Clairton claims 15th WPIAL Class 1A title in dominating, defensive showdown

Tagged under: District 7, Gameday Hub, News, Playoffs

Ethan Spozarski | November 22, 2025

Despite having five turnovers on downs and only one touchdown, that is all Clairton needed to secure the WPIAL Class 1A Championship over Laurel with a final score of 8-6.

This is the third time, all-time, that these two teams have met in the WPIAL Championship game with Clairton having won the last time these two teams played for the class 1A title in 1989.

Head coach Wayne Wade Jr. knew there was a lot of adversity coming into this season after falling short of the 1A title a season ago.

“There have been a lot of people that have stepped up this year. These kids have faced a lot of adversity. We stood here last year as runners up, and since Feb. 5, this team decided they wanted to go win a championship.”

The game started with the Spartans receiving the opening kickoff. The Bears though were able to stall out the Laurel offense and stop a near four-minute opening drive.

The Bears offense started deep in their own territory at their own three-yard line. Clairton only shaved about a minute off of the clock before Michael Ruffing threw a deep-ball interception to Laurel’s Tony Geitwitz.

The Bears defense again stood strong forcing another punt by the Spartan offense. The Bears offense was able to put together a better second drive, pushing and forcing their near Laurel territory. However, Clairton turned the ball over on downs at their own 42-yard line.

Clairton’s defense, once more, held the Laurel offense to little yardage and Laurel missed a 39-yard field goal. The game started the second quarter with no score and a lot of defense.

This streak carried well into the second quarter. Clairton’s fourth drive started at their own 21 and had a 69-yard touchdown score, but it was taken back by a holding call near the line of scrimmage. This was during three straight plays where the Bears were flagged for two holding calls and a delay of game.

The Bears didn’t stall out though. They produced a 70-plus yard drive resulting in a Brandon Murphy 12-yard receiving touchdown. With the help of a Donte Wright two-yard rush, the Bears led the Spartans 8-0 into the half.

Clairton strikes first in the WPIAL 1A Championship. @BrandonMurphy04 catches a 12-yard touchdown from @JThompson3_ . 2-point conversion good as well.

Clairton 8, Laurel 0
36 seconds left in the first half pic.twitter.com/EfV7vx7tvA

— Brett Gombita (@Brett_Gombita) November 22, 2025

Clairton opened up the second half at their own 46-yard line off an onside kick. The Bears put together a six minute and 44 second drive that almost resulted in a touchdown but it was taken back after a Wright pass interference call. Clairton went for it on 4th and 25, and couldn’t convert, giving the ball back to Laurel.

The defense started the third quarter off like they had the entire first half and held the Spartans to another punt and no points. After getting the ball back, the Bears this time were not as effective on offense, turning the ball over on downs for the fourth time in the game.

Both teams traded punts on their following possessions, but the Bears punt was blocked and unable to carry itself out of Clairton territory. The Spartans set up shop for their eighth drive on the Bear 41-yard line.

The Bears had two defensive pass-interference calls inside the Clairton 20-yard line allowing the Spartans to get the 1-yard rushing touchdown. Clairton’s defense stood tall on tall on the Laurel two-point conversion and still led the game 8-6 with 5:28 remaining in the game.

Clairton’s offense came back onto the field however went three-and-out on that possession and attempted a fake punt. The Spartans stopped Clairton on the 21-yard line and the fifth time that Laurel started an offensive drive in Clairton territory.

The Bears defense got its best stop of the game, forcing a fumble and recovering it on the Clairton 16-yard line with only two minutes and 15 left in the game.

Clairton needed three plays, but they collected the first down which extended their drive and won them the WPIAL Class 1A Championship with a final score of 8-6.

Nathan Hill in for a Laurel touchdown. That makes it 8-6.

Timeout Laurel ahead of the 2-point attempt. 5:28 left in the game. @PaFootballNews @PFNBackyard pic.twitter.com/QXC6H4G2mg

— Brett Gombita (@Brett_Gombita) November 22, 2025

Wade Jr said that the community support has been a driving force for his team this season.

“Our community supports us 100-percent,” Wade Jr. said. “They are always there, they are always willing to help. We have so many guys that have played in the program that come back giving kids words of encouragement. Our community is tight knit.”

Thompson said as well how this year there is a sense of enjoyment being able to win the class 1A title.

“I felt like I let the city down last year,” Thompson said. “It felt good out there; it felt good being able to throw the ball.”

Thompson added how he felt the team was able to defeat a Laurel team that defensively has allowed eight or less points in nine of their 12 games this season.

“We just started spreading them out a little bit more,” Thompson said. “We tried to get it inside a little bit, their defensive line was tough, but we started to get a little movement on them.”

This win secures the Bear’s 15th WPIAL title in program history and moves Clairton on into the state playoff race where they will face Greenville. The game will be on Nov. 28 or 29 with a time and location to be determined.