Breaking down the PIAA District 3 Playoff Brackets

Tagged under: District 3, Gameday Hub, News

Pat Weider | November 4, 2021

special contributions also by Carl Frederick

6A District 3 Breakdown:

1st seed Central York vs. 8th seed Manheim Township

Note- Central York has repeated an undefeated regular season for the 2nd straight year and has won Division 1 of YAIA for 3 straight years. Township has 4 losses but the 4 losses are by a total of 16 points, so they have played everyone tough. Even though this is a 1 vs. 8 match up it should be a highly competitive game. 

2nd seed Harrisburg vs. 7th seed Carlisle

Note- Harrisburg comes into this game with a 9-1 record and their lone loss is to 5A power Governor Mifflin. Harrisburg has been playing very well down the stretch, even though State College played them touch week 10. Carlisle’s 1st time has been in the playoffs since 2015. They are trying to revenge a week 5 loss to Harrisburg earlier this year. 

3rd seed Central Dauphin East vs. 6th seed Hempfield

Note- Central Dauphin East is coming into this game with a 7-3 record, but lost last Friday to Carlisle. Hempfield comes into this game 6-4 and recently beat Penn Manor. Both teams have played highly competitive schedules. 

4th seed York High vs. 5th Wilson

Note- York High comes into this game with an 8-2 record and recently lost to Central York Friday night. The other loss is to 5A power Governor Mifflin. Wilson started 2-3 against a really good non-conference schedule but has won 5 straight to win Section 1 of the Lancaster-Lebanon League. 

Best Player in this bracket: Beau Prebula QB from Central York. The Penn State commit does it all for Central York. He is a dynamic playmaker with his legs and his arm. 

2nd Best player in this bracket: Jadyn Jones RB from Wilson. Jadyn Jones is the leading rusher for Wilson and sets the tone for a very physical rushing attack. 

Favorite to win the bracket: Central York. Central is loaded and has a good chance to repeat as champions. It will not be easy because 6A is loaded with really good teams even Manheim Township week 1 is not an easy game to start with. 

Team on the Rise: Wilson. Wilson is on a 5 game winning streak and has found their running game with Jadyn Jones and is super stingy on defense. They will have a chance to beat anyone in the bracket. 

5A District 3 Breakdown:

1st seed Governor Mifflin and 2nd seed Manheim Central both get byes week 1. 

8th seed Warwick vs. 9th Gettysburg

Note- Warwick comes into this game 5-4 and has won 3 out of their last 4 games including a huge win against rival Manheim Central. Gettysburg comes into this game with a 7-3 record and has won 5 of 6 with their last 6 with their lone loss against 9-1 Kennard-Dale. 

4th seed Spring Grove vs. 13th Twin Valley

Note-Spring Grove enters the year with an 8-1 record and has had back-to-back winning seasons since the 2013-2014 seasons. Twin Valley enters with a 6-4 record and has posted back-to-back winning seasons. Twin Valley has a chance to win 7 games for the first time since 2008. 

5th Waynesboro vs. 12th Daniel Boone

Note-Waynesboro enters the game with an 8-2 record and has won 5 straight. Daniel Boone enters the game with a 5-3 record has won 5 of their last 6 games to make the playoffs. 

7th Exeter vs. 10th South Western

Note-Exeter enters the game with a 6-3 and has won 4 of the last 5 games to make the playoffs. Exeter played a very challenging non-conference schedule. South Western enters with a 6-4 record and their 1st winning season since 2015. 

3rd Shippensburg vs.14th New Oxford

Note-Shippensburg enters the playoffs with an undefeated regular season and their closest game was week 1 win 7-0 over Hershey. New Oxford enters the game with a 6-4 record and lost 2 previous games before they were able to beat West York last week. 

