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Best teams that didn’t win the WPIAL championship?

northalleghenytiger

northalleghenytiger

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Aug 22, 2022
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Who were some past teams from the wpial that were great but never ended up in the state playoffs? There was a lot of talk last season about how 2023 PCC would end up in GOAT conversations, but they obviously Fell in the wpial championship.

Another team I’d add is 2018 NA. Tough one my tigers as they went undefeated in the regular season but lost to Seneca valley first round

Last team I’d say is 2015 Woodland Hills. This team had Miles Sanders on it and went undefeated through the regular season. Ended up losing to central who won states

Who do you think deserves a spot in the hall of infamy?
 
northalleghenytiger said:
Who were some past teams from the wpial that were great but never ended up in the state playoffs? There was a lot of talk last season about how 2023 PCC would end up in GOAT conversations, but they obviously Fell in the wpial championship.

Another team I’d add is 2018 NA. Tough one my tigers as they went undefeated in the regular season but lost to Seneca valley first round

Last team I’d say is 2015 Woodland Hills. This team had Miles Sanders on it and went undefeated through the regular season. Ended up losing to central who won states

Who do you think deserves a spot in the hall of infamy?
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Woodland Hills had a nice run in the 2000s, PCC really roadblocked their best chances in the 2010s. Crazy that their program never got a state title.
 
In doing research to crown mythical state champs through history - 1982 North Allegheny was clearly the best team in the state, and it’s hard to find a team to crown as the state champ over them. They only gave up points in two games all season, a 17-6 win over North Hills during the season, and their 7-3 loss to North Hills in the WPIAL semifinals. I don’t think they can claim the state title because they didn’t even make the championship game, but clearly a great team (fullback Tim Manoa played at Penn State and for the Browns).

The 1961 Beaver Falls team was on a 21 game winning streak, but did not get to defend their 1960 WPIAL championship after losing out on the mathematical formula that broke a three way tie of undefeated teams. It was the year after Namath graduated, but QB Butch Ryan gave them back-to-back all state quarterbacks and went on to play safety at Iowa.

I don’t know how you feel about ties, but the 1975 New Castle, 1977 Penn Hills, and both 1985 North Hills and Gateway all having to split WPIAL titles is tough for historically great teams. The ‘77 Penn Hills tie prevented four straight outright WPIAL titles in a super competitive era, that may be the best run ever in the WPIAL.

In the state playoff era, Penn Hills spent most of 1996 as the #1 team in the country after returning most of their stars from the 1995 state championship team, including five star linebacker/tight end Ron Graham, but got upset in the first round by Plum to snap a 28 game winning streak

The 2007 Gateway team lost 35-34 in overtime to undefeated state champ Pittsburgh Central Catholic on a missed extra point in OT. The following year they were nationally ranked most of the year, but upset by Bethel Park.

All the best Woodland Hills teams won WPIAL titles in their 2000s era I think?
 
Woodland Hills in 2009 was a team that probably won't get a mention but I thought they were really good and primed to win a state title. They lost a crazy game against Steubenville 62-61 in the 1st game of the season. They went on a great run but suffered some really key injuries late in the season and were beat by State College after killing TJ in the WPIAL title game.

D1 kids on that team

Ejuan Price - PITT (Rams)
Rich Gray - Kent State
Quintin Pitts - Lackawanna
Jevonte Pitts - PITT
Quinton Jefferson - Maryland (Seahawks)
Mike Lee - Purdue
Dom Timbers - Syracuse
Lafayette Pitts - PITT (Bills)
Mike Capara - PITT
KK Mosley - PITT
Shakim Alonzo - Cincy

There were several other PSAC kids too..


Another team that I thought should have won a state title was 1995 Manheim Central. Matt Nagy played so well for the majority of these games but made crucial mistakes (INT in 94) (fumbles in 95). Berwick had their number in what most considered the true state championship game.
 
