Trib HSSN don’t miss high school football matchups for 2024 Week 1

By: Don Rebel
Thursday, August 29, 2024 | 9:00 PM

---

Welcome to Week 1 of the 2024 WPIAL football regular season and one of the busiest Fridays in the WPIAL with only two teams, New Brighton and Summit Academy, slated for a Saturday game.

This weekend is also a rare occurrence for high school football throughout the state.

For only the second time, a full second weekend of scholastic football will be played in the month of August.

With the advent of Week Zero in 2016, the 2024 season joins the 2019 season as the only two years to ever have two weeks of high school football in the books before Sept. 1.

History aside, while this is the second week for most district teams, Aliquippa, Belle Vernon, West Allegheny, Union, Carmichaels, Bishop Canevin, Burgettstown, Riverview, Beth-Center and Springdale will all open their seasons on Friday.

Here is a look at some of the top high school football matchups for Friday in Week 1.

Class 6A vs. 5A nonconference

Class 6A No. 2 Central Catholic (0-1) at Class 5A No. 2 Pine-Richland (1-0)

7 p.m. Friday, Pine-Richland Stadium

Coaches: Ryan Lehmeier, Central Catholic; Jon LeDonne, Pine-Richland

Last week: St. Frances Academy (Md.) 44, Central Catholic 16; Pine-Richland 35, Hilliard Davidson (Ohio) 24

Players to watch: Jy’Aire Walls, Central Catholic (Sr., 6-2, 195, QB); Mac Miller, Pine-Richland (Jr., 5-8, 185, RB/LB)

Team notes

Central Catholic: The Vikings opened the season against a St. Frances (Md.) team that is ranked nationally and plays a schedule of teams from across the nation. Central Catholic kept it close, trailing by 11 points at halftime before the Panthers pulled away for a 28-point victory. Vikings senior quarterback Jy’Aire Walls connected on 7 of 13 passes for 152 yards and an 11-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Xxavier Thomas. Sophomore running back Roman Thompson also scored for Central Catholic.

Pine-Richland: The Rams headed west to the Buckeye State to begin the 2024 campaign and came back home with a victory. Junior running back Mac Miller had a monster game for Pine-Richland, carrying the ball 27 times for 234 yards with three touchdowns. Sophomore quarterback Aaron Strader was 11 of 14 passing for 74 yards while senior Tanner Cunningham threw one pass and it went for a touchdown.

Historic factoids

• This has become one of the district’s top rivalries, considering the two had never played before 2010. Since then, only in 2011 and 2020 have the Vikings and Rams not squared off. Pine-Richland has won the last two years, but Central Catholic leads the all-time series, 9-7.

• The 2023 battle between the Vikings and Rams was memorable for one player’s incredible effort. Pine-Richland senior Ethan Pillar carried the ball a numbing 56 times, believed to be a district record, rushing for 297 yards and three touchdowns as the Rams beat the Vikings, 26-19.

• These two former 4A and 6A rivals have met five times in the postseason, including in three WPIAL championship games. Central Catholic beat Pine-Richland in the 2010 4A first round, 37-10, and in the 2017 6A semifinals, 63-34. In the 2014 4A finals, Pine-Richland won gold with a win over Central Catholic, 21-13. The Rams won the 2017 6A title game, 42-7, while the Vikings claimed the 2019 6A championship, 10-7.

Class 5A nonconference

No. 5 Penn Hills (0-1) at No. 4 Woodland Hills (0-1)

7 p.m. Friday, The Wolvarena in Turtle Creek

Coaches: Charles Morris, Penn HIlls; Brian Tarrant, Woodland Hills

On the air: Video stream on Trib HSSN

Last week: Susquehanna Township 36, Penn Hills 30; Erie McDowell 34, Woodland Hills 28

Players to watch: Naytel Mitchell, Penn Hills (Sr., 5-10, 180, RB/LB); Cam Walter, Woodland Hills (Jr., 6-1, 180, QB)

Team notes

Penn Hills: The Indians headed east to York to open the new season and returned home with a heartbreaking loss when T.D. Evans lived up to his name and turned a two-point deficit into a six-point lead in the fourth quarter and an eventual victory for Susquehanna Township, 36-30. Penn Hills senior running back Nytel Mitchell rushed for 137 yards and a touchdown while junior quarterback Devin Harris threw for 231 yards for the Indians.

Woodland Hills: The Wolverines hosted District 10 power Erie McDowell and came up short in their season opener last week at home. Wolverines junior quarterback Cam Walter hit on 14 of 22 passes for 265 yards and connected on an 80-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Scoop Smith, who electrified the home fans with a 99-yard kickoff return for a score that at the time put Woody High up by one point in the third quarter.

