2024 NYSPHSAA football semifinals: Defending champions and rising contenders gear up for high-stakes weekend

Christian Brothers Academy, Somers, and Pembroke lead the charge as teams clash for a spots in the championship round across all classes.

Christian Brothers Academy is one of three teams hoping to win a second consecutive NYSPHSAA football state championship. / Frank Becerra Jr./The Journal News / USA TODAY NETWORK

The New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) football playoffs roll into the semifinal round this weekend.

Christian Brothers Academy-Syracuse (Class AA), Somers (Class A) and Pembroke (8-man) are all on a quest to defend their titles.

The state semifinals, and the 8-man regional semifinal round, will be held at either Middletown High School or Vestal High School on Friday and Saturday. The game start times vary between noon to 6 p.m.

The NYSPHSAA championships for Class AA through Class D are Dec. 6-7 at the JMA Wireless Dome in Syracuse. The 8-man regional title game is at 3 p.m. Dec. 7 at Moravia High School.

Class AA

Aquinas Institute (Section IV) escaped with a 21-19 win over Lancaster (Section VI) in the Class AA regional round over the weekend.

The Lil’ Irish, however, will face Class AA defending state champ CBA-Syracuse, currently on a 26-game win streak, in the semifinals on Saturday. CBA throttled Elmira (Section IV), 63-12, in regionals.

While the Brothers are on the hunt for their third state title in school history, Aquinas is searching for its ninth state crown.

Corning (Section IV), a wildcard in the state playoffs, stunned Monroe-Woodbury (Section IX) with a 26-13 win in regionals. Now, the Hawks will look to redeem themselves after they lost to Elmira in the Class AA sectional championship a couple of weeks ago.

Corning technically has a Class A state title from the 2006 season. The championship trophy went to Corning East before they merged with Corning West in 2014.

The Hawks’ state semifinal foe will be CBA-Albany, who is hoping to secure its first state title.

Class A

The regional round came with some theatrics.

Whitesboro (Section III), last season’s Class A state runner-up, fended off Horseheads (Section IV) for a 28-21 victory in regionals. The game was tied after three quarters, but the Warriors did just enough to escape past the Blue Raiders.

Whitesboro will now go toe-to-toe with a scrappy Brighton (Section V) squad. The undefeated Bruins are making their first trip to the state semifinals in school history.

On the other side of the bracket, defending champ Somers (Section I) and Cornwall Central (Section IX) each took care of business in regionals. The Tuskers and Dragons, who have a combined five state crowns between the two of them, will compete in the semifinals on Friday.

Somers is eyeing a three-peat. Cornwall is hoping to crash the party and win its first state title since 2019.

All-in-all, the Class A state championship could potentially be a rematch between the Tuskers and Warriors from last season.

Class B

All of the Class B regional contests were unmatched, with each of the state semifinal participants winning their games by 25-or-more points.

The Class B final four features two powerhouses in Glens Falls (Section II) and Maine-Endwell (Section IV). The Black Bears have two state titles under their belt. The Spartans have racked up an impressive seven state trophies, including four straight between 2011 and 2014.

The other semifinal teams are Health Sciences Charter (Section VI) and Port Jervis (Section IX), two squads looking for their first state title. 

Glens Falls gets Health Sciences, and Maine-Endwell will take on Port Jervis in showdowns to determine who will move onto the Class B title game.

Class C

Much like Class B, none of the Class C regional round games had a close finish. Each squad won by 22-or-more points, with the highest margin in Schuylerville of Section II’s 45-6 victory over Section X’s Gouverneur.

Schuylerville is hoping to break its three-game losing streak in the title game. But first, the Horses will face Section I’s Valhalla, the 1996 Class D champion, in the semifinal round.

The other semifinal matchup has Section IV’s Chenango Forks pitted against Section VI’s Salamanca. The Blue Devils, a habitual state tournament competitor with 13 appearances in the championship game, have seven state titles in program history.

The Warriors are gunning for a second state championship appearance, with their last one in 1999.

If Chenango Forks and Schuylerville come out victorious in their respective semifinal matchups, they will set up a rematch of the 2021 Class C state title game. The Blue Devils won 21-0 that year.

Class D

One of Class D’s semifinal games will feature Greenwich (Section II) and Burke Catholic (Section IX), a matchup where both teams are hoping to lock in their first-ever state title.

Greenwich and Burke Catholic recorded shutouts in their regional contests by very different margins. The Witches won big at 34-0, while Burke Catholic was victorious by a paltry 3-0 score.

The semifinal contest on the other side of the bracket has the makings of an exciting finish. Dolgeville (Section III), who edged Section IV’s Delaware Academy in regionals, heads into the state semifinals for the first time in 22 years.

The Blue Devils in the past have been to the state championship game twice, winning it all in 2000. They will go up against Clymer Central/Sherman/Panama (Section VI), a two-time state champion who’s been to the big game three times.

The Panthers beat Section V’s Avon, 48-14, in their Class D regional matchup.

8-Man

Vengeance is the name of the game in this season’s regional final four.

Section IV rivals Moravia and Trumansburg will face in the semifinals on Friday at noon. Trumansburg, the Section IV 8-man champion, and Moravia, a wildcard, square off for a third time this season.

The Blue Devils beat the Blue Raiders during the regular season, but Trumansburg was triumphant over Moravia in the 8-man sectional championship game.

The other semifinal contest has Section V’s Pembroke, the defending 8-man regional champion, taking on Section III’s Frankfort-Schuyler.

Last season, the Dragons overwhelmed the Maroon Knights with a 107-64 win in the regional semifinals. This year’s semifinal clash brings in teams with a heavy veteran presence.