WPIAL Football Playoff Brackets Released

The playoffs for all six classes will start next weekend.

Hopewell's Nasir Wade high-fives a teammate during a win over Freeport. The Vikings received a wild card to the WPIAL Class 3A playoffs and will return to the playoffs for the first time since 2012. / Josh Rizzo

The chase for a Pennsylvania state football championships will begin in earnest in the Pittsburgh area next weekend. The WPIAL playoff football brackets were released Saturday afternoon.

Many teams qualified automatically and already knew they were in the playoffs. The others had to wait to see where they were seeded and if they earned a wild card.

Heres's a look at the matchups by class for the first round. Four of the defending champions from last season -- Central Catholic, Pine-Richland, Avonworth and Fort Cherry -- were awarded top seeds this season.

The Class 4A and 6A championship games will be played Nov. 15 at Pine-Richland High School. The other four championship games will be played Nov. 22 at Acrisure Stadium.

Class 6A

Defending champion: Central Catholic

No. 1. Central Catholic vs No. 4 Canon-McMillan

No 2 North Allegheny vs No. 3 Norwin

Class 5A

Defending champion: Pine-Richland

Receiving byes: No. 1. Pine-Richland, No. 2 Peters Township, No. 3 Woodland Hills, No. 4 Penn-Trafford.

No. 5 Moon vs No. 12 Armstrong

No. 6 Upper St. Clair vs No. 11 Plum

No. 7 Bethel Park vs No. 10 North Hills

No. 8 Shaler vs. No. 9 Kiski

Class 4A

Defending champion: Thomas Jefferson

No. 1 McKeesport vs No. 8 Chartiers Valley

No. 2 Trinity vs No. 7 Aliquippa

No. 3 New Castle vs No. 6 Montour

No. 4 Thomas Jefferson vs No. 5 Mars

Class 3A

Defending champions: Avonworth

Receiving byes: No. 1 Avonworth, No. 2 Imani Christian, No. 3 Central Valley, No. 4 Elizabeth Forward

No. 5 North Catholic vs No. 12 Burrell

No. 6 Highlands vs No. 11 Derry

No. 7 Southmoreland vs No. 10 Hopewell

No. 8 Freeport vs No. 9 Beaver

Class 2A

Defending champion: South Park

Receiving byes: No. 1 Seton LaSalle, No. 2 Western Beaver, No. 3 Steel Valley.

No. 4 South Allegheny vs No. 13 Waynesburg

No. 5 Washington vs. No. 12 Beaver Falls

No. 6 Ellwood City vs. No. 11 Keystone Oaks

No. 7 Apollo-Ridge vs. 10 Riverside

No. 8 Mohawk vs. No. 9 OLSH

Class 1A

Defending champion: Fort Cherry

No. 1 Fort Cherry vs. No. 16 Avella

No. 2 Clairton vs. No. 15 Monessen

No. 3 Bishop Canevin vs. No. 14 Greensburg Central Catholic

No. 4 Laurel vs No. 13 Jefferson-Morgan

No. 5 South Side Beaver vs. No. 12 Chartiers-Houston

No. 6 California vs. No. 11 Frazier

No. 7 Bentworth vs. No. 10 Jeannette

No. 8 Leechburg vs. No. 9 Neshannock

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