Saturday is a date to relish

Nov. 24, 2001. The Fumbler remembers it like it was yesterday.

The WPIAL championships were held at Heinz Field for the first time that day. Full of excitement, The Fumbler couldn’t get into the stadium fast enough. He was walking so briskly that he zipped way ahead of his little nephew and briefly lost track of him. Luckily, the two reunited.

“I relish the fact that you mustard the strength to ketchup to me,” The Fumbler told him.

Heinz Field has been a magical place for high school players, coaches, parents and fans.

It will be no different Saturday. As usual, there will be powerhouse programs and star players. Aliquippa is in the championship for the 10th consecutive season. Pine-Richland quarterback Phil Jurkovec could be playing on Sundays in a few years. Central Catholic and Thomas Jefferson are both looking to win their third title in a row.

And then there is Quaker Valley, which is in the title game for the first time. Penn-Trafford has never won a championship. Imagine how thrilled those teams are.

No matter how excited you get watching these games, remember this: Keep your eye on the ball. The Fumbler once wondered why the ball was getting bigger, and then it hit him.

Follow The Fumbler on Twitter —@FumblerPG

The Fumbler went 13-3 last week, pushing his season record to 530-125 (.809).

Here are his thoughts on this weekend’s games:

Class 6A

Pine-Richland (12-0) vs. Central Catholic (10-2), 2 p.m. Saturday — Go ahead and name the three most famous Phils in Pennsylvania? Answer: No. 3 — Punxsutawney Phil. No. 2 — Phil Kessel. No. 1 — Phil Jurkovec. Some might argue that order, but there’s no arguing who the best player in the WPIAL has been this season. There’s Phil Jurkovec and then there’s everyone else. Jurkovec has the great individual numbers. Now he’ll have a WPIAL title. Winner: Pine-Richland.

Class 5A

Penn-Trafford (11-1) vs. Gateway (11-1), 5 p.m. Saturday — Penn-Trafford coach John Ruane played at Gateway, was an assistant coach at Gateway, and is a teacher at Gateway. To win its first WPIAL title, Ruane’s team must go through Gateway. Penn-Trafford beat Gateway, 28-0, Sept. 29, but it will be the Gators who win the rematch behind a big passing game from Brady Walker and a fine effort from freshman running back Derrick Davis. Winner: Gateway.

Class 4A

Thomas Jefferson (10-1) vs. Montour (9-2), 8 p.m. Saturday — The Fumbler isn’t one for making guarantees, but he can’t resist doing so here. Here it goes … The Fumbler guarantees that the winning team will have black and gold on its uniforms. Bold, eh? OK, so both the Jaguars and Spartans are of the black-and-goldish variety. By the end of the night, though, the Spartans will be more black and blue, while the Jaguars will just be golden. Winner: Thomas Jefferson.

Class 3A

Aliquippa (12-0) vs. Quaker Valley (11-1), 11 a.m. Saturday — Of all of this weekend’s games, The Fumbler is interested in this one