the 2024 WPIAL Class 3A semifinals, Avonworth knocked off Imani Christian, 14-6. Antelopes running back Luca Neal rushed for 172 yards and scored twice on touchdown runs of 32 and 50 yards. David Davis rushed for 92 yards with 81 of them coming on the Saints’ lone score midway through the fourth quarter.

• Avonworth is playing in its fourth straight WPIAL championship game, having lost to Belle Vernon in both the 2022 and 2023 Class 3A title games by a combined score of 50-7. Imani Christian is appearing in the district finals for the second time in the school’s 11 seasons in the WPIAL.

• The Antelopes are trying to win their fourth District 7 title. Sixty-six years ago, Avonworth tied Union, 13-13, to share the 1959 Class A crown. The Antelopes beat Washington to win the 2019 Class 2A title, 28-6, and then captured gold for the third time last year with a victory over Central Valley, 17-0.The ‘Lopes settled for WPIAL silver as runners-up in 2014, 2022 and 2023.

• The Saints are searching for their first WPIAL football championship. This will be the program’s first trip to play at Acrisure Stadium. In the only other district title game for Imani Christian, the Saints lost a heartbreaker to Jeannette in the 2017 Class A finals played at Robert Morris, 35-34.

• Avonworth won the Class 3A Western Hills Conference by one game over Central Valley and outscored its 12 opponents 498-114. Imani Christian captured the Class 3A Allegheny Seven Conference by one game over Highlands and outscored its opponents in its 12 games this season 583-87.

• In 2012, these teams were playing in Class A. Avonworth finished tied for fourth place but won the tiebreaker over Northgate to make the WPIAL playoffs out of the Eastern Conference. Imani Christian ended up in a three-way tie for third place in the Black Hills Conference, but lost the tiebreakers against Brentwood and Bishop Canevin and missed the postseason. The Saints had a better overall record at 6-3 while the Antelopes finished at 5-5. That was the first year in the WPIAL for Imani Christian, which did not field a team in the district again until 2016.

• Both teams have good depth at the skill positions. At quarterback, Carson Bellinger of Avonworth is 12th in the WPIAL in passing with 1,934 yards and 26 touchdowns, and Gabe Jenkins of Imani Christian is 22nd in the district with 1,646 yards passing and 29 TDs. Dimitri Velisaris of the Antelopes is 14th in the WPIAL in rushing with 1,449 yards while the Saints’ Jenkins is right behind at 16th with 1,257 yards on the ground. Among the district scoring leaders, Velisaris of Avonworth has 24 touchdowns and David Davis of Imani Christian has 18. Luca Neal leads the ‘Lopes in receptions with 40 for 788 yards while Davis and Robert Torres-Johnson have combined for 38 catches for 959 yards.

Class 2A

Steel Valley Ironmen (9-3) vs. Seton LaSalle Rebels (11-1)

2 p.m. Saturday at Acrisure Stadium

• This is the 27th all-time meeting between old Century Conference foes Steel Valley and Seton LaSalle, and the series is dead even. The Rebels have 13 victories and the Ironmen have 13 wins.

• This marks the second straight season the Rebels and Ironmen have squared off in the district playoffs. Last November, Seton LaSalle eliminated Steel Valley in the Class 2A semifinals, 27-13. Logan King had three touchdown runs and a scoring pass to Khalil Taylor for the Rebels. Da’Ron Barksdale scored on TD runs of 35 and 10 yards for the Ironmen.

• This will be the second playoff game between the schools. The Ironmen and Rebels have been conference foes in the past and played each other every season from 2002-2015. The first meeting between the programs was 55 years ago when Steel Valley defeated South Hills Catholic in the fall of 1971, 18-8.

• Both teams enjoyed first-round byes. Seton LaSalle defeated Mohawk and Washington the last two weeks by a combined score of 69-26. Steel Valley has eliminated Ellwood City and Western Beaver in the quarters and semis by a total score of 79-13. Kymarr Freeman has rushed for 280 yards and three touchdowns in the postseason for the Rebels while Da’Ron Barksdale has gained 479 yards on the ground the last two weeks with 10 touchdowns, including a punt return for a score.

