Beaver is trying to win a conference championship outright for the first time in 20 years. Hempfield has a shot at making the WPIAL playoffs for the first time in 10 years. North Allegheny is trying to finish the regular season with a perfect record for the first time in 25 years.

Those are some of the story lines heading into the final weekend of football of the WPIAL's regular season.

Forty-seven teams have clinched playoff spots, which means 17 are still up for grabs.

In Class AAAA, AAA and A, the top four teams in each conference qualify for the playoffs. Teams that finish first and second in their respective conferences play at home in the first round. Third- and fourth-place teams play on the road.

But in Class AAAA, if Erie McDowell finishes in the top four places of the Northern Five Conference, one fifth-place will qualify as the wild-card team. Erie McDowell is a District 10 team and not eligible for the WPIAL playoffs, even though it has a Northern Five schedule.

In Class AA, the top three teams in each of the five conferences qualify. One fourth-place finisher also qualifies as the wild-card team.

In Class AA, all five conference champions and three second-place teams play at home in the first round. The three second-place home teams are determined by Gardner Points and the tiebreaker system.

The WPIAL football steering committee meets Monday to decide seedings and matchups for the postseason.

Here is a look at the playoff picture (records are from conference play):

Class AAAA

•Big East Conference -- Gateway (4-0) is first. The winner of Penn Hills (3-1) and Woodland Hills (3-1) is second and the loser third. Fox Chapel (1-3) gets fourth place if it beats Plum. If Gateway beats Kiski Area (1-3) and Plum (0-4) beats Fox Chapel, then the fourth-place spot will be decided by tiebreaker points. Fox Chapel is minus-16, Kiski Area minus-17 and Plum minus-31.

•Foothills -- Central Catholic (4-0) is first. The winner of Norwin (3-1) and Penn-Trafford (3-1) is second and the loser third. The winner of Hempfield (1-3) and Latrobe (1-3) gets the fourth and final spot.

•Great Southern -- McKeesport (4-0) has clinched first. If Upper St. Clair (2-2) beats Mt. Lebanon (1-3), then Upper St. Clair is second. If Bethel Park (2-2) beats Baldwin (1-3) and Upper St. Clair wins, then Bethel Park is third and Canon-McMillan (2-2) is fourth, regardless of its game against McKeesport.

There could be a five-way tie for second place if Mt. Lebanon beats Upper St. Clair, McKeesport beats Canon-McMillan and Baldwin beats Bethel Park. The playoff spots would be decided by tiebreaker points and then head-to-head competition. In tiebreaker points, Bethel Park is plus-13, Canon-McMillan 0, Upper St. Clair minus-4, Baldwin minus-17 and Mt. Lebanon minus-23.

•Northern Five -- North Allegheny (4-0) has clinched first and Seneca Valley (3-1) second. Shaler (2-2) and North Hills (2-2) are close to being in the playoffs. Shaler is third if it beats Erie McDowell (1-3).

But if McDowell beats Shaler, and North Hills loses to North Allegheny, then Shaler, North Hills and McDowell will tie for third. But McDowell is ineligible for the playoffs because it is a District 10 team. WPIAL executive director Tim O'Malley said yesterday the league's football committee will decide whether to use the tiebreaker system to break the deadlock, or automatically put Shaler and North Hills into the playoffs because they tied for third. In tiebreaker points, North Hills and Shaler have 0 and McDowell minus-17.

If the committee decides to use the tiebreaker system, and North Hills or Shaler finish fifth, then it will go into the pool with three other fifth-place teams to determine the wild card.

Class AAA

•Big Seven -- Thomas Jefferson (5-0) is first and Chartiers Valley (4-1) second. Trinity (3-2) will most likely get a spot, but hasn't clinched yet. If Trinity beats Peters Township (2-3), Chartiers Valley beats Keystone Oaks (2-3), and Thomas Jefferson beats West Mifflin (2-3), then the final spot will be determined by tiebreaker points. Keystone Oaks is minus-8, Peters Township minus-10 and West Mifflin minus-12.

•Greater Allegheny -- Highlands (4-1), Pine-Richland (4-1) and Knoch (4-1) have clinched. If Knoch beats Highlands, Knoch is first, Pine-Richland second and Highlands third.

If Highlands wins, and Pine-Richland beats Hampton, then Pine-Richland is first, Highlands second and Knoch third.

Franklin Regional (2-3) can qualify as the fourth-place team if it beats Greensburg Salem. If Franklin Regional loses, Indiana (3-3) is fourth.

•Keystone -- Mount Pleasant (5-0) is first. The winner of Belle Vernon (4-1) and Ringgold (4-1) is second, and the loser third. The winner of Laurel Highlands (2-3) and Uniontown (2-3) is fourth.

•Parkway -- All spots have been decided. Montour (5-0) is first, Blackhawk (4-1) second, West Allegheny (3-2) third and New Castle (3-3) fourth.

Class AA

•Allegheny -- Ford City (7-0) is first, Shady Side Academy (6-1) second and Valley (5-2) third.

•Century -- Steel Valley (7-0) is first. Burgettstown (5-2), South Fayette (5-2) and Seton-LaSalle (5-2) can all clinch playoff spots with wins. If they win, they could be either second, third or the wild-card fourth-place team.

If all three win, the spots will be decided by tiebreaker points. South Fayette has 29, Seton-LaSalle 27 and Burgettstown 21.

•Interstate -- The winner of Jeannette (7-0) and Greensburg Central Catholic (6-1) is first and the loser second. East Allegheny (6-2) is third.

•Midwestern -- Beaver (7-0), Beaver Falls (6-1) and Aliquippa (6-1) have all clinched spots. If Beaver beats Beaver Falls, then Beaver is first, Aliquippa second and Beaver Falls third.

If Beaver Falls wins and Aliquippa beats Center, tiebreaker points and then head-to-head competition will decide the playoff spots. Aliquippa has 55 tiebreaker points, Beaver 53 and Beaver Falls 49.

•Tri-County North -- Mars (7-0) is first, Riverside (7-1) second and Laurel (5-2) third.

Class A

•Big Seven -- Western Beaver (5-0) is first. Monaca (4-1) and Rochester (4-1) play for second, and the loser is third. If South Side Beaver (2-3) beats Western Beaver, or if North Catholic (1-4) loses to Bishop Canevin, then South Side Beaver is fourth.

If South Side Beaver loses and North Catholic wins, then South Side Beaver, Avonworth (2-4) and North Catholic tie for fourth, and the spot will be decided by tiebreaker points. Avonworth is minus-14, South Side Beaver minus-19 and North Catholic minus-23.

•Black Hills -- Serra (6-0) is first. Fort Cherry (4-1) and Chartiers-Houston (4-1) play for second, and the loser is third. The winner of Bentworth (2-3) and Beth-Center (2-3) is fourth.

•Eastern -- Clairton (5-0) is first. Springdale (3-1) and Riverview (2-2) have clinched spots, but Springdale can finish second by beating Riverview. Apollo-Ridge (2-2) can clinch a spot by beating Leechburg (1-3).

If Riverview and Apollo-Ridge both win, the three final spots will be decided by tiebreaker points and then head-to-head competition. Springdale has 18, Riverview 9 and Apollo-Ridge minus-7.

Leechburg qualifies if it beats Apollo-Ridge.

•Tri-County South -- Monessen (5-0) is first and Jefferson-Morgan (4-1) second. Carmichaels (3-2) plays California (3-2) for third and the loser is fourth.