JACKY6996 said:
Woodland Hills had a nice run in the 2000s, PCC really roadblocked their best chances in the 2010s. Crazy that their program never got a state title.
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Yeah from 2009-2015 they seemed like legitimate state title contenders but could never finish. It’s been all downhill since Novak left it seems
 
RoverNation05 said:
In doing research to crown mythical state champs through history - 1982 North Allegheny was clearly the best team in the state, and it’s hard to find a team to crown as the state champ over them. They only gave up points in two games all season, a 17-6 win over North Hills during the season, and their 7-3 loss to North Hills in the WPIAL semifinals. I don’t think they can claim the state title because they didn’t even make the championship game, but clearly a great team (fullback Tim Manoa played at Penn State and for the Browns).

The 1961 Beaver Falls team was on a 21 game winning streak, but did not get to defend their 1960 WPIAL championship after losing out on the mathematical formula that broke a three way tie of undefeated teams. It was the year after Namath graduated, but QB Butch Ryan gave them back-to-back all state quarterbacks and went on to play safety at Iowa.

I don’t know how you feel about ties, but the 1975 New Castle, 1977 Penn Hills, and both 1985 North Hills and Gateway all having to split WPIAL titles is tough for historically great teams. The ‘77 Penn Hills tie prevented four straight outright WPIAL titles in a super competitive era, that may be the best run ever in the WPIAL.

In the state playoff era, Penn Hills spent most of 1996 as the #1 team in the country after returning most of their stars from the 1995 state championship team, including five star linebacker/tight end Ron Graham, but got upset in the first round by Plum to snap a 28 game winning streak

The 2007 Gateway team lost 35-34 in overtime to undefeated state champ Pittsburgh Central Catholic on a missed extra point in OT. The following year they were nationally ranked most of the year, but upset by Bethel Park.

All the best Woodland Hills teams won WPIAL titles in their 2000s era I think?
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Very detailed reply awesome

Yeah from 1999-2002 Woodland Hills won 3 out of 4 wpial championships. Only loss was in 2000 to Lebo by 1 point. Despite all that success, they never won the state championship
 
steelcurtain55. said:
Woodland Hills in 2009 was a team that probably won't get a mention but I thought they were really good and primed to win a state title. They lost a crazy game against Steubenville 62-61 in the 1st game of the season. They went on a great run but suffered some really key injuries late in the season and were beat by State College after killing TJ in the WPIAL title game.

D1 kids on that team

Ejuan Price - PITT (Rams)
Rich Gray - Kent State
Quintin Pitts - Lackawanna
Jevonte Pitts - PITT
Quinton Jefferson - Maryland (Seahawks)
Mike Lee - Purdue
Dom Timbers - Syracuse
Lafayette Pitts - PITT (Bills)
Mike Capara - PITT
KK Mosley - PITT
Shakim Alonzo - Cincy

There were several other PSAC kids too..


Another team that I thought should have won a state title was 1995 Manheim Central. Matt Nagy played so well for the majority of these games but made crucial mistakes (INT in 94) (fumbles in 95). Berwick had their number in what most considered the true state championship game.
Click to expand...
Yeah it seems Woodland Hills has some missing state titles
 
northalleghenytiger said:
Who were some past teams from the wpial that were great but never ended up in the state playoffs? There was a lot of talk last season about how 2023 PCC would end up in GOAT conversations, but they obviously Fell in the wpial championship.

Another team I’d add is 2018 NA. Tough one my tigers as they went undefeated in the regular season but lost to Seneca valley first round

Last team I’d say is 2015 Woodland Hills. This team had Miles Sanders on it and went undefeated through the regular season. Ended up losing to central who won states

Who do you think deserves a spot in the hall of infamy?
Click to expand...
2018 NA? I don't know the fact that they lost to decent Seneca Valley alone eliminates them from the conversation, on top of that there was no talk during that season of them being a great team or a heavy favorite

2015 Woodland Hills was maybe the 3rd - 5th best team that year in the wpial, Penn Trafford and Pine Richland I thought were more impressive that season, maybe your Tigers too since they beat Central in the regular season

best teams that didn't win imo

2007 and 2008 Gateway, those teams were loaded with talent but came up short, 2008 Gateway especially disappointed considering how highly ranked they were and were thought to be unbeatable

