The PIAA state high school football championships run Thursday to Saturday, and there’s only one more champion to crown.
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Follow live sideline updates from St. Joseph’s Prep vs Central Catholic.
St. Joseph’s Prep: Charlie Foulke (13-of-22, 148 yards, one touchdown)
Central Catholic: Jy’Aire Walls (12-of-32, 129 yards)
St. Joseph’s Prep: Khyan Billups (29 carries, 228 yards, three touchdowns)
Central Catholic: Elijah Faulkner (15 carries, 67 yards)
St. Joseph’s Prep: Jamir Rowe (4 receptions, 54 yards)
Central Catholic: Maceo Watkins (5 receptions, 76 yards)
St. Joseph’s Prep: Anthony Sacca (6 solo, 1 assisted, 2 tackles for loss)
Central Catholic: Chrys Black (11 solo, 4 assisted)
St. Joseph’s Prep: John Boggs (2 sacks, 18 yards)
Central Catholic: Ashton Blatt (1 sack, 1 yard)
First downs: 16
Rushing: 36 carries, 285 yards
Total offensive yards: 433
Turnovers forced: 1
Penalties: 5-45 yards
Possession time: 27:26
Third down conversions: 5-13
First downs: 17
Rushing: 33 carries, 88 yards
Total offensive yards: 217
Turnovers forced: 0
Penalties: 5-30 yards
Possession time: 20:34
Third down conversions: 4-15
The Hawks hold the Vikings to 132 yards of total offense in the second half and maintain their halftime lead with full confidence. St. Joseph’s Prep has now earned its third straight state title in 6A and its ninth overall since 2013.
Will Vokolos delivers the dagger that all but delivered St. Joseph’s its third straight state title. Vokolos, on his second carry of the game, broke out for a 44-yard touchdown.
Time’s running low, and the Hawks are still in full command. Two of the Vikings’ drives this quarter ended in turnovers on downs. Granted, the Vikings have also forced two straight punts out of the Hawks this quarter.
The first half has been all St. Joseph’s Prep. It has scored on four of its seven drives this half and forced Central Catholic into four punts and a turnover on downs. Khyan Billups leads all rushers with 177 yards and three touchdowns, while Charlie Foulke is 11-for-17 with 130 passing yards and one touchdown.
Elijah Faulkner leads the Vikings with 56 rushing yards on nine carries. Jy’Aire Walls is 3-for-14 with 21 passing yards and has 13 rushing yards and a touchdown.
Khyan Billups has been the Hawks’ be-all, end-all tonight. The junior scored his third touchdown from a yard out after carrying the ball two yards on the play before. Billups now up to 176 rushing yards on just 13 carries.
The Vikings got a big break after Elijah Faulkner churned out a 23-yard rush down to the Hawks’ 1-yard line as the final seconds of the first quarter ran down. They get their first points of the game at the start of the second quarter thanks to a one-yard score by Jy’Aire Walls. The point-after attempt by kicker William Lech, however, is blocked.
Khyan Billups is having a night of nights. The junior scored his second touchdown of the game on a 45-yard run along the left sideline to put the Hawks up by three scores. Billups has now accounted for 155 of the Hawks’ 197 total yards himself.
The Hawks have been rolling downfield all night − they have 152 yards to the Vikings’ eight − and just added on to their lead. Sophomore quarterback Charlie Foulke completed a wide-open pass to freshman receiver Jett Harrison for a 19-yard touchdown. Follow-up kick from Leo Ricci is good.
The Hawks made a statement on their first play of the game. Khyan Billups catches a gap up the middle and rushes 80 yards into the end zone. St. Joseph’s Prep has a one possession lead not even 15 seconds into the game.
Central Catholic won the toss and deferred to the second half. St. Joseph’s Prep will receive to start the game.
With just under 30 minutes to go, St. Joseph’s Prep and Central Catholic have returned to the locker room following warmups. Pregame temperatures read at 33 degrees, and a five miles per hour wind blows up from the southwest. Temperatures are similar to Friday’s 5A final between Bishop McDevitt and Roman Catholic, meaning the Hawks and the Vikings won’t face much weather resistance.
PIAA state football championships:Lampeter-Strasburg falls to Bonner-Prendergast in 4A
PIAA state football championship games:Bishop McDevitt walks off Roman Catholic in 5A
THURSDAY
Class 1A: Bishop Guilfoyle 41, Port Allegany 22
Class 4A: Bonner Prendergast 40, Lampeter-Strasburg 14
FRIDAY
Class 2A: Troy 25, Central Clarion 24
Class 5A: Bishop McDevitt 34, Roman Catholic 31
SATURDAY
Class 3A: 11-1 Northwestern Lehigh vs. 7-1 Avonworth, 1 p.m.
Class 6A: 12-1 St. Joseph’s Prep vs. 7-1 Central Catholic, 7 p.m.
Championship game tickets can be bought on the PIAA website.
Chapman Stadium at Cumberland Valley High School
All six games will be shown on PCN.

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