We're nearly to state championship season here in Pennsylvania. The weekend of December 9th and 10th in Hershey Park keeps getting closer and closer and the final rounds of the Pennsylvania state football playoffs are gaining a lot of clarity. I've been focusing on the WPIAL, by and large, but I'll take a look at the whole state here with the bracket narrowing.
6A
Central Catholic won the WPIAL Championships at Heinz Field to absolutely nobody's surprise. The Vikings will be a fearsome opponent as the playoffs continue. The Vikings are full of top Division I recruits, including the following:
2017: Penn State OL commit CJ Thorpe, Notre Dame LB commit David Adams, Notre Dame DT commit Kurt Hinish, Pitt longsnapper commit Cal Adomitis, JJ Younger, Tim Terry, Justice Evans
2018: QB Troy Fisher, DL David Green, DB Khalil Weathers
2019: DB/WR Corey Thomas Jr, TE/DE Zach Palmer, DE Brian Dallas
They'll face off against Williamsport in Altoona on Saturday afternoon, a team that features 2018 OL/DL Kurt Danneker and dynamic 2019 RB Trey Potts. It would be surprising to see Williamsport upset Central, but Potts is going to be a good one.
In District 1, North Penn will take on Garnet Valley. North Penn is led by 2017 WVU commit Ricky Johns and 2018 TE Owen Thomas, a kid who has visited Pitt but still waits on his first offer. I am not aware of any Division I recruits on Garnet Valley, but I have not followed them closely.
District 3 features Wilson playing Cumberland Valley. Wilson has, I believe, a senior receiver going to the Ivy League, but nobody else big. Cumberland Valley's star player is a junior linebacker/tight end (he'll play defense in college) named Charlie Katshir who I really like. Katshir has offers from Penn State, Rutgers, and Virginia and has visited Pitt this season. I think the Panthers eventually offer, but they've hosted a lot of 2018 linebackers, so it could be tough to say. Going to be a very deep class at that position in Pennsylvania and Ohio.
The combined 11/12 Districts feature the one program in the state with the best likelihood of upending Central Catholic in St. Joseph's Prep. They're probably the only team in the state that can challenge the Vikings on top to bottom talent and they're led by 2017 running back D'Andre Swift, one of the top four or five running backs in America and a Georgia commit, and 2018 wide receiver Darryle Simmons. Simmons is a Rivals250 kid with an offer from Pitt (and PSU, VT, WVU, UVA, BC, Maryland, etc.) and actually happens to be the nephew of a close friend of mine from college. They have a couple linemen, a QB, and a DB/slot back with Division I potential or offers as well.
St. Joe's will play Parkland, a school I'm not too familiar with and that doesn't have much Division I talent that I know of. I would be shocked if Parkland upset St. Joe's, although Swift has dealt with some nagging injuries that could leave the door open.
5A
5A's WPIAL champion was West Allegheny, a team that won in impressive fashion in Heinz in overtime against McKeesport. The Indians are led by 2018 DB Kenny White, 2018 ATH Brandon Lipford, 2017 OL Kieran Firment, 2017 QB Nick Ross, 2018 ATH Will Webber, and 2019 WR Mateo Vandamia. White suffered a concussion on Friday and they have to hope he's ready to play, because he is the engine that makes that team run. He does it all on offense, but probably plays defense in college. West A draws Meadville in the Elite Eight, a team led by senior RB Journey Brown, who has some Division I offers from G5 schools if I recall correctly.
In the District 2/11/12 playoffs, we've got Whitehall and Archbishop Wood going at it. Whitehall, the former home of Saquon Barkley, doesn't have any top-end talent, but they've got a couple seniors and juniors drawing some looks. Archbishop Wood is Archbishop Wood, just as talent-filled as always. Senior WR Mark Webb, a Georgia commit, is probably the most notable from a national perspective. From a Pitt perspective, 2018 TE Kyle Pitts has been offered by the Panthers and 2018 LB Matt Palmer has visited the campus. Both are surefire Power Five caliber players. Archbishop Wood will be favored to win and to push for a state title.
District 3 is home to Harrisburg and Manheim Central, the two finalists in the District. They'll play on Friday. Harrisburg is home to a pair of Penn State commits in 2017 DE Damion Barber and 2018 Rivals100 four-star Micah Parsons, perhaps the best pass-rusher in the country in his class. 2018 WR Shaquon Anderson-Butts, a player who has visited Pitt on a number of occasions and holds an offer, also calls the school home. They were really good before, but with Parsons transferring in midseason, they've become a juggernaut. Good luck to Manheim Central, they're going to need it.
District 1's finalists are Springfield and Academy Park, two teams that I don't know much about and don't have any Division I prospects to my knowledge. It feels like West A, Harrisburg, and Archbishop Wood are the three teams with a chance to win this classification.
