The 2026 WPIAL football season is nearly upon us! Over the next few weeks we will be previewing all 18 conferences in preparation for kickoff on August 28. We are also thrilled to announce that the WPIAL Blitz Show will be back on the YouTube airwaves this season. Subscribe to the Sports Stream Premium channel and watch our live broadcasts on Monday nights or on replay any time.
This cycle will see a bit of a shakeup in 5A. Peters Twp and Pine-Richland have faced off in the last three 5A Championship Games. Three teams departed 5A in realignment – Kiski, Shaler, and South Fayette. Additionally, Baldwin moved to playing an independent schedule. The bigger story is who moved up from 4A – perennial powerhouse Thomas Jefferson, defending conference champions Trinity, West Allegheny with legendary coach Bob Palko back at the helm, and Connellsville re-joining the WPIAL from an independent schedule. The WPIAL has not yet announced the playoff structure for 5A but since the WPIAL Champion enters the state bracket in the semifinals, it is likely that 12 teams will once again make the playoffs.
The Big East Conference has been dominated by Woodland Hills the last few seasons. The last WPIAL title claimed by the conference was Penn-Trafford’s Championship in 2021. With realignment, Connellsville and Fox Chapel are added to the ranks. Only Woody High and Penn-Trafford made the postseason last year. The middle of this conference will provide opportunities for several teams looking to bounce back after down years. Be sure to keep tabs on our WPIAL Standings Page throughout the season and follow our WPIAL Twitter account @WPIAL_Blitz. Teams are listed in their predicted order of finish.
Penn-Trafford
2025 Result: 9-1, Lost to Moon in the quarterfinals
All-Time: 350-211-10 (73rd in wins, 18th in win%)
Championship Pedigree: 2021 WPIAL and State Champions
The Warriors only setback last season came in conference play against Woodland Hills. Their resume included a narrow Week 0 win over 6A semifinalist Norwin on a goal line stand and a 25-24 Week 2 victory over Moon. Penn-Trafford earned a first round bye but fell in the quarterfinals in a rematch with Moon in a 20-13 battle. This year, they return the two stars of their backfield and will look to challenge for the conference title on the strength of their running game. The Warriors return both Ben Grabowski (875 yards, 11 TDs) and
Cody Yacamelli (821 yards, 12 TDs) to their backfield. Cody is the younger brother of Cade Yacamelli, one of the stars of Penn-Trafford’s state title-winning team in 2021. Both players also attempted a few passes last year, and Penn-Trafford will be in need of finding a new starting quarterback. Leading receiver Nick Ponko (714 yards, 5 TDs) also returns, making Penn-Trafford the most experienced team in the Big East and the favorites to unseat Woodland Hills atop the conference.
Woodland Hills
2025 Result: 8-2, Big East Conference Champions, lost in quarterfinals to Upper St Clair
All-Time: 302-153-0 (94th in wins, 6th in win%)
Championship Pedigree: 5 WPIAL Championships (1996, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2009)
The Wolverines have won back-to-back conference titles but unfortunately went one-and-done in the playoffs each of the last two seasons. Until falling to Upper St Clair in a shootout in the playoffs, Woody High’s only losses last year came against 6A opponents. They graduated a large senior class with 17 players, including numerous stars at the skill positions and the school record-setter at quarterback. Junior QB Jaron McKinney threw for 104 yards in backup duty and may step into the starting role. The Wolverines had their top 3 receivers and top 2 rushers graduate, leaving WR Malik McCloud 196 yards, 4 TDs as the top returning skill position player. In the backfield, both Elijah McGuire (165 yards, 2 TDs), and DJ Dutrieuille (150 yards, 2 TDs) will see increased roles this year. McGuire averaged 8.7 yards per carry in limited work and looks set to make a splash in 2026.
Gateway
2025 Result: 3-7, missed playoffs
All-Time: 467-245-13 (36th in wins, 9th in win%)
Championship Pedigree: 7 WPIAL Championships (1969, 1972, 1974(t), 1985(t), 1986, 2017, 2019)
The Gators were an absolute force in 5A at the beginning of the six classification era, reaching the semifinals in five straight seasons and winning two WPIAL titles. However, they missed the playoffs last two years on tiebreakers after three straight one-and-done postseasons. Gateway had a young roster last season and return a number of experienced players that should enable them to compete for the playoffs this year. Rising junior Elvis Koutsakis started the year at QB but saw his season cut short by injury. Koutsakis did throw for 1577 yards, 14 TDs two years ago as a freshman. In his place, Gateway turned to Freshman Mayson Mitchell who threw for 2042 yards and 20 TDs. Leading rusher Julian Dancear (507 yards, 3 TDs) returns to add some stability in the backfield for the Gators. Gateway’s top 2 receivers graduated and the top returning target is Jayden Stammer (378 yards, 3 TDs). Gateway’s biggest issue last season was on defense where they allowed over 33 points per game, the fifth-most in 5A.
