WPIAL Sportsmen + PSN WPIAL/City League Football Rankings

Week 0 of the 2021 WPIAL/City League high school football season is in the books.

As we first told you last week, Pittsburgh Sports Now is excited to be partnering up with one of the biggest voices of high school sports in the area and that’s WPIAL Sportsmen (@wpialsportsnews). Since 2016, WPIAL Sportsmen has been informing their readers on athletes in all sports and all grades throughout the WPIAL and The City League and this year, we’ll be sharing their opinions on Pittsburgh Sports Now.

On a weekly basis, the team at WPIAL Sportsmen will providing us with material such as their weekly rankings for all football classifications, as well as the Top 10 overall teams in Western Pennsylvania. After watching film of the weekend action, they’ll be naming their Top 5 Performers of the Week as well as giving us the Top 5 Friday or Saturday Matchups.

Here are the updated WPIAL Sportsmen/PSN Rankings following Week 0 results.

WPIAL 6A

1) Central Catholic– still has the team with best talent in the WPIAL even after a 12-6 loss to Imhotep Charter, one of the best teams in the state. The defense was lights out as usual and we have confidence that the offense will find a way to score 14-17 points in the remaining games. If they’re able to score 17 points, it will be hard to beat this team because the defense isn’t going to give up much this year.

2) Mt. Lebanon– Impressive, dominant performance against a talented Bethel Park team. The win was so impressive that we considered moving them up to the No. 1 spot. This team has the look of a special Bob Palko team.

3) North Allegheny– North Allegheny vs. Allderdice didn’t answer any questions for us. It always comes down to can North Allegheny develop a downfield passing attack. If they can, it will be a BIG year for the Tigers.

4) Seneca Valley– Tough loss against a really good 5A Moon team. We still like Seneca Valley in the 4th spot and think this team will continue to get better as the season progresses. They will be a team to reckon with at the end of the season.

5) Canon Mac– Handled their business and beat up on a bad 4A Trinity team. A loss would have been catastrophic. They have a chance to be in a lot of games because of their ability to run the ball with Ryan Angott, who is arguably the best running back in the WPIAL.

Dropped Out-  Baldwin

David Hague/PSN

WPIAL 5A

1) Gateway– Solid performance over Delaware Valley resulted into a BIG win to start the season. They have everything to compete for and win a championship.

2) Pine-Richland– Lost a tough back and forth game to Harrisburg, who is considered one of the best teams in the state. Pine Richland will still be a major player in 5A.

3) Woodland Hills– Strong performance in their opener beating Wayne Valley (NJ), 20-0. It is good for the WPIAL when Woodland Hill is good and they look to be strong this year.

4) Penn Hills– Beat up on Aliquippa in a scrimmage. The Duggar Brothers are going to make life miserable for defenses in the WPIAL. Next week they play Central Catholic.

5) Penn-Trafford– Strong performance against Norwin. They will always be well coached and a team with big-time playmakers. Cade Yacamelli is a superstar.

Courtesy of Cade Yacamelli

WPIAL 4A

1) Thomas Jefferson- They had a 3-way scrimmage with Perry and Clairton, where they lined up in a I-formation and practiced some basic running plays. Now it gets real this Friday when they play at Gateway.

2) McKeesport- Moved up from 4th to 2nd with a dominant performance over 6A Baldwin. There is a lot of young talent on this McKeesport team that are playing grown man football. Bobbie Boyd is ready to be the next PORT marquee name.

3) Belle Vernon- Scrimmaged West Allegheny and looked good. They get started with a big matchup on Friday at No. 5 Chartiers Valley.

4) Aliquippa– Remains in the top five even after an ugly scrimmage against Penn Hills. The QUIP will be a major contender in 4A.

5) Chartiers Valley- Beat West Mifflin, 21-14 Best test this week as they take on #3 Belle Vernon.

PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA – NOVEMBER 13: Vernon Redd (9) during the WPIAL Class 4-A Football Championship game at Newman Stadium on November 13, 2020 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Photo by Justin Berl)

WPIAL 3A

1) Central Valley– Ran right through Knoch, 62-0. The defending state champs are LOADED again.

2) North Catholic- Beat up Hopewell 52-0 in their Week 0 tuneup.

3) East Allegheny– Enters the top five after a dominant performance against Jeannette. When healthy, Mekai Mitchell is one of the best players in the state of Pennsylvania. He looked good out there and hopefully he can keep it going because he is a special talent and makes East Allegheny a different team.

4) Elizabeth Forward– Beat Ringgold, 12-0. Defense looked dominant but have to clean up some offensive things.

5) South Allegheny- got handled by Serra Catholic in convincing manner. Was a lackluster and disappointing effort, but we think this team has the talent to bounce back so they will remain in our Top 5 for now.

Dropped Out: Freeport

PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA – NOVEMBER 13: Sean FitzSimmons (50) blocked by DaVontay Brownfield (9) during the WPIAL Class 3-A Football Championship game at Newman Stadium on November 13, 2020 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Photo by Justin Berl)

WPIAL 2A

1) Sto-Rox– Sub-par performance against an Ohio team that wasn’t that great but the key is to find a way to win when you aren’t having a great night and Sto-Rox found a way to win and learn. They remain No. 1 because they are LOADED.

2) Serra Catholic– Pounded a good 3A team in South Allegheny, 24-0. Wasn’t their best performance but still looked dominant.

3) Washington– Dominant win against Monessen, 42-7. Outside of Clairton on the schedule, their really is nothing else to prevent them from going undefeated.

4) Beaver Falls– Lost to 4A Blackhawk, 31-20. Falls will be in the mix in 2A. Respect for going up two classifications to play Blackhawk in a real game.

5) Laurel- Blowout win over North East, 56-6. Next up- Shenango.

Dropped out: Seton-LaSalle

Courtesy of Josh Hough

WPIAL 1A

1) Rochester– Looked dominant as they made it look easy in their scrimmage. This team looks like a state title contender because they have big play guys all throughout their roster.

2) Clairton- Off this week, open up next week against Steel Valley.

3) California-

4) Springdale- Good performance and win against a scrappy and well-coached Deer Lakes team (20-12).

5) Greensburg C.C.- Got pounded by 5A Upper St. Clair, 38-0. They had no business playing 5A USC but got to respect the effort and willingness to play up.

Dropped out: West Greene

City League

1) Westinghouse- Blew the doors off of a decent Seton-LaSalle team, 38-0 and made it look easy. Dominated in all three phases and has that look of a special team.

2) Brashear– Got handled by a really strong team from Palotti, Maryland (33-6). Looked good to start the game then a long weather delay derailed their momentum.

3) Perry- They had a 3-way scrimmage with Thomas Jefferson and Clairton. The defense looked ferocious.

4) Allderdice- Bad matchup against 6A power North Allegheny, where they got hammered 47-14.

5) USO- Got handled by 4A Highlands, 27-0.

6) Carrick- Sloppy performance in their opener and went down 36-6 to Central Catholic (Ohio).

PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA : Westinghouse takes the field for the Pittsburgh City League Football Championship game at Cupples Stadium on November 14, 2020 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Photo by Jared Todhunter)

WPIAL/City League Top 10 Teams

1) Central Catholic
2) Mt. Lebanon
3) North Allegheny
4) Gateway
5) Pine-Richland
6) Woodland Hills
7) Thomas Jefferson
8) Westinghouse
9) Penn Hills
10) Penn Trafford