4A
4A's WPIAL winner was Thomas Jefferson (big shock, I know), behind standout seniors like RB Quinton Hill and LB Zane Zandier as well as a stout junior DL Devin Danielson. The Jaguars looked really good on Friday and when they play like that, they're tough to stop. Zandier gives them a vertical threat on offense to go with Hill's impressive running ability and that defense is led by Danielson anchoring the line of scrimmage and Zandier making plays wherever they need him to. They're facing off against a really tough Cathedral Prep squad in what should be a fantastic game. Cathedral Prep is led by two standout Rivals250 juniors in Matt Bauer, a Notre Dame commit at LB, and Juice Scruggs, an offensive guard many expect to end up at Ohio State. Should be a fantastic game between two tough teams. Hopefully it's closer than TJ vs New Castle haha.
District 3 will be a match-up between Shippensburg and Berks Catholic. The only Division I prospect I'm aware of is 2018 safety Cooper Lutz of Berks Catholic.
The Districts 2 and 12 championship will be played between Imhotep Charter and North Ponoco. I'm not really familiar with anybody on North Ponoco, but Imhotep is stacked. They probably have more Division I talent than any other team in the state besides Central or St. Joe's. The two most notable kids from Pitt's perspective are 2018 stars Isheem Young, a Rivals250 safety, and Justin Johnson, a three-star OL who has visited Pitt this season. Both hold Pitt offers, although Johnson is the one seriously considering Pitt whereas Young is likely to go national.
The final quarterfinal (ha) is between Johnstown and Bethlehem Catholic. I watched Catholic play and defeat their in-town rival Bethlehem Liberty, which features Pitt commit Darian Street, earlier in the season and they have a disciplined team with physical play at the line of scrimmage. Nothing flashy and no real skill position threats, but they can run it down your throat. Johnstown features 2018 DL Shamar Jones and 2017 DB Exree Loe, a former Pitt commit who is now committed to West Virginia.
Imhotep and the winner of Thomas Jefferson/Cathedral Prep will probably be the favorites to take home state here.
3A
3A is really weird and I can't say that I fully understand the seeding process. For whatever reason, WPIAL champion Beaver Falls gets a bye this week while three other games take place. Those three games are as follows:
Central (Martinsburg) vs Karns City - No FBS kids, maybe a couple FCS on the Martinsburg squad.
Delaware Valley Charter vs Notre Dame-Green Pond - No Division I kids to my knowledge.
Middletown vs Scranton Prep - No Division I kids to my knowledge.
6A
Central Catholic won the WPIAL Championships at Heinz Field to absolutely nobody's surprise. The Vikings will be a fearsome opponent as the playoffs continue. The Vikings are full of top Division I recruits, including the following:
2017: Penn State OL commit CJ Thorpe, Notre Dame LB commit David Adams, Notre Dame DT commit Kurt Hinish, Pitt longsnapper commit Cal Adomitis, JJ Younger, Tim Terry, Justice Evans
2018: QB Troy Fisher, DL David Green, DB Khalil Weathers
2019: DB/WR Corey Thomas Jr, TE/DE Zach Palmer, DE Brian Dallas
They'll face off against Williamsport in Altoona on Saturday afternoon, a team that features 2018 OL/DL Kurt Danneker and dynamic 2019 RB Trey Potts. It would be surprising to see Williamsport upset Central, but Potts is going to be a good one.
In District 1, North Penn will take on Garnet Valley. North Penn is led by 2017 WVU commit Ricky Johns and 2018 TE Owen Thomas, a kid who has visited Pitt but still waits on his first offer. I am not aware of any Division I recruits on Garnet Valley, but I have not followed them closely.
District 3 features Wilson playing Cumberland Valley. Wilson has, I believe, a senior receiver going to the Ivy League, but nobody else big. Cumberland Valley's star player is a junior linebacker/tight end (he'll play defense in college) named Charlie Katshir who I really like. Katshir has offers from Penn State, Rutgers, and Virginia and has visited Pitt this season. I think the Panthers eventually offer, but they've hosted a lot of 2018 linebackers, so it could be tough to say. Going to be a very deep class at that position in Pennsylvania and Ohio.
The combined 11/12 Districts feature the one program in the state with the best likelihood of upending Central Catholic in St. Joseph's Prep. They're probably the only team in the state that can challenge the Vikings on top to bottom talent and they're led by 2017 running back D'Andre Swift, one of the top four or five running backs in America and a Georgia commit, and 2018 wide receiver Darryle Simmons. Simmons is a Rivals250 kid with an offer from Pitt (and PSU, VT, WVU, UVA, BC, Maryland, etc.) and actually happens to be the nephew of a close friend of mine from college. They have a couple linemen, a QB, and a DB/slot back with Division I potential or offers as well.
