Predicting the WPIAL football playoff seeds, results
Sixty-four teams across four classifications will learn of their playoff fate Monday night when the WPIAL releases its brackets.
The road to Heinz Field will be dotted with surprise seedings, intriguing matchups and maybe even a bit of controversy. It also will hold a special place in the history of area high school football.
This will mark the final postseason with only four classifications as the PIAA will expand to six next fall. The classic 16-team bracket could be gone, but the goal will remain the same: win the WPIAL championship, wherever it may be held, and punch a ticket to the state playoffs.
There is no perfect forumla for playoff brackets but remember a few points: the WPIAL avoids first-round games between conference opponents or teams that faced one another in non-conference play. Strength of schedule plus every win and loss are taken into consideration.
The regular season is over and the playoff field is set, so let’s have some fun by predicting possible top seeds, pairings in the first round next Friday and ultimately, who is going to be crowned champions at Heinz Field.
The popular pick to win the title is Central Catholic, but Woodland Hills (9-0) earns my top seed because of an undefeated regular season that included the Southeastern Conference title and a non-conference victory over West Allegheny.
People tend to forget the Wolverines have two Division I running backs and a long history of success.
Penn-Trafford (9-0) capped an undefeated regular season and won the Foothills Conference title. While the Warriors’ don’t face traditional powers that are included in the other two conferences, the WPIAL rarely ignores undefeated teams. That’s enough to earn the No. 2 seed.
Let’s get to the mess that is the Northern Eight Conference. Central Catholic (8-1), North Allegheny (8-1) and Pine-Richland (8-1) shared the title, which will create quite the debate among WPIAL officials. Central; Catholic, Pine-Richland and NA will be seeded third, fourth and fifth respectively, based on strength of schedule.
Other games: McKeesport (8-1) is my No. 5 seed because I wanted to avoid a second-round rematch with Penn-Trafford and is projected to face fourth-place Upper St. Clair. Mt. Lebanon (8-1) is seventh with a first-round game against Plum. Bethel Park (5-2) is my eighth seed.
The Southeastern Conference was not as strong this season. Seriously, check the results. The WPIAL will take notice.
Championship prediction: Central Catholic defeats Pine-Richland.
This was the most difficult bracket to predict because of the dynasty in Jefferson Hills. Thomas Jefferson lost its first two games before finishing on a seven-game winning streak. Injuries played a part, so do we reward Belle Vernon and Ringgold for beating the Jaguars or do we take those victories with a grain of salt?
You have to reward them.
Belle Vernon (9-0) won the Big 10 Conference and is destined for the top seed. The competition was not as strong as Central Valley’s, so the Warriors (8-1) are second after beating West Allegheny Friday and their only loss came in Week 1 against Montour, which is No. 8 in my bracket. Mars (8-1) could easily be fourth because of its recent struggles, but the WPIAL will want to put West Allegheny (7-2) as the No. 4 seed to be on the opposite side of Central Valley.
Other games: Ringgold struggled against Trinity and Laurel Highlands, but came close to defeating Belle Vernon and knocked off Thomas Jefferson. Expect the Rams (8-1) to be seeded fifth with a first-round game against Hampton (6-3), which is a rematch of last season’s quarterfinals.
This sets up a possible Ringgold-West Allegheny game in the quarterfinals and that should have Rams fans worried.
Championship prediction: West Allegheny defeats Thomas Jefferson. The Jaguars are healthy and are ready to make a run.
Two-time defending WPIAL and PIAA champion South Fayette (9-0) has a 41-game winning streak. Wins over Seton-La Salle and Steel Valley make the Lions the top seed with a first-round game against the Interstate Conference’s fourth-place team, Burgettstown (5-4).
Aliquippa (9-0) gets the second seed because of its victory over Beaver Falls in Week 9 that gave the Quips their sixth consecutive undefeated regular season. They’ll draw Deer Lakes in the first round.
Washington (9-0) is the third seed for the second consecutive season, and because it faced New Brighton – the Midwestern’s fourth-place team – in a non-conference game the Prexies will draw the Century Conference’s fourth-place team Keystone Oaks (5-4). That sets up a potential semifinal rematch between Wash High and Aliquippa, but the Prexies would be tested in the quarterfinals by either Steel Valley or Apollo-Ridge.
Freeport (8-1) is fourth after winning the Allegheny Conference. It should get the winner of No. 5 Beaver Falls and No. 12 McGuffey.
Other games: Mt. Pleasant (7-2) is No. 8 and should play Seton-La Salle (8-1), which finished third in the Century, in the first round. None of the higher seeds want to play the Rebels, who led South Fayette at halftime. This has upset written all over it.
Championship prediction: South Fayette defeats Washington for its third consecutive WPIAL championship. Why? The Prexies struggle at times against the passing game and that can’t happen against the Lions. These are two best Class AA teams in the state.
Clairton (9-0), the defending WPIAL champion, gets the top seed and will host Carmichaels (5-4). Conference champs – North Catholic (9-0), Shenango (7-2) and Frazier (9-0) – get the remaining top four seeds.
Other games: Expect No. 11 Bentworth (6-3) to play No. 6 Bishop Canevin (6-3), the second-place team in the Black Hills. Chartiers-Houston (5-4) is in the same conference as North Catholic and won’t draw Clairton, so the No. 14 Bucs will face No. 3 Shenango. Beth-Center (7-2) gets the No. 8 seed and will host Avonworth (7-2). B-C played Greensburg Central Catholic, the Eastern runner-up, in Week 2.
Championship prediction: Clairton defeats North Catholic to win its seventh title in eight years.
Lance Lysowski can be reached at llysowski@observer-reporter.com.