Chris Harlan stories, Page 93
Pine-Richland wide receiver Eli Jochem adds 1st Division I offerVideo
Pine-Richland’s Eli Jochem, one of the WPIAL’s top receivers, announced his first Division I offer Monday from Fordham. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound rising senior ranked third among WPIAL players last season in receptions (71) and receiving yards (1,065). He scored 14 touchdowns for Pine-Richland, the runner-up in WPIAL Class 6A. Fordham...
PIAA approves winter championship sites for next 4 seasons
Get your Hershey’s chocolate ready. The PIAA basketball and wrestling championships are staying at Giant Center for at least four more seasons. The PIAA board approved winter championship sites for the 2020-21 through 2023-24 seasons this week with no changes. Both the team and individual wrestling tournaments return to Giant...
PIAA approves kicking game, scrimmage options for sub-varsity football teams
Middle school, junior high and junior varsity football coaches can eliminate kickoffs and punts this season, or turn their games into scrimmages, if they choose. The PIAA board approved a plan Wednesday that provides flexibility for coaches looking to teach rather than compete. The proposal was adopted as a one-year...
Heavily recruited Peters Township safety Donovan McMillon commits to FloridaVideo
At this time last summer, Peters Township safety Donovan McMillon didn’t have a single Division I football offer. That changed in a hurry. As college coaches watched his junior film, McMillon’s stock rose as quickly as any recent WPIAL recruit, drawing offers from more than 50 schools. Now, it was...
2 WPIAL rising sophomores add basketball offers from MinnesotaVideo
Minnesota women’s basketball coach Lindsay Whalen, a former Olympian and WNBA star, is recruiting two of the WPIAL’s top rising sophomores. North Allegheny’s Jasmine Timmerson and Indiana’s Eve Fiala each added a Gophers offer Friday. The two are AAU teammates on the Western Pa. Bruins, who competed last weekend at...
Neighboring states delay fall sports, but PIAA says ‘our folks don’t want that’
Pennsylvania is surrounded on three sides by states that already have delayed the start of fall sports, a list New York joined late this week. But the PIAA isn’t taking cues from its neighbors. “We’re not following Maryland. We certainly are not following New Jersey,” PIAA executive director Bob Lombardi...
PIAA approves weight class reduction for wrestling from 14 to 13
PIAA wrestling is dropping weight. The PIAA board gave final approval Wednesday to a plan that reduces the number of weight classes from 14 to 13 starting next season. The vote was unanimous. The PIAA will maintain weight classes 106, 113, 120, 126, 132, 138, 145, 152 and 160 pounds....
PIAA moving forward with fall sports as scheduled
The PIAA won’t cancel or delay fall sports, for now. The board of directors met online Wednesday and agreed to keep the start dates as scheduled, including Aug. 10 for football’s heat acclimatization period. Some neighboring states already delayed their fall seasons, but the PIAA won’t follow their lead, PIAA...
2 WPIAL sophomores announce basketball offers from MarshallVideo
Two rising sophomores in WPIAL girls basketball received Division I offers from the same school Tuesday. Pine-Richland’s Kaili Doctor and North Catholic’s Dacia Lewandowski announced offers from Marshall hours apart. Both play AAU basketball with the Western Pa. Bruins, which competed last weekend at the Hoosier Heat event in Indianapolis....
Perry searching for new football coach after Rod Rutherford resigns
Perry football coach Rod Rutherford has resigned, leaving his alma mater searching for a replacement just weeks before the season starts. A former Pitt quarterback and City League star, Rutherford resigned earlier this month for personal reasons, said Karen Arnold, athletic director of Pittsburgh Public Schools. Rutherford couldn’t be reached...
Pine-Richland’s Miguel Jackson becomes 3rd WPIAL senior committed to LibertyVideo
Pine-Richland’s Miguel Jackson visited Liberty’s campus on Independence Day weekend and saw some fireworks on the drive home. The “oohs” and “aahs” came a few days later, once he called the school’s football coaches to commit. “They were excited and surprised,” said Jackson, who committed to Liberty on July 8,...
Pitt, Penn State make the cut as Gateway’s Derrick Davis narrows his college options
Pitt and Penn State both made the cut Sunday as Gateway football star Derrick Davis narrowed his college recruiting options. The rising senior announced a Top 7 on Twitter. Joining the Panthers and Nittany Lions on his list were Clemson, Georgia, LSU, Ohio State and Southern Cal. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound...
