The West Virginia High School Football State Championships have been held since the early 1900s. The West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission (WVSSAC) began its formal recognition of WV State Football Championships in 1937 with the state's sports writers' vote. The WVSSAC began a class system, dividing larger and smaller schools in 1947. WVSSAC official playoff games began in 1948. Prior to the WVSSAC's involvement in an official playoff, there were other systems in play. From 1916 to 1955 the WVSSAC was called the West Virginia Athletic Association.
In the early 1900s, teams claimed state titles by virtue of their records against other WV schools. Some of the major newspapers would have input as well. Often coaches would contact one another and arrange championship games themselves. This system may have been flawed, but it was what most WV schools used for at least 33 years.
Before Brown vs. Board of Education in 1954, high school football was segregated just like the schools. About 45 colored schools existed in WV. More than 25 Black school football programs existed in West Virginia during segregation. In 1914, WV's Black leaders came together and formed what would become the West Virginia Athletic Union (WVAU), which would govern high school athletic championships in WV for African American students. The WVAU ceased to exist in 1956, as only two schools remained in the organization.
Prior to 1977 most private schools did not participate in the WVSSAC or its football playoff system. Nearly all the private schools that fielded football teams were Catholic, so the WVCHSAA was formed. In 1962 Catholic leadership began a championship game process for their schools. The West Virginia Catholic State Football Champion was crowned until the 1976 season. Wheeling Central Catholic joined the WVSSAC in 1970. By 1977 the WVCHSAA numbers were so low the organization was dissolved.
Prior to 1965 season, games played against teams in a higher class were not considered in the point system if the smaller school lost. Before 1976, if two teams tied for the last playoff spot they were both removed from the playoff. This happened in 1963 when Charleston and Welch both tied for the #2 playoff position. #1 Buckhannon-Upshur was awarded the AAA title without a game. In 1975, in single A, both Meadow Bridge and Rivesville finished the regular season 10âÂÂ0âÂÂ0, but tied for the #4 playoff spot. They were both eliminated and #1 Wirt was given a bye. There is now a tie break system for teams whose playoff points average out the same.
Championship games were played in a variety of locations over the years, but that changed in 1979. From 1979 to 1993 the three WV Football Championship games were played at Laidley Field, now University of Charleston Stadium at Laidley Field in Charleston. The West Virginia State High School Football Championship games were played at Wheeling Island Stadium from 1994 to 2023. In 2024, the championship games returned to UC Stadium at Laidley Field.
The different eras of West Virginia State Football Championships are listed below: A small number of West Virginia high schools sponsored football teams prior to 1900, but the first known game played between two West Virginia schools occurred in 1901 when Huntington High met Charleston High. The first claimed state title that has been discovered, so far, was Fairmont Senior in 1903. It is not yet certain if state titles were claimed every season between 1903 and 1915.
From 1947 to 1954, there were only two classes; Class A (big schools) and Class B (small schools). From 1955 to 1957, there were three classes; Class AA (big schools), Class A (medium-sized schools) and Class B (small schools). From 1958 to 2023 there have been three classes as well, however the names have been changed to: Class AAA (big schools), Class AA (medium-sized schools) and Class A (small schools). From 2024 to the present there have been four classes: Class AAAA (big schools), Class AAA (medium-big schools), Class AA (medium-small schools) and Class A (small schools).
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During the 1926 season Williamson and Magnolia arranged a state title game. Williamson defeated Magnolia 14âÂÂ13. However, after accusations on both sides of ineligible players the WVAA (now known as the WVSSAC) stepped in and forced both teams to forfeit all their games. Doug Huff, one of WV's leading sports historians, left both schools in his book, History of Sports in West Virginia, so they are included on this list as well.
African American students were barred from playing football with White Americans. This changed in 1954 with the Supreme Court decision Brown vs. Board of Education, which overturned school segregation. Black school athletics were governed by the WV Athletic Union but did not receive as consistent media attention as their white counterparts. This makes research difficult. Information on the Colored State Football Champions has been provided by Robert Bonner, WV high school football researcher. More will be entered as the information becomes available.
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Prior to 1977, most Catholic schools did not participate within the WVSSAC.
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The WVSSAC (WVAA at the time) used a power rating system to choose the state champions in a two-class system in 1947. The WVSSAC started a playoff game system in 1948. From 1948 to 1971, only the top two teams in each class went to the playoff. In 1972 the playoff field was expanded to four teams. In 1978 the playoffs were expanded to eight teams per class. Finally, in 1991, the top 16 in each class were awarded a playoff spot.
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When the 1975 football season ended, Meadow Bridge (10âÂÂ0âÂÂ0) and Rivesville* (10âÂÂ0âÂÂ0), were tied for the #4 playoff spot in Class A. With no tie break rules, both were eliminated and #1 Wirt County received a bye in the semi-final round. The WVSSAC has since made a comprehensive tie break rule.
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In 2020 the COVID-19 epidemic effected the football season greatly. Health officials developed a map, which was published each Saturday, and used to determine which counties could participate in WVSSAC activities the upcoming week.
