Wilson on the outside looking in at District 3 playoff field; Twin Valley positioned for 1st berth
Halfway through the regular season eight Berks teams are in position to qualify for the District 3 football playoffs — but Wilson isn’t one of them.
After a loss to Manheim Central dropped them to 2-3 the Bulldogs sit at No. 13 in the district power ratings — five spots short of the eight-team cutoff line.
After a COVID-impacted season which saw District 3 slash its playoff fields by half or more, it is planning a return to normal, in terms of playoff participants: Eight will qualify in Class 6A, 14 in 5A, 10 in 4A, eight in 3A, four in 2A and two in 1A.
| Class | Qualifiers | Byes |
| 6A | 8 | |
| 5A | 14 | 2 |
| 4A | 10 | 6 |
| 3A | 8 | |
| 2A | 4 | |
| 1A | 2 |
The Class 3A field has been bumped up from six to eight since 2019.
Gov. Mifflin (4-0), in Class 5A, and Wyomissing (5-0), in 3A, are No. 1 in their respective classes according to the power ratings, which factor in winning percentage along with strength-of-schedule ratings.
If the playoffs were to start today, Twin Valley (4-1), Exeter (3-2) and Daniel Boone (3-2) would join Mifflin in the Class 5A field, Berks Catholic (3-1) would qualify in 4A and Hamburg (4-1) and Schuylkill Valley (2-3) would make it along with Wyomissing in 3A.
The playoffs, of course, don’t start until Week 11, or Nov. 5. There are a lot of games to be played, mostly within league play, where teams such as Gov. Mifflin, Exeter and Berks Catholic — in Section 1 of the Berks Football League — and Wyomissing, Twin Valley, Hamburg and Schuylkill Valley — in Section 2 — will knock each other off in the coming weeks.
The same goes for Section 1 of the Lancaster-Lebanon League, where only Hempfield (3-2), at No. 8, is currently above the cut line. Penn Manor (4-1), which plays Wilson (2-3) this week, is at No. 9, followed by Manheim Township (3-2) at No. 10, Cedar Crest (2-2) at No. 12 and the Bulldogs. It’ll be tough for more than two of those four teams to crack the field.
For the Bulldogs to make it they’ll likely have to win at least four of their five remaining games. Even a 6-4 finish won’t guarantee them a district playoff berth, though it should. In 2019, Cumberland Valley qualified as the No. 7 seed at 5-5; Chambersburg made it as the No. 8 seed at 6-4. In 2018 Hempfield finished 5-5 and qualified at No. 8; every other team had at least seven wins.
For a full look at the District 3 power ratings, click here:
The Bulldogs went 6-1 last season yet missed the four-team playoff field for the first time in 14 seasons.
Gov. Mifflin and Wyomissing have each qualified 15 straight seasons, and those streaks look pretty safe right now.
The Mustangs have mercy-ruled each of their five opponents and the Spartans have done it four times. They’re winning by 38.4 points and 32.8 points, respectively. (Their win over non-PIAA member Episcopal Academy does not count for the ratings.)
Mifflin will have some challengers in 5A. It is one of four unbeaten teams in that classification, including Manheim Central, which won 24-21 last week at Wilson. The Mustangs figure to earn one of the two first-round byes.
Twin Valley is No. 6 in 5A and in position to make its first district tournament. The Raiders edged Conrad Weiser in two overtimes last week. They have league games remaining against Fleetwood, Wyomissing, Schuylkill Valley and Hamburg, and a season-ending non-leaguer against Gettysburg.
Exeter is No. 10 in 5A, with tough league match-ups against Mifflin and Berks Catholic and a season-ender against Daniel Boone to come. The Eagles saw their district playoff streak snapped at nine last season.
Daniel Boone is No. 12 in 5A. The Blazers haven’t made districts since 2014. They play Berks Catholic this week and close with Mifflin and Exeter in Weeks 9 and 10.
Fleetwood (2-3) is 20th and will need a strong second half to qualify in 5A.
The Saints are No. 4 in Class 4A and still in position to earn an opening-round bye. Their loss to Malvern Prep last week was not applied to the power ratings; only games vs. PIAA competition count. Malvern Prep is not a PIAA member.
Berks Catholic saw its district playoff streak snapped at eight last year.
Conrad Weiser, one of just three Berks qualifiers last year, is currently at No. 11 in 4A, percentage points out of the qualifying zone.
It’s unlikely Wyomissing will see much push-back in 3A. It’s the only unbeaten team there and is two weeks removed from a 47-7 win over Hamburg, which is currently No. 3. Schuylkill Valley is No. 7.
The Hawks haven’t qualified for districts since 2015; the Panthers haven’t made it since 2014.
