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Hittin’ The Road With Travelin’ Matt – Week One (Five Games To Kickoff The 2026 Season)

 
Tagged under: District 10, District 7, District 8, Gameday Hub, News, pfn, The STATE of PA Football

| August 31, 2026

Each week Travelin’ Matt traverses Pennsylvania attending the hottest high school football games and best matchups in the Commonwealth.  Follow his exploits each week as he documents his journey from Week One to the Pennsylvania State Football Finals!

 

Wednesday, August 26

The State of PA Football Pre-Season Show

 

Friday, August 28

2A HM Bishop Canevin (0-0) vs 4A University Prep (0-0)

6A #1 Pittsburgh Central Catholic (0-0) vs Bergen Catholic NJ (0-0)

 

Saturday, August 29

2A #5 Westinghouse (0-0) vs. 3A #3 Hickory (0-0)

1A #1 Clairton (0-0) vs 2A #2 Farrell (0-0)

4A #5 New Castle (0-0) vs 5A Woodland Hills (0-0)

 

ROUNDTRIP – 484 MILES

 

Wednesday, August 26

My week began as a guest on The State of PA Football show to preview the 2026 season and get the schedule kicked off for PA Football News.  Our staff broke down all six classes across the state and it was tremendous to finally be in game week after waiting all year for High School Football Season to begin.  If you missed the PFN Preview Show click the video below to get caught up on The State of PA Football!

 

The STATE of PA Football: 2026 Season Preview Show LIVE at the Centre County Grange Fair

 

Friday, August 28

Week One and the 2026 season kicked off for me near Pittsburgh for an action-packed five-game slate taking place over two days at the historic Wolvarena in Turtle Creek, PA.

The Wolverena is the official home of Woodland Hills football and is built into the area’s many hills with houses perched at its summit.  This classic throwback gridiron has been host to some of the most talented players and teams Western PA has produced since 1942.  Originally named Turtle Creek Stadium, it was renamed to its modern moniker in 1987 a handful of years after the creation of the Woodland Hills School District (formed by combining the Edgewood, General Braddock, Swissvale, Churchill and Turtle Creek school districts).

First up for the weekend was District 7 vs. District 8 as 2A Bishop Canevin (D7) opened its campaign against Pittsburgh City League foe USO (University Prep/Sci-Tech/Obama Academy – D8).  From the jump, Bishop Canevin was up to the task as they tallied 33 points in the first quarter en route to a resounding 40-0 victory over USO.  Bishop Canevin was powered on the strength of their running game with Senior Alex Kirk and Freshman Neuval Bone III inflicting most of the damage on the day.

Check out some highlights from Bishop Canevin vs. USO…

 

 

 

 

 

Game Two of the day featured the top-ranked 6A team in Pennsylvania Pittsburgh Central Catholic and 20-time New Jersey State Champion Bergen Catholic in a clash of parochial schools.  This matchup brought together two of the most prolific football programs in the Northeast and fans packed the Wolvarena to witness the scuffle.

Bergen Catholic garnered an early 7-0 advantage on a dandy 84 TD pass from University of Oklahoma commit QB Trey Taagliaferri but PCC would answer with 31 consecutive points for a commanding lead en route to a convincing 45-30 victory for the top team in PA.

Here’s some highlights from the PCC vs. BC game…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday, August 29

Day Two of The Wolvarena event featured a triple-header of season-opening matchups.  First up on the docket was Pittsburgh City League stalwart 2A #5 ranked Westinghouse as they tussled with 3A #3 ranked dynamo Hickory of District 10.

The two teams were knotted at 0-0 after a hard-hitting first quarter before Westinghouse imposed their will on the Hornets for a 20-6 win.  Check out some of the big plays in the Westinghouse/Hickory game!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The sandwich game on Saturday was a highly-anticipated battle between the defending 1A State Champion Clairton Bears of District 7 and last season’s State Runner-Up 2A Farrell of District 10.  These two traditional powerhouses brought hearty crowds to the Wolvarena but it was the fans of Farrell who went home with a season-opening 33-6 victory over Clairton.

Here’s some highlights from Farrell vs. Clairton…

 

 

 

 

The nightcap on Day 2 featured 5A Woodland Hills playing host to 4A #5 ranked New Castle in a District 7 tilt.  The home team Wolverines were bolstered by QB Jaron McKinney who accounted for five touchdowns on the night (4 passing/1 rushing) to lead his squad to a 43-15 win against the visiting Red Hurricanes.

Watch the highlights from the Woody High vs. New Castle game below…

 

 

 

 

 

 

A full weekend of PA high school football games complete and more than 500 miles driven I wrapped up my first of 16 weeks and headed home to plan for next week’s schedule of contests.

Follow along next week as Travelin’ Matt takes you across the state on another PA High School Football journey.

 

 

2026 SEASON RECAP – 484 TOTAL MILES (5 GAMES)

 

Week 1

Bishop Canevin 40 –  University Prep 0

Pittsburgh Central Catholic 45 –  Bergen Catholic NJ 30

Westinghouse 20 – Hickory 6

Farrell 33 – Clairton 6

Woodland Hills 43 – New Castle 15

 
 
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