6th Cedar Cliff vs.11th Lower Dauphin

Note-Cedar Cliff enters the game 8-2 and has won 6 of their last 7 games. Lower Dauphin enters the game with a 6-3 record and won 4 straight games to make the playoffs. This is a rematch from earlier this year when Cedar Cliff beat Lower Dauphin 48-20

Best Player in the bracket– Nicholas Singleton Running back Mifflin. The Penn State commit Running Back has had an amazing Senior year and has shattered several records. 

2nd best player in the bracket– Judd Novak Quarterback Manheim Central. Novak has had an outstanding season both running and throwing the ball for the 2nd seeded Central. 

Favorite to win the bracket– Governor Mifflin. Mifflin seems like a team on a mission this year after losing a heartbreaking playoff loss last year. Led by Singleton Mifflin has crushed every team they have played this year. 

Team on the rise– Manheim Central. Central enters the playoffs with a 9-1 record and has won 3 straight to close the regular season. They have played very well all year in a big bounce-back year. 

4A District 3 Breakdown:

1st seed Bishop Mcdevitt and 2nd seed Lampeter-Strasburg both get byes week 1

8th Northern York vs. 9th Octorara

Note- Northern York enters the playoff with a 6-3 record. They won 4 of their last 6 games to make the playoffs. Octorara enters the playoffs with an 8-2 record but played down against smaller schools in Section 4 of the Lancaster-Lebanon League. 

7th Conrad Weiser vs. 10th Big Spring

Note-Conrad Weiser enters the game with a 7-3 record has won 4 straight to make it to the playoffs. Big Spring enters the game with a 7-3 record as well and was able to go 3-2 down the stretch to make it in the playoffs. 

The next two games will be played next week:

4th Berks Catholic vs. 5th Cocalico– Berks Catholic enters with a 6-4 record but has played a brutal schedule. Every team they lost to had a winning record. Cocalico is also 6-4 and played an equally challenging schedule. 

3rd Kennard-Dale vs.6th Donegal– Kennard-Dale is 9-1 with the best record in school history and will be looking for their 1st playoff win as a program. Donegal is 8-2  and has 6 out of their last 7 games. 

Best player in the bracket– Stone Sanders of McDevitt. A freshman led McDevitt to a 9-1 record. He threw for an eye-popping 34 touchdowns and 1 interception.

2nd best player in the bracket– Christian Caccione of Berks Catholic. The Senior running back rushed for over 1,000 yards in their balanced rushing attack. 

Favorite to win the bracket– Bishop McDevitt. They have won 9 straight and are on fire. They will have a good chance to win the district title and to make a state playoff run. 

Team on the rise– Lampeter-Strasburg. Back-to-back district titles for LS, but McDevitt looks legit this year. They should have a good chance for a 3-peat title though.

3A District 3 Breakdown:

(8) Northern Lebanon at (1) Wyomissing

Note: Wyomissing is the clear-cut early favorite in 3A as they have made mincemeat of their schedule this season going 10-0. The Spartans are defeating their opponents by an average over 37 and the only team to come within 20 points happens to be Southern Columbia. Not only did they end Southern Columbia’s historic 93 game winning streak, but they also did it in an emphatic fashion (41-21). The Northern Lebanon Vikings nabbed the final spot in this bracket finishing 4-6 in the regular season. Head Coach Jason Rice will need his squad to tighten up defensively as they are averaging over 26 points a game. Against a potential state title contender in Wyomissing, they better be ready to play.

(5) Middletown at (4) West Perry. 

Note: Middletown is coming off a thrilling 7-0 victory of Big Spring, holding the Bulldogs to 137 total yards of offense. The West Perry Mustangs finished 5-5 on the regular season with big-time victories over Mechanicsburg, East Pennsboro, and Juniata. This may be the most evenly matched game for this bracket as both teams compare very similar in statistics, roster sizes, and overall record (obviously).

(7) Lancaster Catholic at (2) Boiling Springs

Note- Lancaster Catholic is hurting losing their last four out of five matchups, while Boiling Springs is rolling on a 6 game winning streak. The Crusaders will need to get going early offensively as the Bubblers are averaging nearly 44 points a contest. I expect a track meet type score for this tilt. 

