A long playoff streak is in jeopardy, the top two Class AAAA teams will meet to decide a conference title and only 13 playoff spots are open.

Those are some of the story lines heading into the final weekend of the WPIAL football regular season. Fifty-one of the 64 playoff spots have already been filled. Jeannette needs to win to stretch its string of consecutive playoff appearances to 16.

On Friday, the top two teams in Class AAAA square off when No. 1-ranked Gateway plays at No. 2 McKeesport in a game that not only will decide first place in the Foothills Conference, but also might decide the No. 1 seed for the playoffs.

The top four teams in all 16 WPIAL conferences make the playoffs. The first- and second-place teams in each conference play home games in the first round. The rest of the playoffs are played on neutral fields. The WPIAL championships are Nov. 27 at Heinz Field.

Ties for playoff spots are broken by head-to-head competition, Gardner Points and WPIAL tiebreaker points.

Here is a conference-by-conference look at the WPIAL (records next to teams are conference records).

BIG EAST CONFERENCE -- Woodland Hills (4-0), Central Catholic (3-1) and Penn Hills (3-1) have clinched playoff spots. The winner of Kiski Area (1-3) vs. Plum (1-3) is fourth. If Woodland Hills beats Penn Hills, then Woodland Hills is first, Central Catholic second and Penn Hills third. If Penn Hills wins, and Central Catholic beats Fox Chapel, the three-way deadlock for first will be decided by tiebreaker points. Woodland Hills has 40, while Central Catholic and Penn Hills have 20.

FOOTHILLS -- Gateway (5-0), McKeesport (5-0) and Latrobe (3-2) have clinched spots. Gateway and McKeesport play for first and second place. Latrobe is third. The winner of Norwin (2-3) vs. Penn-Trafford (2-3) is fourth.

GREAT SOUTHERN -- Bethel Park (4-0) is first, and Mt. Lebanon (3-1) and Upper St. Clair (2-2) also have clinched. If Mt. Lebanon beats Upper St. Clair, Mt. Lebanon is second. If Mt. Lebanon wins, Bethel Park beats Baldwin (2-2), and Canon-McMillan (1-3) beats Peters Township, Upper St. Clair is third with more tiebreaker points and Canon-McMillan fourth. Baldwin can qualify only if it wins, or if Canon-McMillan loses.

NORTHERN SIX -- North Allegheny (4-0) is first and Shaler (3-1) second. North Hills (2-2) and Seneca Valley (2-2) also have clinched. If North Hills loses to North Allegheny, or Seneca Valley beats Butler, then Seneca Valley is third.

BIG SEVEN -- Thomas Jefferson (5-0) is first and Chartiers Valley (5-1) second. If Thomas Jefferson beats West Mifflin, Trinity beats Ringgold, and Belle Vernon beats Elizabeth Forward, then Belle Vernon is third and Trinity fourth. If Thomas Jefferson, Ringgold and Belle Vernon win, Belle Vernon is third and Ringgold fourth. If Thomas Jefferson, Ringgold and Elizabeth Forward win, there will be a five-way tie for the two spots. Belle Vernon would be third with more tiebreaker points. Going back to head to head, Ringgold would be fourth.

GREATER ALLEGHENY -- Franklin Regional (3-1), Mars (3-1), Knoch (3-1) and Hampton (2-2) have clinched spots. If Franklin Regional beats Indiana, Mars beats Knoch, and Hampton beats Highlands, then Mars is first, Franklin Regional second, Knoch third and Hampton fourth. If Franklin Regional, Knoch and Hampton win, then Franklin Regional is first, Knoch second, Hampton third and Mars fourth.

PARKWAY -- Hopewell (5-0) is first, and West Allegheny (4-1), New Castle (4-2) and Montour (3-2) have clinched spots. If West Allegheny beats Montour Thursday, West Allegheny is second, New Castle third and Montour fourth. If Montour wins, the deadlock for second will be broken by tiebreaker points. West Allegheny has 29, New Castle 22 and Montour 16.

KEYSTONE -- Greensburg Salem (5-0) is first. Uniontown (4-1), Derry (3-2) and Laurel Highlands (3-2) also have clinched. If Uniontown beats Laurel Highlands, and Greensburg Salem beats Derry, then Uniontown is second, Derry third and Laurel Highlands fourth. If Laurel Highlands and Greensburg Salem win, then Laurel Highlands is second, Uniontown third and Derry fourth. If Derry and Laurel Highlands win, then Derry is second and Laurel Highlands third.