2000 Woodland Hills, another loaded team that got upset by Mt. Lebanon

2004 Upper St. Clair gave the popular "best team ever" Central Catholic all they could handle in the semifinals, 2004 Gateway was also great but I would put USC over them because Central beat them by 4 touchdowns

in the lower classes Thomas Jefferson in 2005, that was arguably Cherpak's best team but Franklin Regional beat them, TJ had some key injuries

2006 Greensburg Central Catholic had a loaded roster with multiple D1 kids and college level kids, they had no answer for Terrelle Pryor

2013 Aliquippa brought back their team the previous year that should've won states, lost to South Fayette

2014 West Allegheny beat the Miles Sanders led Woodland Hills team during the season that everybody here thinks was so great, they lost to Central Valley in the finals
 
forgot to mention 96 Penn Hills, that has to be the craziest loss considering their ranking and status but i didn't follow high school sports as much at that point

Belle Vernon had excellent teams in 99 and 2000 that i think were by far better than their recent teams, they couldn't beat the Palko's and West Allegheny
 
steelcurtain55. said:
Woodland Hills in 2009 was a team that probably won't get a mention but I thought they were really good and primed to win a state title. They lost a crazy game against Steubenville 62-61 in the 1st game of the season. They went on a great run but suffered some really key injuries late in the season and were beat by State College after killing TJ in the WPIAL title game.

D1 kids on that team

Ejuan Price - PITT (Rams)
Rich Gray - Kent State
Quintin Pitts - Lackawanna
Jevonte Pitts - PITT
Quinton Jefferson - Maryland (Seahawks)
Mike Lee - Purdue
Dom Timbers - Syracuse
Lafayette Pitts - PITT (Bills)
Mike Capara - PITT
KK Mosley - PITT
Shakim Alonzo - Cincy

There were several other PSAC kids too..


Another team that I thought should have won a state title was 1995 Manheim Central. Matt Nagy played so well for the majority of these games but made crucial mistakes (INT in 94) (fumbles in 95). Berwick had their number in what most considered the true state championship game.
Click to expand...
they beat Gateway 10 - 0 in the wpial final
 
northalleghenytiger said:
Yeah from 2009-2015 they seemed like legitimate state title contenders but could never finish. It’s been all downhill since Novak left it seems
Click to expand...
those teams were never truly thought to be state title contenders outside of Miles Sanders senior year

2009 Gateway was ranked number 1
2010 they probably overachieved a bit
2012 and 2013 they had several regular season losses and upsets in the playoffs
2014 lost to AAA West Allegheny and then blown out by Central in 2nd round
2015 like i said highly ranked but when it was all said and done it looked like several teams were better
 
BradlyPitt said:
they beat Gateway 10 - 0 in the wpial final
Click to expand...
Yeah - not sure why I had TJ down. Maybe it was the color of the uniform.
BradlyPitt said:
those teams were never truly thought to be state title contenders outside of Miles Sanders senior year
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Funny you say that. I coached with Al Wolski and to this day, he thinks that 2009 WH team is one of the best teams he's ever coached against. He wasn't alone in his opinion when you asked other coaches.
 
steelcurtain55. said:
Yeah - not sure why I had TJ down. Maybe it was the color of the uniform.

Funny you say that. I coached with Al Wolski and to this day, he thinks that 2009 WH team is one of the best teams he's ever coached against. He wasn't alone in his opinion when you asked other coaches.
Click to expand...
who is Al Wolski?

i think 2009 team could've won a state title with better health, but they weren't favorites that year, they weren't ranked number 1 in the wpial until they won the wpial
 
BradlyPitt said:
2018 NA? I don't know the fact that they lost to decent Seneca Valley alone eliminates them from the conversation, on top of that there was no talk during that season of them being a great team or a heavy favorite

2015 Woodland Hills was maybe the 3rd - 5th best team that year in the wpial, Penn Trafford and Pine Richland I thought were more impressive that season, maybe your Tigers too since they beat Central in the regular season

best teams that didn't win imo

2007 and 2008 Gateway, those teams were loaded with talent but came up short, 2008 Gateway especially disappointed considering how highly ranked they were and were thought to be unbeatable

