Four of the WPIAL Championship games were held at Acrisure Stadium on Saturday, with local teams now headed to the PIAA semifinals.
"This is everything. Growing up in Pittsburgh and Western Pa., you dream of playing for your local high school on Friday nights with a dream to play here at Acrisure in these championship games," said Dan Rooney, the Steelers Vice President of Business Development and Strategy. "The fact that these kids are living out their dreams right now, I couldn't be more excited for a beautiful day here at the home stadium.
"You grow up playing it and watching it here. Whether it's Steelers on Sundays, Pitt on Saturdays, the high school teams on Fridays.
"I can speak to it from playing high school football here. You dream of getting the chance to one day play here and represent your school and community. The lucky few that can do it, I wasn't one of them, are truly living out their dreams. It's a really cool deal. The WPIAL Championships, it doesn't get any better."
The WPIAL has produced numerous players selected in the NFL Draft, and this year there is a chance a former WPIAL player could have their name called during the 2026 NFL Draft, which will be held in Pittsburgh, April 23-25.
"We're talking over 20 Hall of Famers from this area," said Rooney. "It's well documented the football legacy of Western Pennsylvania. That is the reason the NFL is bringing the Draft to Pittsburgh. They see how much this area loves football. All the great players, coaches, scouts that come from this area.
"We're pumped up for the North Shore and the entire City of Pittsburgh to celebrate football come April.
"You're going to see football fans from everywhere. We're talking over 500,000 people coming to Pittsburgh for three days of what is a love affair with the sport of football."
The day kicked off with Clairton defeating Laurel in a low scoring game, 8-6, in the WPIAL Class 1A championship game. It's the 15th time Clairton won the WPIAL Championship.
"It started back in February for us," said Clairton Coach Wayne Wade. "We lost down here last year, we took two months off, and we came back and really grinded. The kids have done such an excellent job this year. This may be one of the hardest working teams I've ever coached."
Next up was Steon LaSalle defeating Steel Valley, 21-14, in the WPIAL Class 2A championship game.
"This team was different than last year," said Seton LaSalle Coach Tim Storino, who saw his team lose in the same game in 2024. "This week, down 14-0, and it didn't look good. But our kids fight, believe and love each other and it's a beautiful thing."
In the WPIAL Class 3A championship game, Avonworth won their fourth championship, defeating Imani Christian, 30-6, in a game where they led from the start.
"A great win, great victory for our program," said Avonworth Coach Duke Johncour. "Our kids played hard, they played tough. It's just an unbelievable effort."
In the final game of the night, Peters Township came back from a 19-point halftime deficit to defeat Pine-Richland, 20-19, to win the WPIAL Class 5A championship game.
"We said seven weeks ago we're a resilient team," said Peters Township Coach T.J. Plack. "We're battle tested. This is just another chapter in our book."
Former Steelers players, including linebackers Jason Gildon and Vince Williams and defensive linemen Aaron Smith and Chris Hoke, were on hand throughout the day to support the teams and enjoy the excitement of high school football at Acrisure Stadium.
"The Steelers organization has always done a fine job of letting these guys come out and live out part of their dreams playing a high school football championship game in this stadium here," said Gildon. "These days playing high school football are so valuable because they do go by so fast.
"To play high school football, to play at this level, there are a lot of memorable moments."
