It’s postseason time for District 9 football as 10 Class A and AA teams are in action this weekend.

There are also five regular-season games involving five D9 teams against out-of-district opponents as well.

In Class A, first-round match-ups Friday include Elk County Catholic (5-4) visiting Clarion (7-2) at Clarion University and top-seeded Coudersport (9-0) hosting Kane (5-4). Saturday, Curwensville (7-2) hosts Port Allegany (7-2) and Johnsonburg (6-3) visits Clarion-Limestone (8-1).

In Class AA, Brookville (4-5) hosts Moniteau (4-5) in a preliminary round game.

Seven other District 9 playoff teams are idle. Class AAAA DuBois (8-1) awaits the District 10 champion – Cathedral Prep or McDowell – in a sub-regional matchup Nov. 11 or 12 at a site to be determined.

The Class AAA final is set between St. Marys (5-4) and Clearfield (5-4) will be played Nov. 11 at a site and time to be announced.

In Class AA, top-seeded Karns City (7-2) awaits the Brookville-Moniteau winner in the semifinals on Nov. 11. In the other semifinal, Brockway (6-3) hosts Redbank Valley (5-4) on Nov. 12.

The Class A semifinals will also be played Nov. 11-12.

Here’s a look at this week’s games:

The game is a rematch of last year’s preliminary round game won by the Raiders, 20-13, at West Sunbury. The win jump-started Brookville’s drive to the Class AA title.

Can the Raiders do it again? They have to beat Moniteau first. The Warriors are led by running back Matt Schandelmeier (1,130 yards, 14 TDs). Clearly, if the Raiders stop Schandelmeier, they could be in good shape considering that the Moniteau passing game ranks only above Union in D-9.

The Raiders aren’t an offensive juggernaut by any means, feeling the loss of a big-play athlete like graduated quarterback Nick Heschke from last year’s championship team. They have capable athletes, however, like junior running back Max Kutz (470 yards, 6 TDs), who has led a running back by committee approach in rushing the last four games.

Statistically, these teams are almost identical offensively, with the Warriors averaging 250.7 yards per game to the Raiders’ 250.0.

PLAYOFF HISTORY: Brookville has won five D-9 titles in 1994, 1995, 1998 and 2004 in Class AA and 1991 in Class AAA. Moniteau has yet to win a district playoff game.

The Bobcats came into the season as a contender to win a district title and they’re still in position to accomplish that goal as the No. 2 seed. Head coach Larry Wiser’s team takes on sixth-seeded Elk County Catholic.

Statistically, the Bobcats appear to have a big edge. Clarion ranks third in the district in scoring (32.6) while averaging 321.1 yards of offense. ECC, meanwhile has given up 23.4 points per game, second worst among playoff teams.

Clarion is led by senior running back Chris McSwain (1,195 yards, 16 TDs). He went over the 3,000-yard career milestone last week and he blends power and speed coming out of the Bobcats backfield. Brad Rapp (331, 3 TDs), Manny Carpin (176, 4 TDs) and Elliott Fabri (138, 1 TD) key a Clarion running attack that ranks third in D-9 behind Curwensville and Coudersport. Carpin is also a dangerous receiver, hauling in 35 passes for 468 yards.

Elk County Catholic hopes its speed can offset Clarion’s size advantage. Quarterback Kyle Mahoney (1,016 yards, 16 TDs). No one has thrown more TD passes than Mahoney, who has also rushed for 231 yards and four TDs. Kevin Genevro (19 catches, 369 yards, 7 TDs) and A.J. Seelye (17, 360, 3 TDs) are Mahoney’s top targets. Anthony Mastrogiacomo (718 yards, 7 TDs) gets most of the carries in the team’s running attack.

PLAYOFF HISTORY: Clarion owns one D-9 Class A championship in 1997. The Bobcats have lost in two championship games since then. Last year, they were blanked by Curwensville in the semifinals, 42-0. Elk County Catholic made the expanded playoffs last year and lost 27-6 to Clarion-Limestone in the first round, its first playoff appearance since 1998. The Crusaders haven’t won a playoff game since the 1995 semifinals.

The top-seeded Falcons asserted themselves as the favorite to win the D-9 title with a convincing win over defending champion Curwensville with a 41-13 win on the Golden Tide’s home turf in last week’s Allegheny Mountain League Championship game. The triumph netted the Falcons their first AML title.