(6) Bermudian Springs at (3) Hamburg

Note- The Bermudian Springs Eagles come into this game-winning their three last contests. Ethan Beachy is having a nice season for them with 11 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions. Beachy and company face a tall task traveling to square off against the Hamburg Hawks who finished their Berks County season at 6-3 overall. 

Best Player in this bracket:  Amory Thompson Wide Receiver/Defensive Back WyomissingThompson does it all for the Spartans, from catching passes, returning kickoffs, and pulling in interceptions, he is a part of a special senior class in Wyomissing. In their historic victory of Southern Columbia, he had a 41-yard touchdown run, followed by a 98-yard kickoff return for a score.

2nd Best player in this bracket: Drew Eisenhower Running Back Wyomissing. Another dual-threat the Senior Running Back/Safety makes plays on both sides of the football. 

Favorite to win the bracket: Wyomissing, nobody wants to play them, and with good reason. 

Team on the Rise: Boiling Springs, they finished their regular season 9-1 with their one defeat coming back in week four in a shout-out against Mechanicsburg. They are not intimidated by anyone and will come to fight every play.

2A District 3 Breakdown: 

(4) Susquenita at (1) York Catholic

Note: Susquenita nabbed the final spot in the 2A playoffs but is coming off a 52-20 setback against Juanita. York Catholic just capped off their third undefeated regular season in School History, claimed the YAIAA Division 2 title. The Fighting Irish have a turnover-free run-first offense, that defensively may be one of the best in the entire conference.

(3) Upper Dauphin at (2) Columbia

Note: Both squads come into this game on a seven-game winning streak and it is certainly a style of different contrast.  Upper Dauphin’s defense only allowed 13 points per contest during their streak, while Columbia offensively is just under 48 points. Two teams that appear to have opposite strengths always love these types of clashes.

Best Player in this bracket:  Columbia Quarterback Robert Footman: The Senior QB has set not only school but state records putting on a clinic each week. Along with his host of weapons are a big reason why the Crimson Tide are back in the playoffs for the first time in nearly 20 years. 

2nd Best player in this bracket: York Catholic Running Back Andrew Adams, the Fighting Irish leading running back is dynamic not only in the backfield (1009 yards rushing) but also is second on his team’s defense in tackles with 51. The Senior backer 

Favorite to win the bracket: York Catholic, the Fighting Irish claimed the Division 3 YAIAA title on their way to a perfect record of 8-0 in the regular season. YC has defeated the likes of Lancaster Catholic, Delone Catholic, and York Suburban, for an average margin of victory near 20 points. 

Team on the Rise: Upper Dauphin, they are playing good football and improving each week.

1A District 3 Breakdown: 

Steel-High vs. Delone Catholic, championship game 

Note: Delone Catholic finished their regular season with a 6-4 record seems to be scuffling a bit offensively the past couple of games. The Squires have a stout defense only allowing 131 total yards per contest. They will need all of that plus more when they take on the Steel-High Rollers for the 1A District 3 Title. The Rollers who finished second in the Capital Division Mid Penn Conference with a 7-2 record have one of the most dynamic offenses in their league. They are coming off their back-to-back losses though and will need to regroup as Delone Catholic is hungry.

Best Player in this bracket: Alex Erby Quarterback Steel-High, Erby only a sophomore has already surpassed several Rollers records including all time leading passer. This young man is becoming a nation wide hyped recruit ranking in the top 10 in many recruiting sites for the class of 2024. 

2nd Best player in this bracket: Daivin Pryor Running Back Steel-High, despite their 1 point loss last week, the Senior play-maker did everything he could rushing for nearly 200 yards. He is one of the many weapons the Rollers possess in their high octane offense. 

Favorite to win the bracket: Steel-High they will be looking to repeat as 1A state and district champs, it will start and possibly end Friday. 

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