ALLEGHENY -- Shady Side Academy (7-1), Freeport (7-1) and Burrell (6-2) have clinched. The winner of Ford City (6-2) vs. Kittanning also clinches. If Shady Side Academy beats Deer Lakes, Shady Side is first and Freeport second.

CENTURY -- South Fayette (8-0) is first, Keystone Oaks (7-1) second and Sto-Rox (6-2) third. If Steel Valley (5-3) beats South Park (4-4), Steel Valley is in. If Steel Valley loses, and South Fayette beats Bishop Canevin (4-4), then South Park is fourth. Bishop Canevin can qualify only if it beats South Fayette, South Park beats Steel Valley and Seton-LaSalle loses to Keystone Oaks. Seton-LaSalle (4-4) cannot qualify.

INTERSTATE -- Mount Pleasant (8-0) is first, and McGuffey (6-2) also has clinched a spot. McGuffey can finish second by beating Washington (6-2). Washington (6-2) is in with a victory. Jeannette (5-3) can qualify if it beats Greensburg Central Catholic (6-2) and Charleroi loses to Mount Pleasant. Greensburg Central Catholic (6-2) qualifies with a win. Here are a few scenarios: If Washington, Greensburg Central Catholic and Mount Pleasant win, then Greensburg Central is second, Washington third and McGuffey fourth. If McGuffey, Greensburg Central and Mount Pleasant win, then McGuffey is second, Greensburg Central third and Washington fourth. Charleroi (5-3) cannot qualify.

MIDWESTERN -- Center (6-1), Beaver Falls (6-1), Aliquippa (6-1) and Beaver (5-2) have clinched. If Center beats Beaver, and Aliquippa beats Freedom, then Center is first with more tiebreaker points, Beaver Falls second and Aliquippa third. If Beaver, Beaver Falls and Aliquippa win, then Beaver Falls is first, Aliquippa second, Beaver third and Center fourth.

BIG SEVEN -- Rochester (6-0) is first, Laurel (5-1) second and Monaca (4-2) third. South Side Beaver (3-3) is fourth if it beats Western Beaver. Shenango (3-3) can qualify only if it beats Laurel, and Western Beaver (2-4) beats South Side Beaver. If Western Beaver wins, and Shenango loses, then Western Beaver qualifies with more Gardner Points.

BLACK HILLS -- Clairton (6-0), Serra (5-1) and Fort Cherry (4-2) have clinched. The winner of Clairton vs. Serra is first. If Clairton wins and Fort Cherry beats Chartiers-Houston (3-3), then Fort Cherry is second and Serra third. Char-Houston can qualify by beating Fort Cherry, or if Burgettstown loses to Avella. If Char-Houston loses, Frazier wins and Burgettstown wins, the final playoff spot will come down to tiebreaker points. Char-Houston has 0, Burgettstown minus-3 and Frazier minus-29. Thus, Frazier (2-4) can't qualify.

EASTERN -- North Catholic (6-0), Avonworth (5-1) and Brentwood (4-2) have clinched. North Catholic and Avonworth play for first. The winner of Springdale (4-2) and Riverview (3-3) also qualifies. If Avonworth wins, North Catholic is automatically second. If North Catholic wins, Springdale wins, and Brentwood beats Carlynton, then Avonworth is second, Brentwood third and Springdale fourth.

TRI-COUNTY SOUTH -- Monessen (6-0) is first, Beth-Center (5-1) second and Jefferson-Morgan (4-2) third. Carmichaels (3-3) can qualify if it beats West Greene, or California loses to Monessen. California (3-3) can qualify only if it beats Monessen, and Carmichaels loses to West Greene.

The top four teams qualify for the semifinals. The championship will be played either Nov. 12 or 13 at a site to be determined. Schenley (6-1), Oliver (6-1), Brashear (6-2) and Perry (5-2) have clinched. If Schenley beats Carrick, Schenley is first. If Schenley beats Carrick, Oliver beats Peabody and Perry beats Langley, then Oliver is second, Perry third and Brashear fourth. If Schenley wins, Oliver loses to Peabody, and Perry beats Langley, then Oliver is second, Perry third and Brashear fourth.

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