Mike White: Hey, happy Thanksgiving everyone. What's going on?? Well, four WPIAL finals are complete. Two are this Saturday. State playoffs start for three WPIAL teams this weekend. And hey, hoops are just around the corner. So, let's go.
Rich: What is the deal with the WPIAL games being at 1 and 6? seems like a lot of time in between if you wanted to catch both.
Mike White: They are clearing the stadium after the first game. That's why. There isn't sufficient locker room space for four teams. So they have to clear out the place before next two teams come in. As for tickets, they are $10. I've been told anyone who really wants to sit there in the stadium after the first game, they can. But if you leave and come back, you have to have another ticket.
Mike White: By the way, and a lot of people don't know this. Writing a little about it in tomorrow's paper. But MSA Sports will live stream video from Saturday's games. Free. Just go to www.msasports.net
The games will NOT be on television. But with MSA you can still see them.
Mike Whites Dog Groomer: Do you ever remember such spectacular weather for the Heinz Field games? What a great day to spend outside in late November!
Mike White: One of the best ever. It seems weather in recent years was bad. I remember some sunny days, but never temperatures around 70.
Dallas: can neshannock match steel valleys speed. Never seen steel valley but i know they are very talented and lots of speed.
Mike White: No, Neshannock can't match Steel Valley's speed overall, but Neshannock has some playmakers, too. Like Daniel Welker. And don't forget Frank The Tank.
I don't ever remember a team heading into the finals that has had mercy rule in every game. That's what Steel Valley has done. This isn't to take anything away from Steel Valley, but they haven't really played anyone. 2A is not very deep with talented teams. Obviously, they are really, really good. But how good??? Neshannock's defense has played really well, but they haven't seen anything like Steel Valley. But something tells me, Neshannock will play with them. But my pick is Steel Valley.
Mike Whites Dog Groomer: The first two games Friday were great. It's a shame it was a Friday work day because a lot of people missed some great football! Unfortunately the last two were snoozefests. Do you think the WPIAL was secretly disappointed that North Allegheny (or for that matter Phil Jurkovec) weren't there to challenge Central? And similarly dissapointed that South Fayette couldn't give everybody the TJ-SF matchup they were hoping for? I feel like those matchups would have been MUCH better than what we were forced to sit through.
Mike White: Oh, I don't know about that. Seneca Valley had a huge student turnout. Yes, South Fayette-TJ would have been interesting but I think TJ still would've rolled. Too good. NA might have given Central better game, but I don't think anyone beats Central.
Mike White: What WPIAL might have hoped more than anything is Armstrong to make it to finals with Zane. I think he would've sold some tickets. That said, the games still drew 17,500. Not great, but better than year before.
HS Football Fan: Some big players coming in the future would like to see Pitt go after some
Mike White: I'm sure they will.
Douglas J: What are your thoughts on the McKeesport community having a petition calling for a rematch or Palko apologize for paying off the refs? Pretty obvious roughing the kicker call if you ask me.
Mike White: Please. Stop with the stupid stuff.
Mike White: Yes, McKeesport got two tough calls. I think the roughing the kicker call was legit, though. The defensive holding was hard to take. But a question, why was McKeesport rushing so hard with the kick??? It was quite obvious by a kick earlier that West Allegheny's Opsatnik couldn't make a 50-yarder. No way. Not that day. Should've just jumped, but not rush him.
Guest: Are you still going with Claritin over Jeannette? how would you say Lamont Wade compares to all the great players you have seen. Will you have his season and career stats after the game? Seeing if my question went through about Clairton over Jeanette. Is that who you have? Do you think Lamont Wade is the best to ever play there? Will you have his season and career stats?
Mike White: Yes I'll take Clairton over Jeannette. Noah Hamlin says he will play. Didn't play last week in semis. Wade is amazing. I know it wasn't major surgery, but he had a little surgery on meniscus and comes back 11 days later and runs for 225 and then 235 this weekend. Yes he's very good. But a kid named Tyler Boyd was pretty darn good there, too. His stats will be in paper Fab 22 later this week.
Mike Whites Dog Groomer: How do you think TJ matches up with Erie Prep this year?
Mike White: Much better than last year and Erie Prep beat TJ 28-21 last year. TJ is really, really good. Problem is Erie Prep is really, really good. I know Bill Cherpak hates playing Prep. Same as he would if he had to play Central. Believes Prep has an unfair advantage getting kids from everywhere, even out of state sometimes. Prep is doing nothing wrong. It's the rules. Doesn't mean you have to like the rules, though.
