Low seeds make an impact
Union-Rochester matchup is historic
It’s quite rare for a double-digit seed to make it into the WPIAL semifinals in any classification.
For two to make it in the same year in the same classification is unheard of. At least until now. On Friday, when Class 1A No. 10 Union (9-3) and No. 14 Rochester (7-4) meet at 7 p.m. at Freedom, it will mark the first time in history that two double-digit seeds will play each other in a WPIAL football semifinal in any classification since the WPIAL began seeding teams in the 1990s.
To make it even more historic, the two are also from the Big 7 Conference.
“The conference traditionally has always been tough,” Union coach Kim Niedbala said. “Rochester is a perennial power and we just happened to come along. It’s just our year, and it’s interesting.”
Heading into this season, since the expansion to six classes in 2016, the only double-digit seed to ever make it through to the semifinals in any classification was Riverside, which made it that far as the No. 14 seed in Class 2A in 2019 before it was knocked out by eventual champion Avonworth.
In the 10 seasons before that, when there were only four classes, it occurred six times with two of those, No. 14 Central Valley in Class 3A in 2010 and No. 11 Greensburg Central Catholic in 2009, winning their respective WPIAL titles.
In all that time, though, it only occurred once in Class 1A when No. 13 Neshannock made it through in 2012. The Lancers, though, became victim No. 59 in Clairton’s state record 66game winning streak.
Teams from the same conference playing each other in the semifinals, well, that happens all the time. But though Rochester has been to this point many times before and has eight titles to its credit, this is a whole new realm for Union. The Scotties have not been to the semifinals since 1979 when they lost a 13-2 decision to Knoch in the Class 2A tournament.
To put it into perspective, that was also the year Pittsburgh became the City of Champions with the Pirates winning the World Series and the Steelers the Super Bowl.
“I might think about it,” Niedbala said, “but since our kids weren’t around, I don’t think they’d think about it too much.”
Whichever team wins, it will become the first double-digit seed to ever play for the Class 1A title.
On the surface, it would appear that Union has the advantage. The Scotties pulled out a 6-0 victory against Rochester on Oct. 7 when Braylon Thomas scored on an 11-yard run in the fourth quarter to account for all the scoring.
But believing that may be folly.
“It’s hard to beat a team twice, and we’ll look at the film,” Niedbala said. “But however long it’s been, they’re doing different things, they’re getting better and so are we. I’m sure there are going to be different things going on.”
Union certainly knows first-hand about that. The Scotties avenged an earlier loss to Big 7 Conference champion Laurel last week just to make it into the semifinals.
This time, Union will take its three-headed quarterback monster with Thomas, Mike Gunn and Matt Stanley up against a Rams squad that features 1,000yard rusher Antonio Laure. The Rams have been in every game this season with three single-digit losses.
Rochester likes to run the football and will come at Union with Laure and Jerome Mullins.
Union, though, likes to work its three quarterbacks throughout the night. Thomas will take most of the snaps, but Gunn and Stanley will run the Wildcat to keep the Rams honest.
“All three of them are different types of guys,” Niedbala said. “Stanley is just a great athlete, Mike Dunn brings something a little different than the other two and mixes parts of the other two.”
Other semifinal
Union and Rochester being ina semifinal is only two-thirds of the Big 7 Conference trio that will take the field on Friday night. The other, conference runner-up and No. 5 seeded South Side (11-1), will take on Bishop Canevin (11-1) at Peters Township.
Last week, Bishop Canevin was held under 30 points against a WPIAL Class 1A team for the first time this season when it knocked off Clairton, 29-6. Despite that, Bishop Canevin is formidable on both sides of the ball, as it has allowed only 7.7 points per game and its plus- 33.6 points-per-game scoring differential is among the best in the WPIAL.
Bishop Canevin running back Marquis Carter is coming off a banner night against Clairton with 256 yards and a touchdown.
He now has 1,463 yards and is tied for second on the team with 10 touchdowns.
Stopping Carter is only part of the problem for South Side.
Receiver Xavier Nelson has been a game-breaker all season with 19 total touchdowns, including a pair last week, and is averaging more than 30 yards per catch.
South Side is no slouch, either, and is coming off a mercy rule win against No. 4 Mapletown. The Rams held the Maples’ Landan Stevenson, the ninth-leading rusher in WPIAL history, to only 21 yards on seven carries.
In addition, South Side has given up an average of 8.1 points a game and is scoring 32.9 points a game.
The Rams and Crusaders are the only Class 1-A teams allowing fewer than 10 points a game.