WPIAL releases brackets for 2024 football playoffs

By: Chris Harlan
Saturday, October 26, 2024 | 2:38 PM

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“Shocked and surprised.”

That’s how the coach of three-time defending champion Aliquippa said he felt when the WPIAL revealed football playoff brackets Saturday. The Quips received the fourth seed in the Class 4A bracket, lower than coach Vashawn Patrick and his team had expected.

“I definitely was expecting a top three,” Patrick said. “Probably two or three. But, hey, they put us at four.”

Aliquippa, Montour and West Allegheny finished in a three-way tie for the Parkway Conference title. Using established tiebreaking formulas, Aliquippa (6-2, 4-1) would be the top team from that conference with West Allegheny (4-3, 4-1) second. Montour (8-1, 4-1) would be third and need a wild card to qualify.

But the football committee saw it differently.

Undefeated Thomas Jefferson was seeded first in Class 4A followed by No. 2 Montour, No. 3 McKeesport, No. 4 Aliquippa, No. 5 Trinity, No. 6 Belle Vernon, No. 7 Mars and No. 8 West Allegheny.

“It definitely is motivation,” Patrick said. “I gave my speech earlier that it doesn’t matter where we’re at. We’ve still got to play at 7 o’clock and we’ll be ready. I think they’re just happy for the playoffs. This is our time.”

Aliquippa has reached the WPIAL finals 16 years in a row.

But Patrick wasn’t the only 4A coach puzzled by the bracket. West Allegheny coach Dave Schoppe said he was “pretty disappointed” that his team was eighth despite sharing the conference title.

“I’m not sure how they can justify what they did there, but it’s their call,” Schoppe said. “I don’t understand how two wild card teams can be seeded higher than us. Not to mention Montour, after we beat them. There are just a lot of questions.”

Joining Thomas Jefferson as No. 1 seeds were Central Catholic in 6A, Pine-Richland in 5A, Imani Christian in 3A, Seton LaSalle in 2A and Fort Cherry in A.

Some choices for the top seed were clear cut. But others were not, such as in 5A, where the football committee chose one-loss Pine-Richland over undefeated Upper St. Clair, which was seeded second.

“We knew going in the committee was going to wrestle with that,” Upper St. Clair coach Mike Junko said. “There are a lot of good teams with impressive resumes. It’s not an easy job. I imagine there was a lot of discussion and that’s where they landed.”

Pine-Richland’s lone loss was to Class 6A contender North Allegheny.

Going in Upper St. Clair’s favor, along with being undefeated, was winning what was arguably the deepest conference in the WPIAL. Five teams from the Allegheny Six qualified for the 5A playoffs.

“I think our resume speaks for itself,” Junko said. “This has been a team that’s had to overcome adversity along the way. We’re going to face adversity in the playoffs regardless of the seed.”

The WPIAL used a new method for choosing wild cards this season. Rather than rely on its traditional tiebreaking formulas of Gardner Points and margin-of-victory, the football committee was empowered to choose wild card teams.

Those wild card spots were awarded to Brentwood, Monessen, Jeannette and Rochester in Class A, Carlynton, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Riverside and Washington in 2A; Greensburg Salem, Highlands and North Catholic in 3A; Belle Vernon and Montour in 4A; and Latrobe, Moon and South Fayette in 5A.

Montour seemed in line for a top seed — maybe No. 1 — after defeating Aliquippa, 36-35, in Week 8. But Montour lost Friday in overtime to West Allegheny, 13-7, in the regular-season finale.

But despite the three Parkway teams being tri-champions, West Allegheny drew the No. 8 seed. Patrick said it almost seemed like the WPIAL ignored Friday’s results.

“West A played their butts off to beat Montour,” he said. “Going with the (tiebreakers) I thought we’d be a higher seed. But it is what it is.”

WPIAL playoffs

All games are 7 p.m. Friday at the lower seed unless otherwise indicated.

Class 6A

4-Seneca Valley (3-6) vs. 1-Central Catholic (8-2), site TBA

3-Mt. Lebanon (3-7) at 2-North Allegheny (9-1), 7 p.m.

Class 5A

1-Pine-Richland (8-1) bye

9-Franklin Regional (7-3) at 8-North Hills (8-2)

4-Woodland Hills (8-2) bye

12-Latrobe (5-5) at 5-Bethel Park (8-2)

2-Upper St. Clair (10-0) bye

10-Moon (5-4) at 7-Penn Hills (6-4)

3-Peters Township (9-1) bye

11-South Fayette (6-4) at 6-Penn-Trafford (8-2)

Class 4A

8-West Allegheny (6-4) at 1-Thomas Jefferson (10-0)

5-Trinity (5-5) at 4-Aliquippa (6-2)

7-Mars (5-5) at 2-Montour (8-1)

6-Belle Vernon (4-4) at 3-McKeesport (6-4)

Class 3A

1-Imani Christian (10-0) bye

9-Highlands (5-4) at 8-Southmoreland (7-3)

4-Beaver (8-2) bye

12-Greensburg Salem (7-3) at 5-Avonworth (7-3)

2-Central Valley (5-5) bye

10-Mt. Pleasant (5-5) at 7-Freeport (7-3)

3-Elizabeth Forward (7-3) bye

11-North Catholic (4-6) at 6-Deer Lakes (8-2)

Class 2A

1-Seton LaSalle (9-0) bye

9-Riverside (5-5) vs. 8-OLSH (5-4), site TBA

13-Washington (5-5) at 4-Steel Valley (7-3)

12-Carlynton (6-4) at 5-Western Beaver (7-2), 1 p.m. Saturday

2-South Park (9-1) bye

10-Keystone Oaks (4-5) at 7-Mohawk (6-3)

3-Ellwood City (9-0) bye

11-Waynesburg (6-4) at 6-South Allegheny (8-2)

Class A

16-Brentwood (4-6) at 1-Fort Cherry (10-0)

9-Cornell (8-2) at 8-Leechburg (8-2)

13-Jeannette (6-3) at 4-Neshannock (9-1)

12-Monessen (7-3) at 12-Greensburg Central Catholic (7-2)

15-Rochester (3-6) at 2-Clairton (10-0)

10-California (7-3) at 7-Laurel (5-5)

14-Bentworth (6-4) vs. 3-Bishop Canevin (7-2) at Dormont Stadium

11-South Side (6-3) at 6-Jefferson-Morgan (10-0)

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

Tags: Aliquippa, Belle Vernon, Carlynton, Central Catholic, Greensburg Salem, Highlands, Imani Christian, Latrobe, Mars, McKeesport, Montour, Moon, North Allegheny, North Catholic, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Pine-Richland, Riverside, Seton La Salle, South Fayette, Thomas Jefferson, Trinity, Upper St. Clair, Washington, West Allegheny