A high school football team in Pennsylvania won a playoff game on Friday with only 11 players, total. Westinghouse won by almost 70 points while the majority of its team watched on from the stands.
Yes, you read that correctly!!
Westinghouse is a Pittsburgh-area powerhouse. Established 112 years ago in 1912, the school enrolls approximately 1,200 students. Its opponent, Perry Traditional Academy, is located about 15 miles east with an enrollment of only 500-ish.
These two schools met in the City League semifinal at Cupples Stadium on Friday.
The Bulldogs of Westinghouse had only 11 active players. Pennsylvania’s Interscholastic Athletic Association suspended more than half of the team after they “left the bench during a recent game incident” on the Friday prior.
A Westinghouse player was dragged about 20 yards by the defense after he had already been stopped. A scuffle ensued.
Best video we’ve seen yet from the altercation between University Prep and Westinghouse. pic.twitter.com/LQeazKKHgn
— The W.P.I.A.L. Edition (@TheWPIALEdition) October 17, 2024
Everyone and anyone who left the sideline during the kerfuffle was suspended for one game. Pittsburgh Public Schools issued a statement that said the Bulldogs were allowed to compete in the semifinal with a “significantly reduced roster,” limited to players who remained “on the field, on the bench” during the incident and those who were “not present at the game.”
That left only 11 guys on the active roster come time for warmups.
And then the 11 entered.
— Mike White (@mwhiteburgh) October 18, 2024
Westinghouse will have only 11 players for tonight’s City League playoff game. And here they come for warmups. pic.twitter.com/WlkghGPtcF
The other 38 players showed up to support their teammates from the crowd.
Elite 11 are here for Westinghouse with their other players in the stands. “Wish we could play” pic.twitter.com/9OK8H1eFIC
— Mike White (@mwhiteburgh) October 18, 2024
A roster this limited would typically present a serious disadvantage. All of the Bulldogs were forced to play every single snap on both sides of the ball throughout the entire game.
It did not matter!
A high school football team won with as few as nine players.
Westinghouse, with only 11 players, beat Perry 68-0 in less than four full quarters. Both teams agreed to play six-minute quarters in the second half with a running clock.
The offensive success was one thing. Nine of the 11 players normally start on offense anyway. However, most of the skill players, including the quarterback, had not played a single defensive snap until Friday night.
To make the win even more dominant, Bulldogs head coach Donta Green decided to rest one of his linemen on defense to save his energy. They played the entire game with only 10 guys on defense. An injury briefly decreased that number to nine at one point during the first half.
Westinghouse will play for a City League title after winning a high school football game with only 11 players total. It will get the rest of its roster back for the final.