2000 Woodland Hills, another loaded team that got upset by Mt. Lebanon

2004 Upper St. Clair gave the popular "best team ever" Central Catholic all they could handle in the semifinals, 2004 Gateway was also great but I would put USC over them because Central beat them by 4 touchdowns

in the lower classes Thomas Jefferson in 2005, that was arguably Cherpak's best team but Franklin Regional beat them, TJ had some key injuries

2006 Greensburg Central Catholic had a loaded roster with multiple D1 kids and college level kids, they had no answer for Terrelle Pryor

2013 Aliquippa brought back their team the previous year that should've won states, lost to South Fayette

2014 West Allegheny beat the Miles Sanders led Woodland Hills team during the season that everybody here thinks was so great, they lost to Central Valley in the finals
Click to expand...
I’ll defend the 2018 NA team, I’d argue it’s the best team that NA had between the 2012 and 2023 seasons. That team was fantastic through the regular season, they beat Pine by 20 who ended up winning wpial

I think 2015 was a strong year for wpial so I think multiple teams could be in contention. I said them because they were the #2 seed
 
steelcurtain55. said:
Yeah - not sure why I had TJ down. Maybe it was the color of the uniform.

Funny you say that. I coached with Al Wolski and to this day, he thinks that 2009 WH team is one of the best teams he's ever coached against. He wasn't alone in his opinion when you asked other coaches.
Click to expand...
You might have said that because on maxpreps it says they played TJ on 12/4 2009… weird
 
BradlyPitt said:
who is Al Wolski?

i think 2009 team could've won a state title with better health, but they weren't favorites that year, they weren't ranked number 1 in the wpial until they won the wpial
Click to expand...
Al Wolski is the former HC at State College and Reading High. He's in the PA Coaches HOF.

They might not have been the media favorites but I know coaches who thought they were better then Gateway even during the regular season. I picked them to beat Gateway because they could match Gateway's athleticism but they played a physical brand of football that Gateway did not.
 
steelcurtain55. said:
Al Wolski is the former HC at State College and Reading High. He's in the PA Coaches HOF.

They might not have been the media favorites but I know coaches who thought they were better then Gateway even during the regular season. I picked them to beat Gateway because they could match Gateway's athleticism but they played a physical brand of football that Gateway did not.
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it's always a little weird when coaches overly praise a team they beat, it comes off as a subtle way of praising his own team

I remember Mike Micshler doing the same for 99 Woodland Hills saying they were better than CB West that year, in his case it seemed like sour grapes
 
northalleghenytiger said:
I’ll defend the 2018 NA team, I’d argue it’s the best team that NA had between the 2012 and 2023 seasons. That team was fantastic through the regular season, they beat Pine by 20 who ended up winning wpial

I think 2015 was a strong year for wpial so I think multiple teams could be in contention. I said them because they were the #2 seed
Click to expand...
the 2018 season is mostly a blur to me, i don't remember any team being thought of as "great" that year

i would put 2019 Pine Richland above any team that season as far as teams that good didn't win a title, and I would have 2015 or 2017 NA as their best teams in between their title years in 2012 and 2023
 
2017 NA was very very good. Unfortunately for them, P-R was an all-time great team.
 
BradlyPitt said:
the 2018 season is mostly a blur to me, i don't remember any team being thought of as "great" that year

i would put 2019 Pine Richland above any team that season as far as teams that good didn't win a title, and I would have 2015 or 2017 NA as their best teams in between their title years in 2012 and 2023
Click to expand...
Why 2017? They got destroyed by bethel and pine, and also lost to central. That was “mid” NA squad. 2015 I could see an argument for, but I’ll pick the 2018 version IMO
 
I'd say 2010 Mt. Lebanon was a very good team that was not able to go all the way. They lost to a very good Woodland Hills team coached by the legendary George Novak 29-22. Mt. Lebanon was led by fantastic running back Luke Hagy, who went on to have a great career at Cornell.