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In 2020 the COVID-19 epidemic effected the football season greatly. Health officials developed a map, which was published each Saturday, and used to determine which counties could participate in WVSSAC activities the upcoming week.
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With 14 seconds remaining in the Hurricane vs. South Charleston quarter-final game, an on-field fight occurred. This resulted in five South Charleston and four Hurricane players being ejected. Ejection from a game results in a WVSSAC mandatory suspension from the next contest. However, four of the South Charleston players' parents filed a lawsuit and a Kanawha County judge ruled the players could play in the semi-final game against Brooke. After losing 29âÂÂ28 to South Charleston, Brooke parents filed their own lawsuit in Brooke County, stating that South Charleston had used the ejected players illegally. The AAA state title game was postponed one week while the case went to the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia. The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia ruled the Kanawha County judge had overstepped her bounds and that the WVSSAC had final say in the matter. South Charleston was forced to forfeit its game against Brooke. Brooke then advanced to the AAA title game against Martinsburg.
In 2020 the COVID-19 epidemic effected the football season greatly. Health officials developed a map, which was published each Saturday, and used to determine which counties could participate in WVSSAC activities the upcoming week.
The 2024 playoffs were delayed following multiple court actions. On December 20, 2023 - following the decision to expand to four classifications for football, cheer, volleyball, baseball, and softball, in addition to basketball - the WVSSAC released its classifications for the 2024âÂÂ25 to 2027âÂÂ28 academic years. Following the release of the classifications, on August 12, 2024, the WVSSAC reclassified eleven schools, after they successfully appealed. John Marshall, Oak Hill, Preston, St. Albans, and Spring Valley were moved from AAAA to AAA; Frankfort, Sissonville, and Wayne were moved from AAA to AA; and Petersburg, St. Marys, and Tyler Consolidated were moved from AA to A. Then on August 16, 2024, eleven more schools were reclassified. Buckhannon-Upshur, Capital, Riverside, and South Charleston were moved from AAAA to AAA; Chapmanville Regional, Independence, Lincoln, Nicholas County, and PikeView were moved from AAA to AA; Ritchie County and Summers County were moved from AA to A.
This change meant that schools were now scheduled to play opponents who could be worth less points for playing than had originally been thought when those twenty-two schools were classified higher. Given this, on November 8, 2024, the Wood County Board of Education, joined by its three high schools - Parkersburg, Parkersburg South, and Williamstown - filed for an injunction asking that points be awarded based upon schools original classifications and not as the schools were currently classified. On November 9, 2024, a Wood County Circuit Judge entered an order granting the injunction and ordered the WVSSAC to calculate the ratings based upon the prior classifications. Following this order, four schools that would have otherwise made the playoffs, were left out of the sixteen-team field: Hampshire and Point Pleasant were replaced by Capital and St. Albans in AAA, Westside was replaced by Lincoln in AA, and Tolsia was replaced by St. Marys in A. This led to Point Pleasant filing for an injunction in the Circuit Court of Mason County. There a circuit judge entered an order granting injunctive relief and ordering play-in games in AAA, pitting Point Pleasant against St. Albans and Hampshire against Capital. Westside also filed for injunctive relief in the Circuit Court of Wyoming County requesting that the WVSSAC return to the original rating plan. The play-in games forced the WVSSAC to postpone the other playoff games by a week and those games were set for November 16, 2024 at 1:00pm at neutral sites.
However, on November 14, 2024, the WVSSAC filed two separate petitions with the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia requesting the Wood County and Mason County orders be prohibited from enforcement and requested the Court grant expedited relief. On November 15, 2024, the Supreme Court granted both motions for expedited relief and ordered responses filed in the case by noon on November 18, 2024. As a result, the play-in games in class AAA were called off, awaiting the result of the Supreme Court's ruling. Also on November 15, a Wayne County circuit judge ordered a play-in game between St. Marys and Tolsia be held within five days.
On November 19, 2024, the Supreme Court of Appeals ruled that the injunctions in Wood and Mason Counties exceeded the circuit court's authority and ruled in favor of the WVSSAC and reinstated the original football ratings.
The WVSSAC requested an emergency rule be put in place to standardize classification among schools in all of the four classification system sports (football, cheer, volleyball, boys and girls basketball, baseball, and softball) for the 2025-2026 school year. The West Virginia Board of Education gave its approval for the same on May 14, 2025.
Following this reclassification, Buckhannon-Upshur, Oak Hill, Preston, and Riverside moved up from AAA to AAAA; Chapmanville, Nicholas County, and PikeView moved up from AA to AAA; Doddridge County, Petersburg, River View, Summers County, and Tyler Consolidated moved up from A to AA; Berkeley Springs moved down from AAA to AA; and Wheeling Central Catholic moved down from AA to A.
(*school no longer exists) 63 schools have won multiple football championships, 32 of which have since been consolidated. Wheeling Central Catholic has won the most titles, with 18, five of which were Catholic State Championships.
(*school no longer exists) There are 37 WV schools that have one state football championship. Of those 37, 21 have been closed or consolidated into new schools.
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