TribHSSN PIAA football rankings: Shakeup at the top

By: HSSN Staff
Sunday, August 26, 2018 | 5:54 PM

Whether you are a fan of your local district team or like to know what’s going on in high school football around Pennsylvania, the TribLive High School Sports Network has you covered this fall.

We rank the top WPIAL teams in each class every Sunday and follow up with our PIAA rankings every Monday during the high school football season.

A pair of top teams lost in Week Zero as Class 5A No. 1 Archbishop Wood was knocked off by McDonogh (Md.), 16-7.

In Class 4A, Cathedral Prep’s 28-game win streak came to an end when they were upended by Central Catholic, 24-21.

There is one head-to-head matchup of ranked teams in Week One as Class A No. 1 Farrell hosts Class 2A No. 2 Wilmington in a highly anticipated District 10 meeting.

Here is the PIAA Top 5 in each of the six classifications prior to Week One, with team records and last week’s ranking in parenthesis:

Class 6A

1. St. Joseph’s Prep (0-0, 1): The Hawks open the season Friday vs. St. Francis Academy (Md.).

2. Coatesville (1-0, 3): The Red Raiders beat Harrisburg, 37-6. Next: Thursday vs. Middletown South.

3. Pine-Richland (0-1, 2): The defending PIAA champions lost to IMG Academy, 42-0. Next: Saturday vs. Hempfield on TribHSSN.

4. State College (1-0, 4): The Little Lions beat Mifflin County, 35-12. Next: Friday at St. Augustine Prep (N.J.).

5. Parkland (1-0, 5): The Trojans beat Northampton, 41-0. Next:Saturday at Allentown Central Catholic.

Out: None

Class 5A

1. Manheim Central (1-0, 2): The Barons beat Susquehanna Township, 44-0. Next: Friday at Hempfield (District 3).

2. Archbishop Wood (0-1, 1): The defending PIAA champions lost to McDonogh (Md.). 16-7. This week: off.

3. Gateway (1-0, 3): The Gators beat Mt. Lebanon, 31-8. Next: Friday vs. Penn-Trafford on TribHSSN.

4. Springfield-Delco (1-0, 4): The Cougars beat Glen Mills, 44-6. Next: Friday vs. Upper Darby.

5. Penn Hills (1-0, 5): The Indians beat Steubenville (Ohio), 21-14. Next: vs. Latrobe on TribHSSN

Out: None

Class 4A

1. Imhotep Charter (1-0, 2): The Panthers beat LaSalle College, 34-10. Next: Friday vs. DeMatha (Md.).

2. Cathedral Prep (0-1, 1): The defending PIAA champions lost to Central Catholic, 24-21. Next: Friday vs. St. Joseph (Ontario, Canada).

3. Berks Catholic (1-0, 3): The Saints beat Exeter Township, 31-7. Next: Friday vs. Central Dauphin.

4. Bethlehem Catholic (1-0, 4): The Hawks beat Louis E. Dieruff, 54-6. Next: Saturday vs. Bethlehem Freedom.

5. Thomas Jefferson (0-0, 5): The Jaguars open the season Friday vs. Ringgold.

Out: None

Class 3A

1. Aliquippa (1-0, 1): The Quips beat McKinley Tech (Washington, D.C.), 48-0. Next: Friday at Waynesburg.

2. Middletown (1-0, 2): The Blue Raiders beat Lower Dauphin, 42-14. Next: Friday at Northern York.

3. Scranton Prep (1-0, 4): The Cavaliers beat Dunmore, 31-0. Next: Friday at Scranton.

4. Sharon (0-1, 3): The Tigers lost to Wilmington, 42-12. Next: Friday at Hickory.

5. Conwell-Egan Catholic (1-0, 5): The Eagles beat Roman Catholic, 38-20. Next: Friday vs. Salem.

Out: None

Class 2A

1. Southern Columbia (1-0, 1): The defending PIAA champions beat Bloomsburg, 56-6. Next: Friday at Mt. Carmel.

2. Wilmington (1-0, 2): The Greyhounds beat Sharon, 42-12. Next: Friday at Farrell.

3. Washington (1-0, 3): The Prexies beat Laurel Highlands, 59-25. Next: Friday at Charleroi on TribHSSN.

4. Ligonier Valley (1-0, NR): The Rams beat Homer-Center, 56-0. Next: Friday vs. Penns Manor on TribHSSN.

5. Riverside (0-0, NR): The Panthers open the Friday vs. Neshannock.

Out: Dunmore, West Catholic

Class A

1. Farrell (1-0, 1): The Steelers beat University Prep, 40-16. Next:Friday vs. Wilmington.

2. Jeannette (1-0, 2): The defending PIAA champions beat East Allegheny, 32-12. Next: Fridayn at Leechburg on Trib HSSN.

3. Old Forge (1-0, 3): The Devils beat Carbondale, 38-0. Next: Friday at Lakeland.

4. Williams Valley (1-0, 4): The Vikings beat Minersville, 28-6. Next: Friday vs. Newport.

5. Bishop Guilfoyle (1-0, 5): The Marauders beat Somerset, 17-0. Next: Saturday vs. Westmont-Hilltop.

Out: None

Don Rebel is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Don at drebel@tribweb.com or via Twitter @TheDonRebel.

Tags: Aliquippa, Gateway, Jeannette, Ligonier Valley, Penn Hills, Pine-Richland, Riverside, Thomas Jefferson, Washington