Here are some of Lukes highlights from his senior year

 
Mt.LeboHistorian said:
I'd say 2010 Mt. Lebanon was a very good team that was not able to go all the way. They lost to a very good Woodland Hills team coached by the legendary George Novak 29-22. Mt. Lebanon was led by fantastic running back Luke Hagy, who went on to have a great career at Cornell.

Here are some of Lukes highlights from his senior year

View embedded media
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a team that lost in the quarterfinals does not belong in the argument, unless it was an extreme case like 96 Penn Hills

though I did like Hagy more than Alex Tecza
 
Mt.LeboHistorian said:
I'd say 2010 Mt. Lebanon was a very good team that was not able to go all the way. They lost to a very good Woodland Hills team coached by the legendary George Novak 29-22. Mt. Lebanon was led by fantastic running back Luke Hagy, who went on to have a great career at Cornell.

Here are some of Lukes highlights from his senior year

View embedded media
Click to expand...
What is coach Haering up to these days? I talked to him after a game over a decade ago. Very pleasant man
 
BradlyPitt said:
what is the argument for 2011 and 2021?
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2011: Went undefeated including beating the 3A state champ Archbishop Wood. Had some weird flukey plays happen against USC in the playoffs, including a touchdown called back. I think that team had the talent to win states that year.

2021: this team was better than the 2020 WPIAL championship team. the offense improved considerably with bringing in Pine-Richlands coaches. They also were led by Notre dame commit Donovan Hinish. They only Lost to Imhotep and Mt. Lebanon. Those two Mt. Lebanon games were complete meltdowns by the coaching staff, and wasn’t indicative of the kids talent on the team. This led to the PCC community to lose faith in Totten.
 
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BradlyPitt said:
a team that lost in the quarterfinals does not belong in the argument, unless it was an extreme case like 96 Penn Hills

though I did like Hagy more than Alex Tecza
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I do not think there is a wrong answer between the two. Both were great players and even better people.
 
northalleghenytiger said:
Yeah it seems Woodland Hills has some missing state titles
Click to expand...
I still say the best woody high team was the 99. They lost to ECP after having prep 4 and 5 and Ed Hinkle (Iowa) took a screen pass from Eric Carlson for a long gain. Woody high then barley missed a hail Mary pass that would have been negated by an in eligible player down hill. Woody high and prep came into that game both being nationally ranked by usa today. I still think 99 was the best talent pool of Pennsylvania football playoff era. Parkland, woody high, ecp, and Cb west were all national ranked. North Penn and Bethlehem Catholic were both beasts that year.
 
BradlyPitt said:
a team that lost in the quarterfinals does not belong in the argument, unless it was an extreme case like 96 Penn Hills

though I did like Hagy more than Alex Tecza
Click to expand...
Little fact but Alex Tezca dad Randy Tezca was a beast receiver at Erie cathedral prep in the early 90's so it's in the genes. I believe his mom was a college athlete as well.
 
Vikingofpittsburgh said:
2011: Went undefeated including beating the 3A state champ Archbishop Wood. Had some weird flukey plays happen against USC in the playoffs, including a touchdown called back. I think that team had the talent to win states that year.

2021: this team was better than the 2020 WPIAL championship team. the offense improved considerably with bringing in Pine-Richlands coaches. They also were led by Notre dame commit Donovan Hinish. They only Lost to Imhotep and Mt. Lebanon. Those two Mt. Lebanon games were complete meltdowns by the coaching staff, and wasn’t indicative of the kids talent on the team. This led to the PCC community to lose faith in Totten.
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Viking: curious what you think of the job the new set of Pine-Richland coaches did at Central this year. I think it’s one of the largest under achievements ever.
 
new2pa said:
Viking: curious what you think of the job the new set of Pine-Richland coaches did at Central this year. I think it’s one of the largest under achievements ever.
Click to expand...
agreed- PCC coaching job against PR this year was bizarre- and PCC talent was about 8-out-of-10 and PR was about a 5
 
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