Avonworth tight end Trevor Faulkner commits to Air Force AcademyVideo
Avonworth rising senior Trevor Faulkner, who had more than a dozen Division I offers, committed Sunday to Air Force. A 6-foot-5, 225-pound tight end and defensive end, Faulkner announced his decision on Twitter. He also held FBS offers from Akron, Army and Liberty. The converted quarterback helped Avonworth win the...
Pitt commit Nahki Johnson announces offer from national champion LSUVideo
West Mifflin’s Nahki Johnson committed to Pitt last summer, but on Saturday night he announced an offer from the defending BCS national champion. “Extremely blessed and humble to say I got an offer from LSU,” the rising senior wrote on Twitter. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound defensive end committed to the Panthers...
Gateway’s Derrick Davis ready to narrow college football offers to Top 7Video
The WPIAL’s top football recruit is getting closer to a decision. Gateway’s Derrick Davis, a rising senior and heavily recruited four-star prospect, announced on Twitter that he’ll reveal his Top 7 schools Sunday. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound safety, linebacker and running back holds offers from nine of the first 10 teams...
A few more doors open for Black athletic directors as WPIAL tries to promote diversity
When Sto-Rox hired LaRoi Johnson as athletic director this summer, he used social media to thank those who had opened doors for him in his career. His list included friends, colleagues and mentors. “I’m happy for all of the people who helped me so much,” said Johnson, a first-time school...
Another neighboring state decides to delay high school football season
Another of Pennsylvania’s neighbors is delaying the start of high school football season. The director of the West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission — that state’s version of the PIAA — announced Friday that the first day of football practice there is postponed from Aug. 3 to Aug. 17. As...
Mt. Lebanon’s Ashleigh Connor adds 1st Division I basketball offerVideo
Mt. Lebanon’s Ashleigh Connor, one of the WPIAL’s top rising juniors, announced her first Division I basketball offer Friday from Xavier. The Musketeers offer came while Connor was competing at an AAU event in Indianapolis with the Western Pa. Bruins. A 5-foot-10 guard/forward, Connor averaged 22 points and six rebounds...
Should high school teams follow professional, college sports and test for covid-19?
Coronavirus testing is being used by professional and college teams to restart their seasons, so why not high school sports? Clairton football coach Wayne Wade is asking that question. The Bears have shut down their summer workouts after an asymptomatic player tested positive last week for coronavirus, Wade said. If...
Coronavirus pandemic could worsen WPIAL shortage of football officials
The WPIAL doesn’t have enough football officials, and the coronavirus pandemic could make the shortage worse this fall. At his final WPIAL meeting before retirement, longtime officials representative Bill Sinning warned the board last month there aren’t enough officials for every football team to play Friday nights. At least one...
Athletes not required to wear face masks during workouts, state says
Pennsylvania’s athletes are not required to wear a face mask during workouts or competition, according to guidance provided Friday by Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration. However, those athletes must wear a mask when not engaged in activity, according to state Heath Secretary Rachel Levine. The PIAA shared information from Levine to...
Return-to-football workouts expose those ‘slacking’ when schools closedVideo
Central Catholic’s campus was closed for three months, cutting off access to the football team’s weight room, but most players found ways to stay in shape. With this week’s temperature in the 90s, their fitness was tested. “There are people who were working out and people who were slacking,” said...
Face mask ‘gray area,’ county restrictions cause schools to cancel workouts
Must high school athletes wear face masks during workouts? Masks weren’t required earlier in the week, but some coaches and school administrators aren’t so sure after Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration made wearing them mandatory “when outdoors and unable to consistently maintain a distance of six feet from individuals who are...
Adam Kaufman resigns as Moon boys basketball coach ‘to be a dad’
The coronavirus pandemic forced Adam Kaufman to slow down, stay home and spend more time with his family. In his 14 years as a boys basketball coach at Bishop Canevin, Montour and Moon, Kaufman was always on the go, winning three WPIAL titles and a state championship. But while spending...
PIAA optimistic football season starts on time as some states delay their kickoffs
High school football season won’t start on time in neighboring New Jersey, but Pennsylvania has no plans to delay kickoff. “We’re not discussing pushing it back,” PIAA executive director Bob Lombardi said Wednesday. “We’re still cautiously optimistic about starting practice on time. We’re just going to take it day by...
