Aug 15, 2016 5 min read

Like it or not, ready or not, WPIAL football teams are preparing for their first season after the PIAA’s comprehensive overhaul of the sport. Expansion from four to six classifications is finally here.

Local teams had their first day – a soggy one at that – of full-contact practices Monday leading up to, for some, their lone scrimmage.

One of the byproducts of the move to six classifications is schools now have the option of playing 10 regular-season games and a scrimmage or sticking with the traditional two scrimmages and playing only nine games, as has been the custom for years.

Get used to the changes because high school football in the WPIAL will never be the same. For Class A and AA teams, the Highway to Heinz Field and the WPIAL championship games is now the Jaunt to the Joe, as in Robert Morris University’s Joe Walton Stadium, where the WPIAL finals for the two smallest classifications will be held.

There are plenty of changes for players, coaches and fans to get used to in a hurry. The old saying tells us change is good, but for high school football teams change is not equal. Here is a tired, old sportswriter’s view of the winners and losers in the realignment:

Fort Cherry – Had expansion to six classes happened two years ago, the Rangers would have been firmly in Class 2-A. However, a drop in boys enrollment numbers to 140 had FC hitting the jackpot. The cutoff for Class A is 140, meaning the Rangers are the largest school in the classification in the state. Fort Cherry also moves out of the rugged Black Hills Conference, away from former rivals Avonworth, Brentwood, Bishop Canevin and North Catholic, and into the less-competitive Tri-County South. Teams that move into the TCS usually do very well in their first season. Expect Fort Cherry to compete for the conference title.

The Charleroi-Monessen rivalry – One of the side effects of the move to six classes is most schools play fewer conference games, allowing for the scheduling of nonconference contests. For years, the Charleroi-Monessen rivalry – or is it the Monessen-Charleroi rivalry? – was one of the best, most-played and most-intense series in WPIAL history. It was put on hiatus after the 2007 season but will resume Aug. 26 at Monessen as the season opener for both teams. Here’s hoping the Trinity-Washington series can be resumed in the future.

Trinity – The Hillers had to be sweating out the realignment as their boys enrollment numbers almost pushed them from Class 3-A last season to Class 5-A this year. Instead, the Hillers came in seven boys under the line and will be playing in Class 4-A with many of their conference rivals from the last two years. Only Mars has a larger enrollment among 4-A schools than Trinity.

Class 2-A teams – Though they have no chance to play at Heinz Field, there’s some good news for 2-A schools. It’s going to be hard not to make the playoffs. There are 24 teams in 2-A and 16 will make the playoffs. In other words, you play 10 weeks to eliminate eight teams. You can finish sixth in an eight-team conference and still make the playoffs. In other words, a team with a 2-8 record can make the playoffs.

Chartiers-Houston – The Bucs were easily the unluckiest local team in the realignment. The Bucs had a smaller male enrollment than Fort Cherry in the last realignment but C-H missed staying in Class A by three boys. Only Serra Catholic has a smaller enrollment in 2-A. The Bucs do play three nonconference games, two against Class A opponents but one is powerhouse Jeannette. Gee, thanks, WPIAL. The Bucs also play McGuffey, a 3-A team, the year the Highlanders might have their best team in more than a decade.

Bentworth – This could have been the year the Bearcats made a serious run at the Tri-County South Conference title. Instead, Bentworth was four boys over the limit for Class A and are bumped to 2-A and the Century Conference. At least the travel will be easy as the Bearcats’ longest road trip will be the season opener at West Greene.

McGuffey and Waynesburg – For classes 3-A through 6-A, only eight teams in each will make the playoffs. That’s not bad news for 6-A, which has only 14 teams. But in 3-A, which includes McGuffey and Waynesburg as members of the Interstate Conference, there are 23 teams and only the top two finishers in each conference plus two third-place wild-cards will qualify. It’s difficult to make the playoffs in 3-A.

Bus drivers at Canon-McMillan and Peters Township – The creation of six classes meant C-M and PT lost local rival Upper St. Clair from the Southeastern Conference. Even Baldwin, which also is gone, wasn’t a difficult road trip. They have been replaced in the Southeastern by Norwin, Hempfield and Altoona. Yes, Altoona is in the same conference as Canon-Mac and Peters Township. Canon-Mac plays at Altoona Sept. 30. Better leave now, Big Macs. The bus driver should be prepared to be driving deep into the night. At least PT hosts Altoona this year, but next season …

Backup players – Twelve of the 22 teams in the O-R’s coverage area will be playing only one scrimmage. That means if your name is low on the depth chart, then you have only one opportunity against outside competition to make an impact before the season begins. Make the most of it, kid.

Sports editor Chris Dugan can be reached at dugan@observer-reporter.com.