Aliquippa Stuns No. 1 McKeesport With Fourth-Down TD to Win WPIAL 4A Title

Qa’Lil Goode’s contested 24-yard touchdown on 4th-and-long sealed the Quips’ 21st championship — one month after they entered the playoffs as a No. 7 seed

Aliquipp'a Qa'Lil Goode catches a 20-yard touchdown pass on fourth down in front of McKeesport's Javien Robinson (6), Akeen Cochran (2) and Brian Jones (8) with 2 minutes, 5 seconds remaining in the WPIAL Class 4A title game Saturday at Pine-Richland High School. The Quips won their record 21st district crown / Josh Rizzo

PINE TOWNSHIP, PENNSYVANIA -- Aliquippa wide receiver Qa’Lil Goode claims he was open. He wasn’t. 

Quips quarterback Marques Council Jr. hoped he could make a play on the ball during the WPIAL Class 4A championship game Saturday at Pine-Richland High School and heaved a pass off one leg in Goode's direction.

The ball found Goode's hands just beyond the reach of McKeesport defensive back Javen Robinson and just in front of Akeem Cochran and Brian Jones for a 24-yard touchdown catch on fourth down with 2 minutes, 5 seconds remaining to seal Aliquippa’s 21-12 win over the top-seeded Tigers.

The seventh-seeded Quips now extended their district record for most titles to 21.

'I'm always open.'

“I’m always open,” Goode said. “Even when I’m not open, I’m gonna come down with it because I’m a playmaker and that’s what I do. That’s what I’m out here for. I just know my quarterback had to trust me and I had to deliver once he threw it.”

Council, a Yale commit, finished 9 of 14 passes for 123 yards and threw two touchdown passes. In order to get the touchdown pass to Goode in the air, Council threw off his backfoot and over hard-charging McKeesport defensive end Kaedyn Daniels.

“I saw 14 (Goode),” Council said. “When you see 14 down there, no matter what or who’s around, you gotta give him a chance.”

Aliquippa is 8-3 overall and winners of four straight.

McKeesport's Akeem Cochran returns a kick during the first half of the WPIAL Class 4A title game Saturday at Pine-Richland High School. / Josh Rizzo

Another close call

McKeesport, which last won the WPIAL in 2005, had another close call for a championship. The Tigers have lost four times in the championship game since 2016.

The Tigers lost the 5A championship to West Allegheny in 2016 and lost in the 4A title game in 2024 and 2023 to Thomas Jefferson and Aliquippa, respectively.

“I think it feels like death when you’re a senior,” McKeesport coach Matt Miller said. “It's the last time you put the uniform on and it's a sad moment. But they're all hugging it up. They're getting what they need to get out of football as far as the camaraderie, the friendships and the character building. I just haven't got that championship yet.”

McKeesport's Kemon Spell attempts to elude Aliquippa's J.J. Work carries during the second quarter of the WPIAL Class 4A championship game Saturday at Pine-Richland High School. Spell finished with 146 rushing yards and scored twice in the Quips' 21-12 win. / Josh Rizzo

Spell breaks out

McKeesport (9-4) were the favorites entering the game thanks to its run game, which is led by Kemon Spell, a highly-sought after junior running back. Spell showcased why the Tigers hadn’t lost when he was healthy this season.

On the first play from scrimmage, Spell went 68 yards for a touchdown. He finished with 142 yards and scored both of McKeesport’s touchdowns. Spell also completed a 37-yard pass to Javien Robinson.

“We were trying to get him the ball all kinds of different ways and it wasn’t working out,” Miller said. 

The Tigers struggled to finish drives. McKeesport went 1-of-3 in the red zone and lost two fumbles. The Tigers were limited to 202 total yards.

Aliquippa coach Mike Warfield said he didn’t want to change too much about their scheme.

“We wanted to rely more on our speed than our bulk,” Warfield said. “As you saw today, we were tackling today. We kept tackling and tackling. That was important. We knew if we took a second off or blinked, Spell could take it the distance.”

McKeesport's Kemon Spell dives to try and bring down Aliquippa quarterback Marques Council Jr. during the WPIAL class 4A title game at Pine-Richland High School. Council scored on this 24-yard run to put Aliquippa ahead, 7-6. / Josh Rizzo

Aliquippa fought for every inch

The Quips went ahead for good, 7-6, following a 24-yard scoring run from Council with 49 seconds left in the first quarter. Aliquippa finished with 295 yards from scrimmage. The Quips ran the ball 43 times for 172 yards.

J.J. Work led the Quips with 57 yards, but averaged 2.8 yards per carry. Josh Lay caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from Council to stretch the lead to 14-6.

Before halftime, McKeesport was able to put together a strong drive that ended with a 6-yard touchdown run by Spell.

The Tigers’ attempted 2-point conversion failed.

The unlikely champion

The Quips have a brand that doesn’t allow them to properly wear the underdog title, but their seeding this year lended itself to the name.

“It felt good to win a WPIAL championship,” Goode said. “Everyone doubted us. We were the black sheep. We had to come back and get it all.”

--Josh Rizzo |rizzo42789@gmail.com| @J_oshrizzo