Six-classification football has arrived, causing major waves in the WPIAL
The landscape of Pennsylvania prep football has changed irrevocably, with the days of four classifications in the rear-view mirror.
Gone are long-standing rivalries between neighboring schools, replaced by long bus rides as part of a six-classification system that will work out its kinks this fall.
The PIAA expansion marks the first major change in football classifications since 1980, when a fourth class was added.
While the WPIAL Board of Directors was against going to six classifications, its member schools supported the new setup. At least, until coaches saw the reconfigured conferences and schedules.
“I can't say if it's good or it's bad. I don't think we know yet,” said West Allegheny coach Bob Palko, whose Indians won seven WPIAL titles in Class AAA but have moved up to 5A.
“Change is good sometimes. If this is what's best for Pennsylvania football, then that's great. But I think that's yet to be seen.
“We're looking forward to it, and we're excited about it but, at the same time, you're playing new teams. It's one of those things. There ain't nothing you can do to change it. You'd better embrace it, or you're going to get caught. We're just embracing it, trying to do the best we can do with it. At the end of the day, you're still playing football.”
WELCOME TO 6A
Where the inaugural Class AAAA season involved the 16 biggest schools in the WPIAL, the first 6A season features 14 WPIAL teams.
Their enrollments, which the PIAA bases on boys in grades 9 through 11, range from Penn Hills' 552 to North Allegheny's 1,071 but only three schools with 900 or more students.
By contrast, District 1 (suburban Philadelphia) has 33 teams in 6A, with three schools having more than 1,355 students and six with more than 900.
“I have no idea how this affected what's out east,” said Central Catholic coach Terry Totten, whose Vikings won the PIAA Class AAAA championship last fall. “The usual suspects will be there, I'm sure. Within my conference are two of the top 10 teams in Pennsylvania. That's a challenge.”
Those teams, North Allegheny and Pine-Richland, joined Central in winning every WPIAL Class AAAA crown since 2010.
“I'm excited. I like change,” Pine-Richland coach Eric Kasperowicz said. “I'm kind of a new-school mentality. I don't like the same old ways. I like change, and I like progress so I'm excited to see how this goes.”
The other 6A conference features Mt. Lebanon, which last won a WPIAL title in 2000, and Bethel Park (2008). The other five schools never won a WPIAL Class AAAA title.
“It's going to be a grind for anyone who gets there because the other side has it much easier,” Totten said. “It's going to be a dogfight each week. You can look at it two ways: It prepares you. But if they did make it easier for whoever wins, that's a good thing.
“What's strange for us is not keeping an eye on Woodland Hills all year and Upper St. Clair and McKeesport. That's different. I think that's probably across every level, with North Hills-North Allegheny and Upper St. Clair-Mt. Lebanon.”
LOST RIVALRIES
That is the story of the split in classifications: the rivalries that went by the wayside.
It ended the annual Week 9 rivalry games between Mt. Lebanon and Upper St. Clair, North Hills and North Allegheny, Penn Hills and Woodland Hills, Hempfield and Latrobe, West Allegheny and Montour, among others.
“It's very unfortunate,” said USC coach Jim Render, who also lost neighboring rival Bethel Park to 6A. “Those are teams that we should be playing every year. They're not that much bigger than we are, and there's a lot of tradition.”
It's a tradition Mike Melnyk quickly learned to appreciate after coming to Mt. Lebanon from Manheim Township in Lancaster.
“It's a little watered-down,” Melnyk said. “We enjoyed playing Upper St. Clair and Woodland Hills. Those were big games. I'm sure we'll create some new rivalries. Our goal is the same: to get to Heinz Field.”
SO LONG, PARKWAY
Speaking of lost rivalries, the PIAA expansion broke up one of the WPIAL's most powerful conferences, from top to bottom.
The Parkway provided the Class AAA champion every year from 2009-14, but Chartiers Valley, West Allegheny and Moon moved up to 5A; Ambridge, Blackhawk, Montour and New Castle are in 4A; and Central Valley and Hopewell stayed in 3A.
“I'm sick that the Parkway is broken up,” Montour coach Lou Cerro said. “We're not going to play West Allegheny, Moon, Central Valley, Chartiers Valley and Hopewell anymore, so you lose some major rivalries all within 20 miles of each other. We play them in everything else but football.”
To make matters worse, the new 4A Northwest Nine ranges from Blackhawk to Indiana, which will provide some interesting road trips.
Cerro wasn't in favor of the six-classification expansion and wonders whether those who supported it soon will reconsider.
“I think it's a good thing for the smaller schools,” Cerro said. “It's going to be interesting the next couple of years. I think everybody is going to evaluate two years from now. I think some guys from other parts of the state who wanted this may be having second thoughts.”
PLAYING UP
The preference of proximity played a major role in the decisions of Aliquippa, Apollo-Ridge and Seton-La Salle to play up in 3A.
For the Quips, who reached the WPIAL Class AA final eight consecutive years, it was about the opportunity to play in a Beaver County-centric conference with Beaver, Beaver Falls, Central Valley and Hopewell.
Seton-La Salle wanted to continue its cross-street rivalry with Keystone Oaks but ended up in the Allegheny Conference.
“We wanted to say with teams we're familiar with, closer to home,” Rebels coach Rob Carter said. “Then we end up in the Allegheny Conference along Route 28.”
The greater controversy, however, was the WPIAL decision to have a three-round playoff for Class 3A so it could play its final in the quadrupleheader at Heinz Field. Only the three conference champions, three runners-up and two wild-card teams will qualify for the WPIAL playoffs.
“With only eight of the 23 teams making the playoffs,” Carter said, “some good teams are going to be left out.”
Perhaps most noticeably in the Beaver Valley Conference.
“It really is going to hurt our league because we have four or five quality teams in our league,” Quips coach Mike Zmijanac said. “So someone's not going to the playoffs.”
A BETTER CHANCE
Many coaches believe the support for six classes came from the WPIAL's smaller schools, who wanted a more level playing field.
Considering Aliquippa and South Fayette had won seven of the past eight Class AA titles, their departures gives other schools a chance to win.
“I can see why they did the alignment like that. We had 30 kids and were playing teams with 80. In this sport, you need depth. That's probably the biggest difference I've seen. South Fayette had quality depth in their junior and senior classes,” Steel Valley coach Rod Steele said. “I don't think it's the distance, because we've traveled before. With realignments and not knowing anything about the teams, it's going to take heavy film watch. We're unfamiliar with our opponents, but breaking down film is what coaches do.”
As opposed to 3A, in which only eight of 23 teams will make the playoffs, 16 teams will qualify in each 2A (24) and A (25).
Difference is, the two smallest classes will hold their WPIAL championship games at Robert Morris Joe Walton Stadium.
Where 2A is considered wide open, Clairton is expected to be the favorite once again in Class A. The Bears have won eight WPIAL titles since 2006.
“We've always looked at it as a three-part season: conference, WPIAL and PIAA,” Clairton coach Wayne Wade said. “The second part isn't Heinz Field any more, but it's still a WPIAL championship. We've already started talking about it. It's a new venue, but it's where we want to play.”
Kevin Gorman is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at kgorman@tribweb.com or via Twitter @KGorman_Trib.