Historic factoids

• These two eastern rivals have played one of the most competitive rivalries in the WPIAL. Woodland Hills holds a slight edge over Penn Hills, 18-15. In the last nine meetings, the Wolverines have won five and the Indians have four victories. In those nine games, the average margin of victory has been just over 10 points. In the last three years, the margin of victory has been five, four and one point.

• While the rivalry has gone back and forth with few winning streaks of more than two games in the series, each team has enjoyed a six-game winning streak against the other. Woodland Hills won six consecutive games against Penn Hills from 1997-2002, while the Indians beat the Wolverines six in a row from 2003-2008.

• Penn Hills defeated Woodland Hills in Week 9 last season, 26-21. Julian Dugger threw two touchdowns and ran for one as the Indians clinched the 5A Northeast Conference title. Thirty-six years earlier, the Wolverines won the first meeting between the schools in 1987, 20-0.

Class 5A vs. 4A nonconference

Bethel Park (1-0) at Class 4A No. 3 Mars (1-0)

7 p.m. Friday, Mars Athletic Complex

Coaches: Phil Pekich, Bethel Park; Eric Kasperowicz, Mars

On the air: Video stream via PPV on TribHSSN.TribLive.com

Last week: Bethel Park 50, Seneca Valley 14; Mars 47, Boone (Fla.) 35

Players to watch: Tanner Pfeuffer, Bethel Park (Sr., 6-4, 200, QB); Luke Goodworth, Mars (Sr., 5-11, 180, QB/DB)

Team notes

Bethel Park: The Black Hawks flexed their muscles in the season opener with a road rout of Class 6A Seneca Valley. BP had two pick-sixes in the first quarter alone on their way to a 36-point triumph. Black Hawks senior quarterback Tanner Pfeuffer hit on 13 of 20 passes for 244 yards and three touchdown tosses, two to Ja Vaughn Moore. Pfeuffer also had a rushing touchdown while Moore rushed for 112 yards and a score.

Mars: The Fightin’ Planets enjoyed success in a different solar system as they traveled to Boone, Fla., and won by 12 points in the season opener. Mars senior quarterback Luke Goodworth was very valuable in the season opener, hitting on 10 of 15 passes for 365 yards for a sweet average of over 36 yards per completion. His prime target was junior wide receiver Gabe Hein, who caught nine passes for 330 yards and three scores.

Historic factoids

• This is the first meeting between Bethel Park and Mars on the football field.

• These are two of the top scoring offenses in the district after Week Zero. The Black Hawks are fifth with 50 points and the Fightin’ Planets are seventh with 47 points. The others are Thomas Jefferson (63), California (62), Monessen (59), Blackhawk (56) and New Castle (49).

• Bethel Park was able to overcome an injury to one of the top receivers in the district and enjoy offensive success in its first game. The Black Hawks might have to keep that formula for the rest of the season. Two-sport star Ryan Petras is sidelined after having surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder. Petras has committed to play both football and baseball at Princeton.

Class 4A vs. Class 3A nonconference

Class 4A No. 5 Thomas Jefferson (1-0) at Class 3A No. 1 Central Valley (0-1)

7 p.m. Friday, Sarge Alberts Stadium at Central Valley

Coaches: Bill Cherpak, Thomas Jefferson; Mark Lyons, Central Valley

Last week: Thomas Jefferson 63, Baldwin 12; Montour 24, Central Valley 14

Players to watch: Luke Kosko, Thomas Jefferson (Sr., 6-4, 205, QB); Jance Henry, Central Valley (Soph., 5-8, 195, RB)

Team notes

Thomas Jefferson: The Jaguars put their season opener on cruise control early against neighboring Baldwin in Week Zero, scoring 21 points in the first quarter and 35 more in the second quarter en route to a 51-point victory. Thomas Jefferson senior quarterback Luke Kosko only threw seven passes, completing six of them for 91 yards and two touchdowns, while Tyler Eber rushed for 89 yards and score two more touchdowns to highlight the TJ victory.

Central Valley: Following two years in Class 4A, the Warriors dropped down a classification and were the preseason Trib HSSN No. 1 team in Class 3A. They remain on top despite a loss to Montour in Week Zero by 10 points. Coming off a big freshman season in which he gained over 1,000 yards, Central Valley sophomore running back Jance Henry carried the ball 20 times for 106 yards with touchdown runs of 16 and 1 yard. Senior quarterback Steven Rutherford threw for 110 yards.

Historic factoids

• This is the seventh meeting between Thomas Jefferson and Central Valley with TJ holding the series lead at 4-2. The Warriors won the first two while the Jaguars have claimed victory in the most recent four games between district powers.

• Four of the six previous meetings have been high-profile playoff games. Central Valley beat Thomas Jefferson in the 3A semifinals in 2010 (42-24) and three years later in the 2013 final four (23-13). Two years ago, the Jaguars beat the Warriors in the 4A semifinals, 19-0. The one clash that was for district gold came in the 2015 WPIAL 3A championship game where Thomas Jefferson defeated Central Valley, 20-7. Brandon Pahanish, Zane Zandier and Quinton Hill scored TDs for TJ.