Jeff: Mike, What an epic game between McKeesport and West Allegheny and credit to Bob Palko for some gutsy play calling and an unreal effort by the Tigers to come back and almost capture the title ......its what HS Football should be
Mike White: One of the best championship games ever probably. Palko went for two. I don't know if that's gutsy as much as just sensible. He knew his team couldn't stop McKeesport from 10 yards away. By the way, what a horse Ray Zellars is for McKeesport. If he'd have played all season, I think he'd be Fab 22. Missed first eight games.
Rick: What are your unbiased opinions of West A's and TJ's opppnets this week, keys to the game and predictions?
Mike White: I just talked about Prep. They have few high-end D-1 kids. Some reason, I'll go with TJ this year. I think West A rolls over Meadville. Meadville has Journey Brown, who ran for over 700 yards in a game last year and has more than 6,800 for career. But West A is better.
Mike Whites Dog Groomer: I agree - I think Armstrong would've sold some tickets. There was a lot of buzz around Zane. Something interesting I noticed was it seemed that the "road team" side drew better in most matchups. Probably because those fan bases were excited about the Heinz experience. For Central, TJ, West A, Quip - it's like been there done that. Seneca, New Castle, McKeesport & BF had some great fan turnout - my dad and I sat on that side the whole day and enjoyed every minute of it
Mike White: Yes, the teams that make it for the first time in a while always draw better. Armstrong would've brought a ton.
Guy On Computer: Not sure why I'm surprised anymore at what Lamont Wade does, but he did it again. Close game and he runs for a TD and returns a pick for a TD, game over. Nobody is ever a guarantee but I hope to watch this kid for years to come.
Mike White: We already knew he was good. But what's he doing after that little knee surgery is, to me, unbelievable. College decision time in mid December for him.
Jeff: Mike how does Ligonier Valley end up in the East Bracket of 2 A ? Looking forward to the State Playoffs to see if Steel Valley can go all the way or maybe this is Neshanock's year ?
Mike White: PIAA changed all brackets a number of years ago. There is no more true East-West brackets. Bishop Guilfoyle is from Altoona and they play through the east in Class 1A. That's why you sometimes see a championship game with two Philly teams. I hate it. But it's all about an unequal number of teams in some classes in east and west.
Raider Fan: Hello, why doesn't the WPIAL do something about CC and teams like Lincoln Park? Like you said earlier no one would give them a game. It's not fair to school teams it's too bad for teams like SV & Penn Trafford last year that play together since pee wee then face AAU team in finals
Mike White: What can WPIAL do?? It's the way it is. Central is doing nothing wrong. Kids are going there from wherever. What are they supposed to do? Not allow them to come? Lot of good people involved at Central also.
Lincoln Park gets kids from all over also.
WPIAL has had many hearings when they think athletic intent is involved. But unless you have some kind of evidence or smoking gun, it's hard to prove. Complaint from coaches is it's not an even playing field. And they're right because they have geographical boundaries at public schools. But it is not going to change. It's the same in many other states.
Jeff: Mike I hear Woodland Hills has a coach lined up and news could be coming soon .......what big shoes to fill replacing George Novak .....True Gentleman - Class Act - Great Coach and unfortunately never won a State Title but has championed many great players who would have normally never had a chance in life which is maybe more of a testimony
Mike White: George will be missed a ton. He's what is right about coaching and high school sports. Believe me, that's not an easy place to coach.
As far as new coach, watch for Kevin Murray. Assistant now and principal at the school. I'm sure they will open to applicants, but he might be one of the top candidates.
TJjaguarHockey: Loved the show yesterday. Definitely feels like shorts weather around Jefferson Hills. Gonna be a tough game this Friday.
Mike White: That Brian Batko. A funny, funny man.
Rich: It seems like in every article you find a way to mention that the Catholic schools can draw from everywhere, any reason you are stating that more clearly now?
Mike White: No. It is not brought up in every article. Beg to differ on that. When an article is about a coach complaining, it is brought up. Because that's what their complaint is. But really, this is an old, old, old issue. Been complaints for years. Just more so now and Philly Catholic schools and charter schools have brought out even more complaints. Transferring over there is ridiculous, but that governing body over there really doesn't seem to care much about it.
Rick: I agree that West A overall is better than Meadville but they had a tough time vs the port and Meadville runs a similar offense with better, faster and bigger RB's.
Mike White: Good. Then should be good game.
