2024 PIAA Class 5A Championship Preview: Bishop McDevitt (13-2) vs. Roman Catholic (11-4)

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 5A Friday at 7 p.m. at Cumberland Valley HS

(D-3) Bishop McDevitt (13-2) vs. (D-12) Roman Catholic (11-4)

This matchup is like an old, grainy black-and-white western movie. On one side is Bishop McDevitt’s rocket arm Kentucky-bound senior quarterback Stone Saunders. On the other, Roman Catholic’s highly recruited Semaj Beals, who completed 24 of 36 for 309 yards and four touchdowns in the Cahillites’ thorough 41-17 state semifinal victory over West Chester Rustin—putting Roman in the state finals for the first time in program history. Saunders owns a career state-record 202 touchdown passes, though he was hardly used in McDevitt’s 28-14 victory over Pine-Richland in the other semifinal game. He completed just five passes for 131 yards. The Crusaders relied on junior tailback Nazir Jones-Davis, who carried 29 times for 230 yards. This is a Crusaders’ team that is on a redemption mission. They won the 4A state championship over the legendary Aliquippa program, 41-18, in 2022, and with high expectations to repeat last year, they were upset in double overtime by Dallas, 26-23. Roman, on the other hand, never won a state playoff game prior to this season, always running into the District 12 5A stumbling Imhotep Charter. Under Beals, the Cahillites run a fast-tempo offense that has caused problems for opposing defenses all season. Roman has also faced a tougher schedule, playing three state-caliber championship teams in St. Joe’s Prep, La Salle, and Bonner Prendergast—two of which are in the state finals. Will McDevitt be able to slow down Beals and Roman? Can Roman hold down Jones-Davis and keep a lid on Saunders?