2024 PIAA Class 1A Championship Preview: Bishop Guilfoyle (14-1) vs. Port Allegany (14-0)

Each year brings a new level of uniqueness when the Pennsylvania high school football community converges on Chapman Field at Cumberland Valley High School the first week of December for the PIAA state championships.

This year is no different.

Last year, four state champions returned to defend their titles. This year, there is only one, two-time defending Class 6A state champion St. Joseph’s Prep, which is looking to threepeat.

For the first time ever, there will be three Philadelphia Catholic League teams in the state finals: St Joe’s Prep (6A), Roman Catholic (5A) and Bonner Prendergast (4A). Last year, there were three programs that reached the state finals for the first time in school history. This year, that number has doubled to six, which includes District 9 1A champion Port Allegany, District 4 2A champion Troy, District 9 2A champion Central Clarion, District 3 4A champion Lampeter-Strasburg, District 12 4A titlist Bonner Prendergast and District 12 5A champion Roman Catholic.

Last year, eight of the 12 teams involved in the state championships were undefeated. This year, that’s been cut to five: Port Allegany (14-0),

Troy (15-0), Central Clarion (14-0), Northwestern Lehigh (15-0) and Lampeter-Strasburg (14-0). Of the 12 teams competing in the states this weekend, eight have never won a state title, and that includes three games that will crown a first-time state champion: Class 2A Troy-Central Clarion, 3A Avonworth-Northwestern Lehigh and the 4A game between Lampeter-Strasburg and Bonner Prendergast, along with 5A Roman Catholic and 1A Port Allegany.

Until this season, neither of the Class 2A finalists, Troy and Central Clarion, along with Roman Catholic and Lampeter-Strasburg, ever won a state playoff game.

While at Class 6A, nothing it seems impedes Philadelphia heavyweight St. Joseph’s Prep. The Hawks were considered a young team entering this season and have grown considerably as the year has progressed. St. Joe’s Prep will be making its ninth-straight championship appearance, going for its second threepeat in program history, sixth state title in seven years, and its ninth state title overall in the last 12 years. The Hawks top the list of large school state champions (8—two at 4A and six as a 6A) since the PIAA instituted the state high school playoff system in 1988. Since the 6A system was incorporated in 2016, St. Joe’s Prep has been involved in every Class 6A state championship.

Of the 12 teams playing in the state championship this weekend, for the first time in PIAA state championship history, District 12 leads all areas with three teams from the same league (Bonner-Prendergast, Roman Catholic and St. Joe’s Prep), followed by two teams each from District 7 (Avonworth, Pittsburgh Central Catholic), District 9 (Port Allegany, Central Clarion) and District 3 (Lampeter-Strasburg, Bishop McDevitt), and one each from District 4 (Troy), District 6 (Bishop Guilfoyle) and District 11 (Northwestern Lehigh).

Joseph Santoliquito is a hall of fame, award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito [twitter.com]. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball [twitter.com].

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Class 1A Thursday 1 p.m. at Cumberland Valley HS

(District 6) Bishop Guilfoyle (14-1) vs. (District 9) Port Allegany (14-0)

This is the first time here at Port Allegany. It’s the sixth time for Guilfoyle, which is 4-1 in state championship games and last won a Class 1A state championship in 2021 with a 21-14 decision over Redbank Valley. Port Allegany arrived here by romping last year’s 1A finalist and WPIAL champion Fort Cherry in a mercy-rule 46-8 victory. Junior tailback Aiden Bliss, who has rushed for 3,180 yards this season, which is No. 4 overall in the nation, led the way for the Gators. Allegany held Fort Cherry to a touchdown on 131 yards of total offense against a Fort Cherry team that averaged 40 points and 380 yards a game. The Gators’ defense put the clamps on Fort Cherry’s stellar junior quarterback Matt Sieg, holding him to 32 yards rushing and 57 yards passing.  In last year’s state semifinals, Sieg himself pounded out 250 yards—and he’s amassed over 10,000 yards of total offense in his three years at Fort Cherry. It shows how suffocating the Allegany defense was. Guilfoyle got here on a dominant 21-6 victory over Muncy. Marauders’ senior quarterback Chase Kissell, who has thrown for 3,336 yards this season, tossed a pair of touchdown passes, one for 70 yards to Hamilton Gates, in building a 21-0 lead, while tailback Taurean Consiglio rushed for 101 yards. Guilfoyle once threepeated as Class 1A state champions from 2014-16. The Marauders’ only state title loss came in 2019 to Farrell, 10-7, in overtime.