"Mr. High School Sports" - Who's In And Who's Out?
With the exception of a couple potentially significant games Saturday, Week 8 of the 2012 WPIAL football season is in the books, and several more teams have booked reservations for the district playoffs after Friday night.
Here's a breakdown of how Friday's games affect the postseason field of 16 in each classification:
CLASS AAAA (12 spots have now been claimed):
*North Allegheny clinched Northern Eight Conference championship with 55-7 win over Shaler.
*North Hills clinched playoff berth with 18-10 win over Pine-Richland. Pine-Richland is eliminated from playoff contention.
*Butler clinched playoff berth with 49-7 win over Fox Chapel.
*Mt. Lebanon clinched home-field advantage in First Round with 35-7 win over Penn Hills.
*Woodland Hills clinched playoff berth with 38-15 win over Peters Twp.
*Baldwin defeated Canon-McMillan, 31-7, to eliminate Canon-McMillan from playoff contention.
*Gateway clinched Foothills Conference championship with 42-0 win over Penn-Trafford.
*McKeesport clinched playoff berth with 20-6 win over Kiski Area. Kiski Area is eliminated from playoff contention.
*Latrobe defeated Connellsville, 21-14, to eliminate Connellsville from playoff contention.
CLASS AAA (11 spots have now been claimed):
*West Mifflin clinched home-field advantage in First Round with 35-7 win over Trinity.
*Elizabeth Forward clinched playoff berth with 34-6 win over Albert Gallatin.
*Thomas Jefferson defeated Uniontown, 49-8, to eliminate Uniontown from playoff contention.
*Belle Vernon defeated Laurel Highlands, 44-6, to eliminate Laurel Highlands from playoff contention.
*Central Valley clinched home-field advantage in First Round with 35-14 win over Ambridge.
*Blackhawk defeated Chartiers Valley, 48-25, to eliminate Chartiers Valley from playoff contention.
*New Castle defeated Moon, 48-21, to eliminate Moon from playoff contention.
*Knoch clinched playoff berth with 20-14 win over Indiana. Indiana is eliminated from playoff contention.
CLASS AA (13 spots have now been claimed):
*New Brighton defeated Riverside, 35-28, to eliminate Riverside from playoff contention.
*Steel Valley clinched playoff berth by virtue of South Fayette's 42-0 win over South Park.
*Keystone Oaks defeated McGuffey, 28-21, to eliminate McGuffey from playoff contention.
*Jeannette clinched home-field advantage in First Round with 38-7 win over Waynesburg.
*Greensburg C.C. clinched playoff berth with 14-12 win over Yough. Yough is eliminated from playoff contention.
CLASS A (9 spots have now been claimed):
*Clairton clinched Black Hills Conference championship with 41-0 win over Serra Catholic.
*Monessen clinched home-field advantage in First Round with 28-21 win over Chartiers-Houston. Chartiers-Houston is eliminated from playoff contention.
*Brentwood clinched playoff berth with 42-7 win over Bishop Canevin.
*Imani Christian defeated Ft. Cherry, 40-3, to eliminate Ft. Cherry from playoff contention.
*Sto-Rox clinched playoff berth with 43-0 win over Laurel. Laurel is eliminated from playoff contention.
*Union clinched playoff berth with 36-19 win over South Side Beaver. Shenango is eliminated from playoff contention by virtue of Union's win.
*Beth-Center clinched Tri-County South Conference championship with 54-6 win over Avella.
(The MSA Sports Network contributed to this post.)
(Follow me on Twitter @mpopchock.)