St. Joe's will play Parkland, a school I'm not too familiar with and that doesn't have much Division I talent that I know of. I would be shocked if Parkland upset St. Joe's, although Swift has dealt with some nagging injuries that could leave the door open.
5A
5A's WPIAL champion was West Allegheny, a team that won in impressive fashion in Heinz in overtime against McKeesport. The Indians are led by 2018 DB Kenny White, 2018 ATH Brandon Lipford, 2017 OL Kieran Firment, 2017 QB Nick Ross, 2018 ATH Will Webber, and 2019 WR Mateo Vandamia. White suffered a concussion on Friday and they have to hope he's ready to play, because he is the engine that makes that team run. He does it all on offense, but probably plays defense in college. West A draws Meadville in the Elite Eight, a team led by senior RB Journey Brown, who has some Division I offers from G5 schools if I recall correctly.
In the District 2/11/12 playoffs, we've got Whitehall and Archbishop Wood going at it. Whitehall, the former home of Saquon Barkley, doesn't have any top-end talent, but they've got a couple seniors and juniors drawing some looks. Archbishop Wood is Archbishop Wood, just as talent-filled as always. Senior WR Mark Webb, a Georgia commit, is probably the most notable from a national perspective. From a Pitt perspective, 2018 TE Kyle Pitts has been offered by the Panthers and 2018 LB Matt Palmer has visited the campus. Both are surefire Power Five caliber players. Archbishop Wood will be favored to win and to push for a state title.
District 3 is home to Harrisburg and Manheim Central, the two finalists in the District. They'll play on Friday. Harrisburg is home to a pair of Penn State commits in 2017 DE Damion Barber and 2018 Rivals100 four-star Micah Parsons, perhaps the best pass-rusher in the country in his class. 2018 WR Shaquon Anderson-Butts, a player who has visited Pitt on a number of occasions and holds an offer, also calls the school home. They were really good before, but with Parsons transferring in midseason, they've become a juggernaut. Good luck to Manheim Central, they're going to need it.
District 1's finalists are Springfield and Academy Park, two teams that I don't know much about and don't have any Division I prospects to my knowledge. It feels like West A, Harrisburg, and Archbishop Wood are the three teams with a chance to win this classification.
4A
4A's WPIAL winner was Thomas Jefferson (big shock, I know), behind standout seniors like RB Quinton Hill and LB Zane Zandier as well as a stout junior DL Devin Danielson. The Jaguars looked really good on Friday and when they play like that, they're tough to stop. Zandier gives them a vertical threat on offense to go with Hill's impressive running ability and that defense is led by Danielson anchoring the line of scrimmage and Zandier making plays wherever they need him to. They're facing off against a really tough Cathedral Prep squad in what should be a fantastic game. Cathedral Prep is led by two standout Rivals250 juniors in Matt Bauer, a Notre Dame commit at LB, and Juice Scruggs, an offensive guard many expect to end up at Ohio State. Should be a fantastic game between two tough teams. Hopefully it's closer than TJ vs New Castle haha.
District 3 will be a match-up between Shippensburg and Berks Catholic. The only Division I prospect I'm aware of is 2018 safety Cooper Lutz of Berks Catholic.
The Districts 2 and 12 championship will be played between Imhotep Charter and North Ponoco. I'm not really familiar with anybody on North Ponoco, but Imhotep is stacked. They probably have more Division I talent than any other team in the state besides Central or St. Joe's. The two most notable kids from Pitt's perspective are 2018 stars Isheem Young, a Rivals250 safety, and Justin Johnson, a three-star OL who has visited Pitt this season. Both hold Pitt offers, although Johnson is the one seriously considering Pitt whereas Young is likely to go national.
The final quarterfinal (ha) is between Johnstown and Bethlehem Catholic. I watched Catholic play and defeat their in-town rival Bethlehem Liberty, which features Pitt commit Darian Street, earlier in the season and they have a disciplined team with physical play at the line of scrimmage. Nothing flashy and no real skill position threats, but they can run it down your throat. Johnstown features 2018 DL Shamar Jones and 2017 DB Exree Loe, a former Pitt commit who is now committed to West Virginia.
Imhotep and the winner of Thomas Jefferson/Cathedral Prep will probably be the favorites to take home state here.
3A
3A is really weird and I can't say that I fully understand the seeding process. For whatever reason, WPIAL champion Beaver Falls gets a bye this week while three other games take place. Those three games are as follows:
Central (Martinsburg) vs Karns City - No FBS kids, maybe a couple FCS on the Martinsburg squad.
Delaware Valley Charter vs Notre Dame-Green Pond - No Division I kids to my knowledge.
Middletown vs Scranton Prep - No Division I kids to my knowledge.