• Seton LaSalle is trying to win its sixth WPIAL football championship. The Rebels are 5-1 in title games, winning district gold in 1979 over Knoch, 12-0, in 1980 over New Brighton, 20-13, in 1990 over Hopewell, 30-23, in 2002 over Mars, 20-6, and in 2004 blanking Aliquippa, 13-0. Their lone loss came last year to South Park, 21-14.

• Steel Valley hopes to win its seventh WPIAL football championship. The first crown for the Ironmen came when they shut out Aliquippa to win the 1982 3A title, 10-0. Titles two and three came back-to-back in 1988 and ’89. Steel Valley shut out Center in ’88, 6-0, then repeated 2A gold the next season with a win over Freeport, 20-14. The last three have come in the last nine years. The Ironmen crushed Neshannock to win in 2016, 49-14, rolled past South Side in 2018, 48-6, then knocked off Beaver Falls in 2022, 34-14.

• The Rebels are the top seed in the Class 2A playoffs and the Ironmen are the third seed. The last No. 1 seed to win a WPIAL Class 2A championship was Steel Valley in 2022. The last time a No. 3 seed won the district title was Steel Valley in 2018.

• Coach Tim Storino of Seton LaSalle is in his fourth season and is trying to win his first district championship as a head coach. The Rebels were winless in the 2022 season and won five games a year later before a 11-1 season in 2024.

• Steel Valley coach Ray Braszo is now in his 37th season as head coach, bouncing back and forth between Steel Valley and West Mifflin. He finally captured his first WPIAL championship with the Ironmen in 2022. The other three head coaches to lead the maroon and gold to football titles are Rod Steele (2016, 2018), Jack Giran (1988, 1989) and the great George Novak (1982).

Class A

Clairton Bears (12-1) vs. Laurel Spartans (12-1)

11 a.m. Saturday at Acrisure Stadium

• This is the ninth all-time meeting between Clairton and Laurel. The Bears own the advantage in the series over the Spartans, 6-2.

• This is the fifth time the two have battled in the district postseason and the third WPIAL championship game between Clairton and Laurel. Forty-five years ago, Laurel stunned Clairton in the 1980 Class A finals, 14-12. In that game, Jon Horrell rushed for 129 yards and scored twice, including the fourth-quarter game-winner form 21 yards out. Nine years later, the Bears got the better of the Spartans in the 1989 title game, 27-20. That game featured current coaches Brian Cooper and Wayne Wade squaring off as players. Wade, the Bears starting quarterback, threw for 83 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 30 yards.

• Clairton won the other two playoff clashes against Laurel. The Bears blanked the Spartans in the 2009 Class A semifinals, 33-0, and again in the first round of the 2023 postseason, 44-7.

• The only other Laurel win in this series was very significant. In Week 1 of the 2009 season, the Spartans stunned the visiting Bears, 15-8. It was the last loss for Clairton before going on a WPIAL and PIAA record 66-game winning streak over parts of four seasons.

• Only Aliquippa with 21 WPIAL championships has won more district titles then Clairton, which is searching for title No. 15. The first crown came nearly 100 years ago when the Bears were declared champions in 1929. They won three more titles in the 20th century, winning gold in 1931, 1954 and 1989. Then the biggest gold rush in district history came from 2006-2019 when Clairton won 10 championships in 14 years with titles in 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2019.

• This is the fourth WPIAL championship game appearance for Laurel and first since 1989. The only title came in 1980 while the Spartans settled for runner-up silver in 1989 after falling to Clairton and also after losing to South Allegheny in the 1977 Class 2A championship game, 12-6.

• Laurel is trying to become the first Big 7 Conference team to win a WPIAL Class A championship since Union in 2022. Clairton is trying to hoist gold representing the Eastern Conference for the first time since Bishop Canevin won it all in 2021.

• The Bears are the second seed in the Class A playoffs and the Spartans are the fourth seed. The last No. 2 seed to win a WPIAL Class A championship was Fort Cherry in 2023. The last time a No. 4 seed won the district title in Class A was Riverview in 1997.

• Clairton was tops in the district in scoring with 612 points. The Bears only allowed 74 points with 55 of them coming in the last two weeks after registering nine consecutive shutouts from Week 2-10. Laurel was third in scoring in Class A with 503 points and allowed 123 points. The Spartans shut out five opponents this season and have allowed double-digit points in a game only four times.

Tags: Avonworth, Clairton, Imani Christian, Laurel, Peters Township, Pine-Richland, Seton La Salle, Steel Valley