It’s been a mostly power running game for the Falcons, who boast talented backs in David Babcock (1,232 yards, 20 TDs) and Sam Decker (673 yards, 10 TDs). Coudersport averages 272.7 yards rushing per game, which takes a lot of pressure off quarterback Boomer Wetzel, whose 51 passes attempted are the fewest of any starting quarterback in the district. But ask the Golden Tide about Wetzel’s effectiveness. He was 7-of-8 for 169 yards and three TDs in last week’s rout. He’s completing 55 percent of his passes.

Eighth-seeded Kane has its hands full and will need an outstanding game from running back Kyle Oakes if the Wolves have any hopes of the upset. Oakes (1,336 yards, 19 TDs) ranks second in D-9 rushing, just 10 yards behind leader Nick Sipes. Quarterback Zach Anderson has performed well, throwing for 1,173 yards and nine TDs and completing over 58 percent of his passes.

PLAYOFF HISTORY: Coudersport has won Class A titles in 1994 and 2001. The Falcons lost a heartbreaker to Clarion-Limestone in last year’s semifinals, 21-14. Kane has been to the playoffs twice in 2000 and 2002. In 2002, the Wolves beat Coudersport 7-6 in the semifinals before losing 27-14 to Clarion-Limestone in the finals.

The big question is how will the defending Class A champions rebound from last week’s 41-13 loss to Coudersport in the AML Championship game. It’s the most points given up by the Tide since they entered the AML back in 1999.

This is a rematch of teams that played in Week 7 at Port Allegany, where the Golden Tide left town with a 33-0 shutout win.

Expect the Golden Tide to keep giving the ball to junior running back Nick Sipes, who leads D-9 in rushing with 1,346 yards and 24 touchdowns. Sipes is another new 3,000-yard career back this year and he stands at 3,465 career yards and 47 career rushing TDs. Sipes has rushed for 100 or more yards in 21 straight games.

Sipes isn’t the only Tide weapon. The district’s top rushing team also features two 400-plus backs in Phillip Solley (499, 6 TDs) and Brandon Hess (424, 3 TDs). Quarterback Shawn Sopic has rushed for 194 yards and passed for 673 yards and seven TDs.

Port Allegany has multiple threats in running backs Cody Anderson (914 yards, 14 TDs) and Bobby Nichols (778, 9 TDs), last week’s Player of the Week. Quarterback Willie Bova has passed for 834 yards and eight TDs. In Port’s loss to Curwensville, the Gators managed just 100 yards of offense and Sipes ran for 151 yards and two TDs.

PLAYOFF HISTORY: Curwensville has won titles in 2000 and 2004 and losing in the final in 2001. Port Allegany is still searching for its first district title, reaching the Class A finals in 1988 and 2003 and the AA finals in 1996 and 1997.

The Lions have put together a remarkable season in what many have deemed unlikely, but a historically solid program built around a couple of playmakers has been just enough to pull out several close games.

The Lions have won three games by a combined total of four points along with an overtime win over fellow Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference tri-champion Karns City.

C-L is led by junior quarterback Scott Davis, who has had a hand in or accounted for most of the Lions’ offense this year. He’s passed for 1,227 yards and nine touchdowns while rushing for 518 yards and eight TDs. He’s joined by David "Tuffy" Brooks (336 yards rushing, 7 TDs; 618 yards receiving 2 TDs). Receiver Kaleb Klosky has 22 catches for 366 yards and four TDs.

Johnsonburg is making its first playoff appearance since 1996 when the Rams reached the championship game. The Rams’ size and strength contrasts greatly against the smaller and quicker Lions. Tom Launer (396 yards rushing, 5 TDs; 341 yards receiving, 2 TDs), Josh Feronti (326 yards rushing) and quarterback Anthony Imbrogno (829 yards passing, 7 TDs) lead the Rams.

Depending on the health of Calvin Grumley, it would enhance the Rams’ chances greatly. In just five games, he’s rushed for 335 yards and five touchdowns and he’s a big contributor on special teams as a punter, defense and anything else in-between. His status for Saturday is uncertain.

PLAYOFF HISTORY: The Lions have reached eight D-9 Class A title games, winning four and losing four, including last year’s 41-8 loss to Curwensville that ended a two-year reign. Johnsonburg won the first-ever Class A crown in 1987, but hasn’t won it since, appearing in two title games in 1989 and 1996.

Five D-9 teams wrapping up losing seasons are in action Friday. Punxsutawney (0-9) tries to avoid its first winless season since 1973 when it hosts Bald Eagle Area (1-8). A-C Valley (1-7) travels to Lakeview (3-6) and Otto-Eldred (2-7) hosts Cowanesque Valley (0-8). Longtime rivals Sheffield (0-9) and Eisenhower (4-5) play each other at Warren High School, while Warren travels to Bradford (2-6) to face the Owls in a game that was on then off and now on again.