Penn State recruits to watch in Saturday's PIAA state championship games
There’s no shortage of Penn State recruits playing in this weekend’s PIAA state championship games at Cumberland Valley High School in Mechanicsburg, Pa. In addition to four players who already committed to play for head coach James Franklin and his staff, all six classifications have at least one player who holds a scholarship offer from the Nittany Lions participating.
Yesterday, we saw both the Class 2A and 5A games take place. The 2A game will likely end up being the most entertaining of the weekend. Southern Columbia opened the game with a 14-0 lead before Westinghouse scored 20 unanswered points. With just a few minutes left in the game, Southern Columbia put together a 99-yard drive to win the game 21-20.
In the 5A game, future Penn State cornerback Kenny Woseley totaled three tackles and two pass breakups in Imhotep’s 38-13 win over Peters Township. Running back Jabree Wallace-Coleman rushed for 214 yards and a score, while 2025 four-star edge rusher Zahir Mathis led Imhotep with nine tackles. The win was Imhotep’s first state championship since 2015.
There are still two more games to be played in Class 3A and 6A. Belle Vernon will face Northwestern Lehigh in the 3A game at 1 p.m. ET. The 6A game between St. Joseph’s Prep and North Allegheny is set to start at 7:00 p.m.
For those who live in Pennsylvania, the games will air on the Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN). You can also subscribe to view the games online.
Below are the players Penn State fans need to know heading into today’s games.
Saturday – Dec. 9
Class 3A – 1:00 pm ET – Northwestern Leigh (15-0) vs. Belle Vernon (12-1)
All eyes will be on Penn State’s most coveted player in the Class of 2024 this afternoon as Quinton Martin and his Belle Vernon teammates go for back-to-back state championships. The future Nittany Lion running back has totaled 1,027 yards rushing and 733 yards receiving on the season, which leads the team in both categories. He’s averaging 9.6 yards per rush and 15.3 yards per catch. Martin has scored 27 touchdowns this season.
Belle Vernon lost one game during the regular season to Thomas Jefferson, 24-19, back in September. Aside from that, they’ve been excellent, winning games by an average score of 41-9.
Their opponent, Northwestern Lehigh, will play in a state championship game for the first time. District 11 doesn’t often produce teams that reach the finals, but the Tigers come into the game undefeated after knocking off future Penn State offensive lineman Caleb Brewer and Wyomissing 33-24 in last weekend’s semifinal.
Northwestern Lehigh reached the quarterfinals last season before losing to eventual state runner-up Neumann-Goretti. However, stopping a player of Martin’s caliber will be a challenge they haven’t seen this season.
Class 6A – 7:00 pm ET – North Allegheny (13-1) vs. St. Joseph’s Prep (12-1)
It wouldn’t be a Class 6A final without St. Joseph’s Prep. The Philadelphia powerhouse will be playing for a state championship for the eighth year in a row and the 10th time in the past 11 years. Since Pennsylvania increased its classifications from four to six, Mt. Lebanon’s 2021 team is the only in-state program that’s defeated the Hawks.
That 2021 team featured many of the same players who will play Saturday night, as quarterback Semaj Jones, running back Isaiah West, cornerback Omillio Agard, safety Anthony Sacca and wide receivers Elijah Jones and David Washington were all underclassmen at the time.
Sacca is one of three 2025 recruits that Penn State fans should follow closely. He’s been on campus four times, but there’s no shortage of competition. Georgia, Michigan, Notre Dame and Ohio State have also hosted him for visits. If the last name sounds familiar, that’s because he’s the son of former PSU quarterback Tony Sacca.
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The other two juniors of note are linebacker Cam Smith, who transferred to Prep in the offseason, and defensive tackle Maxwell Roy. Ranked No. 60 overall in the nation, Smith has been a top target for over a year, visiting three times total. He holds 15 offers currently. Roy is also a four-star prospect and member of the On300, ranked at No. 175 nationally. He’s been to Penn State three times so far, most recently attending the White Out win over Iowa.
In the 2026 class, defensive end Alex Haskell also holds an offer from the Lions after camping back in June. He’s visited three times total.
Prep comes into tonight’s game with a 12-1 record. Their only loss came back in August when they faced IMG Academy in their season opener. During nonconference play, they defeated St. Peter’s Prep and Don Bosco from New Jersey, as well as Maryland’s MIAA Class A champion Archbishop Spalding.
North Allegheny features two 2024 prospects of note, including three-star defensive lineman Cameron Chmura. He committed to Marshall back in June. Linebacker Tyree Alualu has also earned 15 scholarship offers.
The Tigers come into this game with a 13-1 record. They lost to Central Catholic – home to future Nittany Lions Anthony Speca and Peter Gonzalez – during the regular season, 50-22, but avenged that loss in the playoffs, winning 44-41. North Allegheny then defeated Cooper Cousins and McDowell in the quarterfinals, 41-7, before knocking up last year’s state runner-up Harrisburg in the semis, 24-12.