Rick: Cathedral Prep might be without their best O lineman which is their Left Tackle who is a big time D1 recruit and their starting RB. Their starters have also played one half in 3 or 4 weeks which could hurt them. Prep is def the better team but has a lot going against them this week.
Mike White: Interesting. I just think TJ is better than last year. I know Prep is very good. Mike Mischler has done great job there.
Guest: Both games this weekend should be well worth the price of admission. What are your thoughts on both games and it's pretty amazing the success all four teams have had over the last few years, especially Neshannock, they have really made a name for themselves.
Mike White: Don't need to document success of Jeannette and Clairton. Been well-documented. Steel Valley has been good past few years. I think them staying in "new" 2A has helped. If it was old 2A, they would've had to still deal with Beaver Falls, Aliquippa and the likes. Not to take anything away from them, though. Plus having Paris Ford transfer in this year doesn't hurt. Put them on a different level.
Neshannock is a great story. Never won a playoff game until Fred Mozzocio took over in 2012. One of the great turnarounds in WPIAL in recent history.
Guest: with Lebo losing a number of starters on both sides of the ball, where do you think they stack up in 2017, any players to watch for for the Blue devils?
Mike White: Off top of my head, I don't know who they have back. I know they lose a lot of skill like Harvey and Young. But that conference isn't exactly strong. They should be fine.
Raider Fan: What the WPIAL can do is not allow them to be eligible in post season. CC should play national schedule like their game in week zero. I have nothing against players and coaches CC is great school & players get lots of exposure for college. It's a great place to go but it's not level playing field not fair.
Mike White: That makes no sense. If they are in WPIAL, they will be in postseason. If you're talking about a separate league for Catholic/private/charter schools, that's something different. But IT AIN'T GOING TO HAPPEN.
Mike Whites Dog Groomer: Thanks for the heads up on MSA livestream this weekend. At least those kids can get some exposure. It's a shame Root or some other channel wouldn't air those games though
Mike White: Please remember, it costs a lot of money to air those games, especially live.
Rich: I will admit I went to Central and have defended them about financial aid and "scholarships" for a while, but I am really being naive? Is there any solid proof out there about what financial aid might look like?
Mike White: No. You're not going to get them to release financial aid records.
Quad North Fan: Regarding the private school issue - the one thing that the WPIAL could do that would SOLVE the problem is to let school schedule their own games and institute a points based system to get in the playoffs (like in D1 and D3). AD's need to get on board. Then, none of these teams would even have to schedule Central or Lincoln Park. Of Central wants to go and play a national schedule (maybe) like IMG and Gorman, go for it. If you get enough points, then come back and play in the playoffs. The WPIAL is enabling this in that way.
Mike White: Not going to happen. You're either in the WPIAL or not.
Rick: I cant wait to watch Wade win a couple B1G titles at Penn State!!!
Mike White: We'll see. I have no inkling what he will choose. Could come down to an old Pitt-Penn State battle. Other three finalists are WVU, Tenn and UCLA. No way he goes to UCLA. He seems to have some liking for Tennessee for some reason. Is WVU the sleeper?? I have no inside info, but if you made me choose, I'd say either Pitt or PSU.
Mike Whites Dog Groomer: Great chat today Mike - hate to see us get caught up in the public/private debate when we could be talking about the fantastic football teams that won last week. How about this question...how many state titles do you think the WPIAL could realistically bring home in football this year? I have to say I'd be disappointed with less than 3 myself!
Mike White: Some really good teams in Eastern Pa. I'd say three at the max.
Quad North Fan: Is Altoona in the WPIAL or not? Same question for McDowell a few years ago. I don't think its quite so simple and cut and dried. Its on the AD's tho. They need to have a backbone and make things change if the coaches really want change. Problem will be that next year, PR or NA or somebody will beat PCC and the problem will go to the back burner for a few years. Just my $0.02.
Mike White: Altoona in for football only. Used to be the same with McDowell. But McDowell no longer in WPIAL
Rich: You did mention in an article a few weeks back that some coaches were talking about not playing Central Catholic, like the school in Minnesota or wherever that was, who were those coaches?
Mike White: I'm not naming them.
D9 Dave: What WPIAL champion do you think has the best chance to win a PIAA championship?
Mike White: Beaver Falls in 3A.
Mike White: Hey, lively discussions today. Good stuff. I gotta go. We will do again next Tuesday at 11.
First Published: November 22, 2016, 2:34 p.m.
Updated: November 22, 2016, 5:20 p.m.
