Steel-High, Southern Columbia among favorites in PIAA championships
The most anticipated of this week’s six PIAA football championship games might be the Class 4A rematch between Aliquippa (13-0) and Bishop McDevitt (12-1). The Quips won last year’s meeting 34-27.
So, who wins Thursday night when they meet again, this time at Cumberland Valley High School?
Bill Born, the retired New Jersey math teacher who posts power rankings on his website, likes the Quips by about 3 1/2 points.
Born’s power-rating formula includes margin-of-victory and strength of schedule.
| Born ratings | ||
| 1 | St. Joseph’s Prep (6A) | 119.1 |
| 2 | Harrisburg (6A) | 113.5 |
| 3 | Aliquippa (4A) | 113.4 |
| 4 | Bishop McDevitt (4A) | 110.0 |
| 5 | Pine-Richland (5A) | 109.5 |
| 6 | Westinghouse (2A) | 104.9 |
| 7 | Central Valley (4A) | 103.8 |
| 8 | Imhotep Charter (5A) | 103.3 |
| 9 | Seneca Valley (6A) | 102.6 |
| 10 | State College (6A) | 101.7 |
The top-rated team in Pennsylvania, regardless of class?
That’s St. Joseph’s Prep (11-1), with a 119.1 rating. Born favors the Hawks by 5.6 points in their Class 6A championship match against Harrisburg (11-2) Saturday. Prep lost to Mount Lebanon in last year’s 6A final, 35-17.
Prep is one of five teams making a return appearance to the championship round.
The only other defending champ is Southern Columbia (12-3), which is a 12.7-point underdog to unbeaten Westinghouse (14-0) in the Class 2A title game.
Imhotep Charter returns to the Class 5A game after losing to Penn Trafford 17-14 in overtime last year. The Panthers (10-2) are a 6.2-point underdog to Pine-Richland (12-3).
The biggest favorite, according to the Born numbers, is Belle Vernon in Class 3A. Born makes the Leopards (11-2) a 23.3-point favorite over Neumann-Goretti (11-3). Goretti knocked off Wyomissing 20-17 in the semifinals.
In Class 1A, Born makes Steel-High (13-1) a 15.4-point favorite over Union (12-3), the lowest-rated among the 12 teams playing for championship.
| Top LL ratings | ||
| 1 | Manheim Central (4A) | 94.0 |
| 2 | Wyomissing (3A) | 91.8 |
| 3 | Wilson (6A) | 90.2 |
| 4 | Manheim Township (6A) | 88.1 |
| 5 | Cocalico (5A) | 87.4 |
| 6 | Exeter (5A) | 83.1 |
| 7 | Lampeter-Strasburg (4A) | 81.9 |
| 8 | Hempfield (6A) | 77.1 |
| 9 | Solanco (5A) | 70.8 |
| 10 | Warwick (5A) | 64.7 |
Aliquippa was the Class 3A champ in 2018 and played in 4A the past several seasons.
It was slated to move up to Class 5A this season, due to the PIAA’s “Success Formula,” but successfully appealed that ruling, as did Wyomissing and several other schools.
Central Valley, which beat Wyomissing the past two years in the Class 3A final, moved up to 4A this season due to enrollment.
It was beaten by Aliquippa 34-7 in the state quarterfinals. The Quips won their regular season meeting 35-24.
Southern Columbia won the 2A title last year, beating Serra Catholic 62-25.
Harrisburg, the District 3 champ, has the second-highest power rating in the state (113.5), behind St. Joseph’s Prep. Harrisburg eliminated Wilson 32-21 in the opening round of districts.
Wyomissing (91.8) is third overall in 3A, behind Danville (95.4). The Spartans beat the Ironmen 21-19 on their home field in the state quarterfinals.
Manheim Central (94.0) has the highest rating among the 37 teams in the Lancaster-Lebanon League. Wyomissing is second.
Aliquippa and Westinghouse are the only unbeaten teams in the state.
