Chris Harlan stories

Ryan Cecchini has tried some unique practice techniques in his 15 seasons at Avella, but he says that’s life as a small-school coach. “Sometimes we’ll do a half-a-line scrimmage,” Cecchini said. “We’ll go from the center over. And then only half the defense, and we’ll scrimmage each other that way....

WPIAL football rankings Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Central Catholic, 2-1, 1 2. North Allegheny, 3-0, 2 3. Hempfield, 3-0, 3 4. Norwin, 2-1, 5 5. Seneca Valley, 1-2, 4 Out: none Class 5A 1. Pine-Richland, 2-1, 1 2. Peters Township, 3-0, 2 3. Upper St. Clair, 3-0,...

No touchdown could ease the sorrow Harrison Kolling and his teammates felt for their grieving quarterbacks coach, but the Thomas Jefferson sophomore was adamant that he wanted to win this one for him. “I just did it for Daws,” said Kolling, who pushed across the goal line for a go-ahead...

Two WPIAL football teams got a call from the hall. Central Catholic and Woodland Hills each has a former player enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, a distinction that earned them an invite to play one another Saturday in Canton, Ohio. They’ll meet at 3:30 p.m. as part...

Shady Side Academy is standing behind its decision to call off a football game this week despite possible WPIAL repercussions. A day after announcing that the team was short on players and would forfeit its Week 2 nonconference game at Clairton, the school reaffirmed its stance Thursday, citing an “unwavering...

Kemon Spell’s coach describes him as a finely tuned Ferrari, a fitting analogy since the McKeesport running back goes faster than most. But when there’s an issue with your Ferrari, you don’t dare drive it until it’s fixed. “You’re not dealing with a Jeep Wrangler,” McKeesport coach Matt Miller said....

Citing “an extraordinary rash of significant injuries,” Shady Side Academy has canceled this week’s football game against Clairton. The school on Wednesday announced plans to forfeit, saying nearly 20 of the team’s 40 players were sidelined, “leaving the program unable to field a competitive roster safely.” The WPIAL will consider...

Lincoln Park transfer Josh Pratt, one of the state’s top basketball players, is fully eligible for his senior season following a WPIAL hearing Tuesday. A hearing panel granted Pratt playoff eligibility, finding the former Aliquippa star qualified for a postseason waiver under PIAA rules, WPIAL executive director Scott Seltzer said....

James “Booboo” Armstrong isn’t one of Hopewell’s team captains this season, but that’s only because the sophomore quarterback declined the honor. He had the votes. “I called him into my office and said, ‘Look, Booboo, you were voted a captain,’ and he got this big smile on his face,” Hopewell...

WPIAL football rankings Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Central Catholic, 1-1, 1 2. North Allegheny, 2-0, 2 3. Hempfield, 2-0, 3 4. Seneca Valley, 1-1, NR 5. Norwin, 1-1, NR Out: Canon-McMillan (0-2, 4), Mt. Lebanon (0-2, 5) Class 5A 1. Pine-Richland, 1-1, 1 2. Peters Township, 2-0,...

If any game perfectly fits Central Catholic’s Roman Thompson, this three-hour battle with Pine-Richland was surely the one. Ruthlessly physical for all four quarters, a kicker was hurt on the first play, a top lineman was helped off the field later and countless other players got banged up Friday night,...

Three-time state champion Mike Warfield is back coaching Aliquippa after a one-year hiatus and ready for his first game in 20 months following a surprising decision last summer to step away. What brought him back? “I missed it,” Warfield said after a preseason practice at the school’s Heinz Field. “Not...

Most WPIAL football teams hope Central Catholic doesn’t appear on their nonconference schedule, but Pine-Richland isn’t one of them. The Rams, in fact, have defeated Central Catholic three years in a row. The big-school rivals meet again at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Carnegie Mellon for one of the most anticipated...

Bishop Canevin junior quarterback Brady Wagner, ruled ineligible by the WPIAL and PIAA, can play at least for the next two weeks, a federal judge ruled Tuesday. U.S. District Judge Marilyn Horan granted a request for a temporary restraining order against the PIAA that allows Wagner to compete in the...

Bethel Park’s Evan Devine led all WPIAL passers in Week Zero with 359 yards, a remarkable feat considering the quarterback was off playing golf at this time last year. Devine had given up football and joined the golf team, partly because of a nagging issue with his throwing shoulder, he...

WPIAL football rankings Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Central Catholic, 0-1, 1 2. North Allegheny, 1-0, 2 3. Hempfield, 1-0, 5 4. Canon-McMillan, 0-1, 4 5. Mt. Lebanon, 0-1, 3 Out: none Class 5A 1. Pine-Richland, 1-0, 1 2. Peters Township, 1-0, 2 3. Woodland Hills, 0-1, 3...

Clairton’s Taris Wooding made a turning grab at the goal line on a 19-yard catch that’ll go down as the first touchdown scored at newly named Tyler Boyd Stadium. Even Boyd liked the effort. “It was kind of underthrown, and he had to come back for it,” said the Bears...

Two big-school powerhouses representing Pittsburgh and Philadelphia will meet at the Wolvarena as part of a multi-game Week Zero event at Woodland Hills’ stadium. The highlight of the five-game schedule is a matchup of La Salle College and Central Catholic at 8 p.m. Friday in Turtle Creek. Both are highly...

Clairton has officially renamed its football stadium in honor of Bears great Tyler Boyd, so it’s fitting that the first game played there is between two teams with WPIAL title hopes. Remember, Boyd won four WPIAL and four state championships in his high school days. Imani Christian visits Clairton in...

TribLive HSSN will break down the top players at one position per day until Week Zero. Here is a look at the top coaching changes for the 2025 season. 1. Mike Warfield Aliquippa Warfield is back. The Aliquippa grad stepped away as coach before last season saying he was taking...

TribLive HSSN will break down the top players at one position per day until Week Zero. Here is a look at the top kickers and punters for the 2025 season. 1. Harran Zureikat Fox Chapel Senior, 6-2, 185 Zureikat is the top kicker in the country and a Georgia commit....

Editor’s note: Trib HSSN will publish team-by-team previews for one conference per day until the start of the high school football season Friday. Due to production schedule conflicts, the Serra Catholic preview will be published later this week. Rod Steele gave up coaching last winter, but a job opening at...

TribLive HSSN will break down the top players at one position per day until Week Zero. Here is a look at the top safeties for the 2025 season. 1. Jay Timmons Pine-Richland Senior, 5-11, 185 Timmons is a big play source for the WPIAL Class 5A champions on both sides...

Pine-Richland will host the WPIAL Class 4A and 6A football championship games this fall, with the four other finals played at Acrisure Stadium, the league announced Tuesday. The WPIAL in recent years had used Norwin as its alternate site for football championships, but that stadium is under renovation and unavailable....

Nationally ranked wide receiver Khalil Taylor will be catching passes for Pine-Richland this fall, but the recent transfer can’t help the Rams win a WPIAL or PIAA football title. The WPIAL board on Monday granted Taylor eligibility for the upcoming regular season based on a review of his transfer paperwork,...