5 things to watch in Week Zero of high school football: Most teams spurn 2nd scrimmage

By: HSSN Staff
Thursday, August 23, 2018 | 9:00 PM

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For the third year in a row, WPIAL football coaches had a decision to make.

Should they use this weekend for a second scrimmage, or instead schedule a Week Zero game?

The decision the past two seasons was split, with only 61 teams choosing to skip the second scrimmage in 2016. But this year, a majority scheduled a real game: 99 of 120 teams will play a real game.

The PIAA rule change provided added scheduling flexibility for each PIAA district committee, but citing safety concerns, the WPIAL board of directors has never endorsed the idea. That’s why Week Zero games remain optional in the WPIAL.

“When you elect not to use two weeks in preparation, I think sometimes you sacrifice the very vital instruction on how to do things,” WPIAL executive director Tim O’Malley said Wednesday on the TribLive HSSN’s “This week in the WPIAL” show.

“The NFL’s going through a tremendous debate now in regards to tackling and putting your head down and head-to-head contact. And any time you listen to the talk shows, it always goes back to the fact that (the players) have to be instructed at the youth level. … That’s part of the responsibility we have in high school to effectively teach them.”

Football teams can work out all summer, O’Malley noted, but preseason contact is limited to two weeks in camp.

“When you choose to play in Week (Zero), what you’ve effectively done, is you’ve used maybe three, possibly four days to instruct tackling,” O’Malley said. “This week it’s game preparation, and anybody who’s ever coached knows there’s very little instruction that takes place (during a game week).”

But since a large majority of teams have elected to use Week Zero, it’s more likely the WPIAL would schedule 10-game seasons in the future, O’Malley said.

“We’ve always responded to the wish of the membership,” O’Malley said. “We’ve not yet been approached to scheduling 10 games. Might that (request) come in the next cycle? That very well might come. And if it comes, the board will have to make that decision as to whether or not they want to schedule nine or 10.”

A true all-star team

America’s top-ranked team is coming to Western Pennsylvania.

IMG Academy of Bradenton, Fla., will visit Pine-Richland at 7:30 p.m. Friday for a matchup of powerhouse programs. IMG, an athletics-focused school that draws players from around the country, is No. 1 in the USA Today preseason rankings.

The Florida school has 11 four-star recruits and three five-star recruits among its junior and senior classes, according to Rivals.com. The list includes senior Trey Sanders (6-1, 205), the No. 1-ranked running back in the country.

“It’s pretty safe to say that after playing them, I don’t think we’ll face anyone with as much talent as they have,” Pine-Richland coach Eric Kasperowicz said. “It will be a nice test for us.”

No need to wait

Week Zero has become rivalry week.

The WPIAL realigned its football conferences this season, a task undertaken every two years that inevitably separates some rivals.

But that doesn’t mean those rivalries must die. A number of teams will use Week Zero to continue them. Among them, Seton LaSalle faces next-door neighbor Keystone Oaks at 7 p.m. Friday at Dormont Stadium.

Seton LaSalle had scrimmaged Montour for 28 consecutive years, but that streak will end this week. Seton LaSalle and Keystone Oaks are now in different classifications, so this was their only option.

“They’re right across the street,” Seton coach Rob Carter said. “It’s big. Our kids know them. Their kids know us. Every time I drive to school, I go past KO. You can date back many years that this rivalry has been going on.”

Montour will renew a rivalry with Moon.

Pick 6 at Wolvarena

The Wolvarena in Turtle Creek is the site for a multi-game event this weekend that includes six of the WPIAL’s best teams. Each will face an opponent from another PIAA district or another state.

The six-game schedule starts with Peters Township facing West Toronto Prep at 5 p.m. Friday. Central Catholic then faces Erie’s Cathedral Prep at 8 p.m.

On Saturday, Imani Christian plays Wright Charter at 11 a.m., followed by McKeesport vs. Erie at 2 p.m. In the late games, Aliquippa faces McKinley Tech at 5 p.m., and Woodland Hills hosts Woodrow Wilson at 8 p.m. in the finale.

Wright Charter, McKinley Tech and Woodrow Wilson are all from Washington D.C.

Home and away

Avella and Mapletown are two of the smallest schools in the state and share the same Class A conference. They’ll play one another in Week 8 at Mapletown, but now they’ve also scheduled a Week Zero matchup at Avella.

Each school had 61 boys in grades 9-11, according to PIAA enrollment figures, which ranks fourth-smallest in the state.

Mapletown won 48-32 when they met once last season.

Chris Harlan is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Chris at charlan@tribweb.com or via Twitter @CHarlan_Trib.

Tags: Avella, Keystone Oaks, Mapletown, Pine-Richland, Woodland Hills