• These programs have combined for 15 WPIAL football championships with 14 of those titles coming in the last 20 years. Thomas Jefferson won gold in 1980, but under Bill Cherpak, the black and gold machine has won it all in 2004, ’06, ’07, ’08, 2015, ’16, ’17, ’19 and ‘20. Since formed in 2010 following the merger of Monaca and Center, Central Valley and their only football coach, Mark Lyons, have won district crowns in 2010, ’14, ’19, ‘20 and ‘21.

Class 2A nonconference

No. 1 Washington (1-0) at No. 2 Steel Valley (0-1)

7 p.m. Friday, Campbell Field in Munhall

Coaches: Mike Bosnic, Washington; Ray Braszo, Steel Valley

Last week: Washington 14, McGuffey 7; Clairton 30, Steel Valley 7

Players to watch: Tristan Reed, Washington (Jr., 6-4, 170, QB); Donald Barksdale, Steel Valley (Sr., 5-10, 172, RB/CB)

Team notes

Washington: The Little Prexies opened the season last week against a rival that they have closed out the regular season against for most of the past decade in former 2A Century Conference foe McGuffey. Junior quarterback Tristan Reed connected with junior Caleb Patton on a pair of first-half touchdown passes, one of 12 yards and the other of 85 yards. That proved to be enough as Wash High edged the Highlanders, 14-7. Reed threw for 115 yards and rushed for 58 yards.

Steel Valley: Following a WPIAL championship in 2022 and a district runner-up finish a year ago, the Ironmen began the season as the Class 2A preseason favorite. After losing to Clairton in Week Zero, Steel Valley is now No. 2 in the latest Trib HSSN rankings behind this week’s opponent, Washington. The Ironmen did not register an offensive point as their lone score came on a 38-yard fumble return for a touchdown by senior Donald Barksdale, who did not play in the second half due to injury but is expected to play against Washington.

Historic factoids

• This is the seventh meeting between these Class 2A powerhouses with Washington leading the series, 4-2.

• This is only the third time the Little Prexies and Ironmen have squared off in the regular season and the first time in 13 years. The two split those contests with Steel Valley winning in 2010, 48-13, and then Washington prevailing in 2011, 39-31.

• The first playoff game between the two was in 2000, with the Little Prexies winning, 26-18. Wash High also won a 2014 first round game, 34-7. The lone playoff win for the Ironmen came in a 2018 quarterfinals tilt, 39-7. These two squared off for gold in 2017 with Washington beating Steel Valley, 37-10.

Class 2A vs. A nonconference

Class A No. 5 Bishop Canevin (0-0) vs. Class 2A No. 5 Seton LaSalle (1-0)

7 p.m. Friday at Dormont Stadium

Coaches: Richard Johnson, Bishop Canevin; Tim Storino, Seton LaSalle

Last week: Bishop Canevin did not play; Seton LaSalle 23, North Catholic 12

Players to watch: Kole Olszewski, Bishop Canevin (Sr., 5-11, 190, QB); Logan King, Seton LaSalle (Sr., 5-9, 185, RB/DB)

Team notes

Bishop Canevin: This is the season opener for the Crusaders, who did not play a Week Zero game. Bishop Canevin is trying to reach the WPIAL championship game for a fourth straight year. The Crusaders won district gold in 2021, then were stunned in the 2022 Class A finals by Union before falling to Fort Cherry a year ago. Senior quarterback Kole Olszewski is coming off a big junior campaign that saw him throw for 2,180 yards and 36 touchdowns.

Seton LaSalle: The Rebels are trying to turn around a once-proud program on the 20th anniversary of their most recent football championship in 2004. It was a good start in 2024 for Seton LaSalle thanks to the running of senior back Logan King, who rushed for 175 yards and scored on TD runs of 10 and 34 yards in an 11-point victory over North Catholic. Senior quarterback Michael Pastirik threw for 75 yards and a touchdown for the Rebels.

Historic factoids

• This is the 41st meeting between these small catholic schools; however, it is the first time they have played each other in 15 years. Seton LaSalle won that game, 32-10, to improve to 28-12 against Bishop Canevin.

• The Rebels have won the last six meetings between the teams by outscoring the Crusaders, 138-36.

• The first meeting between these programs was 62 years ago with the Rebels blanking the Crusaders in the fall of 1962, 28-0. The two squared off every year from 1962-1999 with the exception of 1975 and 1976.

Tags: Bethel Park, Bishop Canevin, Central Catholic, Central Valley, Mars, Penn Hills, Pine-Richland, Seton La Salle, Steel Valley, Thomas Jefferson, Washington, Woodland Hills