Friday night’s Pennsylvania 5A championship game features Roman Catholic, No. 138 in the High School Football America 300 national rankings, powered by NFL Play Football, against unranked Bishop McDevitt from Harrisburg.
McDevitt is looking for its second state title in three year. RC is looking for its first-ever.
Below is more on the game from our friends at EasternPAFootball.com:
Class 5A Friday at 7 p.m. at Cumberland Valley HS
(D-3) Bishop McDevitt (13-2) vs. (D-12) Roman Catholic (11-4)
This matchup is like an old, grainy black-and-white western movie. On one side is Bishop McDevitt’s rocket arm Kentucky-bound senior quarterback Stone Saunders. On the other, Roman Catholic’s highly recruited Semaj Beals, who completed 24 of 36 for 309 yards and four touchdowns in the Cahillites’ thorough 41-17 state semifinal victory over West Chester Rustin—putting Roman in the state finals for the first time in program history. Saunders owns a career state-record 202 touchdown passes, though he was hardly used in McDevitt’s 28-14 victory over Pine-Richland in the other semifinal game. He completed just five passes for 131 yards. The Crusaders relied on junior tailback Nazir Jones-Davis, who carried 29 times for 230 yards. This is a Crusaders’ team that is on a redemption mission. They won the 4A state championship over the legendary Aliquippa program, 41-18, in 2022, and with high expectations to repeat last year, they were upset in double overtime by Dallas, 26-23. Roman, on the other hand, never won a state playoff game prior to this season, always running into the District 12 5A stumbling Imhotep Charter. Under Beals, the Cahillites run a fast-tempo offense that has caused problems for opposing defenses all season. Roman has also faced a tougher schedule, playing three state-caliber championship teams in St. Joe’s Prep, La Salle, and Bonner Prendergast—two of which are in the state finals. Will McDevitt be able to slow down Beals and Roman? Can Roman hold down Jones-Davis and keep a lid on Saunders?
| Team | Class | District | Record | Games Played (Playoffs) | Avg. Points Scored (Playoffs) | Avg. Points Allowed (Playoffs) | Avg. Points Scored (Season) | Avg. Points Allowed (Season) |
| Bishop McDevitt Crusaders | 5A | D3 | 13-2 | 5 | 37.2 | 11.2 | 39.8 | 16.6 |
| Roman Catholic Cahillites | 5A | D12 | 11-4 | 5 | 45.6 | 12.6 | 39.8 | 22.2 |
Bishop McDevitt Crusaders
| Date | Opponent | Kickoff | Result | Game Notes |
| 8/24 | @ Mount St. Joseph’s (MD) | 4:30 pm | W 45-15 | @ Smalls Field, 31 Hamilton Avenue, York, PA |
| 8/31 | Harrisburg* (6A) | 12:00 pm | L 33-35 | OT |
| 9/06 | @ Chambersburg* (6A) | 7:00 pm | W 40-3 | |
| 9/13 | Cedar Cliff* (6A) | 7:00 pm | W 56-16 | |
| 9/20 | @ Carlisle* (6A) | 7:00 pm | W 56-7 | |
| 9/27 | Altoona Area* (6A) | 7:00 pm | W 28-21 | |
| 10/04 | @ Cumberland Valley* (6A) | 7:00 pm | W 30-8 | |
| 10/11 | Central Dauphin* (6A) | 7:00 pm | W 28-10 | |
| 10/18 | Central Dauphin East* (6A) | 7:00 pm | W 41-21 | |
| 10/25 | @ State College Area* (6A) | 7:00 pm | L 55-58 | |
| 11/01 | Lower Dauphin (5A) | 7:00 pm | W 42-7 | Dist. 3 5A 1st Round |
| 11/08 | @ Conrad Weiser (5A) | 7:00 pm | W 42-7 | Dist. 3 Class 5A Quarterfinal |
| 11/15 | @ Mechanicsburg (5A) | 7:00 pm | W 26-14 | Dist. 3 Class 5A Semifinal |
| 11/22 | Exeter Township (5A) | 7:00 pm | W 48-14 | Dist. 3 Class 5A Championship @ ELCO |
| 11/29 | Pine-Richland (5A) | 7:00 pm | W 28-14 | PIAA Class 5A Semifinal @ Mansion Park, Altoona |
Roman Catholic Cahillites
| Date | Opponent | Kickoff | Result | Game Notes |
| 8/17 | @ Archbishop Spalding (MD) | 1:00 pm | Scrimmage | |
| 8/23 | @ Neumann-Goretti (3A) | 7:00 pm | W 45-12 | |
| 8/31 | @ St. John’s College (DC) | 2:00 pm | W 52-14 | |
| 9/07 | A. Philip Randolph (NY) | 7:00 pm | W 67-0 | |
| 9/13 | @ Malvern Prep | 7:00 pm | W 21-17 | |
| 9/20 | DeMatha Catholic (MD) | 7:00 pm | L 12-49 | |
| 9/27 | @ Bonner-Prendie* (4A) | 5:00 pm | L 30-38 | |
| 10/05 | Cardinal O’Hara* (4A) | 7:00 pm | W 52-34 | |
| 10/12 | Father Judge* (5A) | 1:00 pm | W 54-24 | |
| 10/19 | @ St. Joseph’s Prep* (6A) | 8:00 pm | L 20-48 | at Franklin Field |
| 10/26 | @ La Salle College HS* (6A) | 3:00 pm | L 16-35 | |
| 11/02 | Father Judge (5A) | 4:00 pm | W 56-7 | Philly Cath. League 5A Championship |
| 11/09 | @ Frankford (5A) | 1:00 pm | W 42-12 | Dist. 12 Class 5A Final @ Germantown SS |
| 11/15 | @ East Stroudsburg South (5A) | 7:00 pm | W 41-13 | PIAA Class 5A 1st Round |
| 11/22 | Hollidaysburg (5A) | 7:00 pm | W 48-14 | PIAA Class 5A Quarterfinal @ Mechanicsburg |
| 11/29 | @ West Chester Rustin (5A) | 7:00 pm | W 41-17 | PIAA Class 5A Semifinal @ West Chester Henderson HS |