Franklin Regional
2025 Result: 1-9, missed playoffs
All-Time: 333-382-17 (82nd in wins, 77th in win%)
Championship Pedigree: 2005 WPIAL and PIAA Champions
The Panthers have made the playoffs in 20 of the last 22 years. Before last year’s 1-9 campaign where they failed to win a conference game, their the only miss was in the truncated 2020 season. Franklin Regional has a lot to fix on both sides of the ball heading into this season. They were the second-lowest scoring team in 5A (just 13 points per game) and allowed the third-most points (nearly 34 per game). But the season wasn’t as bad as the record may have indicated – they had three one-score losses to Latrobe, Gateway, and Kiski. The Panthers beat Fox Chapel by double digits who is now a conference foe. Juniors Dominic Devola (588 yards, 4 TDs) and Jake Picks (139 yards, 1 TD) along with rising sophomore Brock Bowser (114 yards, 1 TD) all spent time at quarterback last year. The top three rushers all return for the Panthers, led by Jet Taylor (692 yards, 6 TDs) and the aforementioned Devola (268 yards, 1 TD). Franklin Regional also gets back their top two receivers in Tyrone Leonard (142 yards, 1 TD) and Tommy Verruggio (141 yards, 1 TD). The team built experience last year and has nearly their entire lineup returning and now must turn that experience into victories.
Latrobe
2025 Result: 2-8, missed playoffs
All-Time: 482-570-38 (29th in wins, 80th in win%)
Championship Pedigree: 1968 WPIAL Champions
In 2022 Latrobe won their first playoff game since 1968 by defeating Highlands in overtime. Latrobe made three straight playoff appearances before coming up short last year. The 2025 campaign featured a number of close games including a 3OT thriller against Plum, a 6-point win over Franklin Regional, and 3-point losses to Armstrong and Gateway. Those two losses, by a combined 6 points, were all that kept Latrobe from the playoffs. Quarterback Dom Scarton (842 yards, 3 TDs) returns at the helm of the Wildcats offense. Last season, Latrobe spread the workload around between five different running backs and three will return this year. The most productive was junior AJ Yeboah (340 yards, 4 TDs) who will be joined by senior Ty Wisniewski (150 yards) and sophomore Dante Durigon (172 yards, 1 TD). Latrobe’s top two receivers graduated, leaving senior Eli Meeder (144 yards) as the top returning target.
Connellsville
2025 Result: 2-8 (playing as independent)
All-Time: 367-583-59 (69th in wins, 110th in win%)
Championship Pedigree: 1991 WPIAL AAAA Champions
Connellsville re-joins the WPIAL after playing for two seasons as an independent. The Falcons did play a Week 0 game against Latrobe last year which they won 28-23. Connellsville also defeated Fayette County rivals Uniontown in the Coal Bucket Rivalry game. Now they are back in the WPIAL looking for their first playoff appearance since 2014. The Falcons were a senior-lead team last year. At quarterback both junior Cooper Wilson or sophomore Jeffrey Nicholson saw snaps as backups last year. Three of their top four rushers graduated, leaving just Linkon Keller (214 yards, 2 TDs) in the backfield. Keller was also the second-leading receiver with 194 yards and 2 TDs. Additionally, WR Rocco Farrell (133 yards, 1 TD) will return for his senior season.
Fox Chapel
2025 Result: 3-7, missed playoffs
All-Time: 231-398-8 (107th in wins, 113th in win%)
Championship Pedigree: Never won a WPIAL title
Fox Chapel’s program has slowly been on the turn-around. After consecutive winless seasons they won 2 games in 2024 and topped that with a 3-win campaign in 2025. Now they move from the Northeast Conference to the Big East Conference. Unfortunately for Fox Chapel they were a very senior-heavy team last season and will need to replace their quarterback, top three rushers, and top three receivers. Fox Chapel was the 5th-lowest scoring team in 5A last year (16 points per game) and had the second-worst defense (34.3 points per game). They will have an uphill battle this season in a conference where every team boasts returning starters.
