The Tigers are rounding out a strong season, with nine wins and a single loss, coming to Central Catholic. After winning last year’s WPIAL championship, the team is hungry for another one. Getting past both Canon-McMillan and Central Catholic again will be a challenge, but the Tigers are well equipped to do so.
In 6A, there are only four teams that make the playoffs, so while 5A played the quarterfinals of their playoffs last week, members of the higher classification got a bye week.
“I love the bye week and think we are lucky to have it,” junior lineman Jack Yatchenko said. “It’s huge for our health and it’s a good reset, giving us extra time to prepare for Canon-Mac.”
Tonight at Newman Stadium, North Allegheny will play a Canon-McMillan team they know well, as North Allegheny has won the last 12 meetings between the teams. The Big Macs took a beating from the Tigers in the second game of the season this year, 31-3. Last year in the WPIAL semifinals, the Tigers prevailed over the Big Macs, 7-0.
With two weeks of preparation now coming to a close, senior linebacker and running back Tyree Alualu is confident about the team’s mentality heading into this evening’s match up.
“We know this team well, and that gives us confidence going into this game,” Alualu said. “I think we have a great game plan and have been using the bye week to our advantage and getting our bodies right.”
Senior quarterback Logan Kushner believes last year’s success will help the team vie for another WPIAL title.
“Winning last year has set the standard for us,” Kushner said. “We know what we are capable of, and we now expect nothing less than that, especially for the juniors whose first experience on the team was winning last year.”
Central Catholic took the top seed this year and will play Mt. Lebanon, the fourth seed. Central beat the Blue Devils earlier this fall, 49-0.
Central Catholic has one of the most recruited teams the WPIAL has ever seen, with a total of 12 players sporting Division 1 offers. NA’s Liam Flaherty, a junior running back and linebacker, does not believe hype matters, though.
“They had the same players last year, and we have amazing talent, too,” Flaherty said, “It just matters how we prepare and perform on the field.”
As difficult as it is to reach the 6A semifinals, the challenge may prove even steeper next year.
On Monday October 30th, WPIAL announced a reclassification. 5A’s Hempfield and Norwin will move back up to 6A football next August. And District 10’s Butler is still deciding about moving back to District 7 — if they make the switch, that would make eight teams in 6A. The switch could potentially remove the bye week and have four quarterfinal games next year.
But for now, the Tigers have a singular focus.
“We are locked in for Canon Mac and are ready to play,” Flaherty said.
Tonight’s game begins at 7:00pm at Newman Stadium.
