Deontae Howard doesn't normally play defense, but that didn't stop him from sealing Clairton's WPIAL Class A semifinal victory against Rochester with the Bears' biggest defensive play.

Clairton held a narrow 8-0 lead with less than two minutes left in the game. Rochester had taken possession at its own 6 after a Clairton punt.

"Our safety [Andrew Currington] was hurt on the previous series, so coach told me to go in on defense," said Howard, a 5-foot-9, 170-pound junior who also is Clairton's top running back. "He told me not to let anybody go deep."

On the first play of the drive, Rochester quarterback Brandon Gray threw a pass downfield. Howard picked off the pass and raced 37 yards for the touchdown which earned Clairton its second title berth in three years.

"I saw the ball, made a play on it and took it to the end zone." Howard said after the Bears' 16-0 victory. "I don't normally play defense. In fact, that was my first play [on defense] in the game. I was just happy to go in there and help out the team."

Howard spent most of the game being frustrated by Rochester's stiff defense. He came into the game with 1,325 yards rushing and 25 touchdowns, but the Rams held him to 37 yards on 17 carries. Howard did have two runs that covered 13 and 15 yards, but was tackled behind the line of scrimmage five times.

"[Rochester's] defense was ranked No. 4 in the WPIAL and ours was No. 1, so we expected a defensive battle," Howard said. "Coach always tells us to play hard on both sides of the ball. So when the offense wasn't clicking, the defense came in and stepped it up."

Clairton's defense completely shut down Rochester's high-powered offense by limiting the Rams to 87 yards in total offense.

"The defense played tremendous," Clairton coach Tom Nola said of the Bears, who have held 12 opponents to a grand total of 30 points. "We've played good defense all year, but tonight was clearly our best defensive performance."

Clairton's average of allowing 2.5 points per game ranks second in the state.

"We take pride in playing defense, so this was nothing new to us," Howard said. "We just came out and did what we've done all year."

It was a completely different story for Clairton's usually potent offense, which scored only one touchdown. The Bears entered the game ranked No. 5 in the state with an average of 47.1 points per game.

Rochester held Clairton to 238 yards in total offense, and 46 came on one play. The Bears scored their only offensive touchdown with 0:33 left in the half on a 5-yard run by Currington. The touchdown capped a seven-play, 89-yard drive. The key play was a 46-yard run by Eddie Ball on a second-and-13 from the Clairton 8. The timely run moved the ball into Rams territory and got the Bears out of a jam.

"That run sparked us," Howard said of his teammate's clutch run. "We needed it to get us going. That was the trigger."

Clairton will make its second trip to Heinz Field in three years. The Bears won the WPIAL title in 2006 and were supposed to make a return trip last year, but a 22-21 upset loss to Springdale in the semifinals ended their hopes of a repeat.

"All summer long, we all had that sour taste in our mouth," Howard said. "We were the better team, but Sprindale played better that day and we came out on the short end of the stick. We've used that disappointment as our incentive to win the title this year."

Clairton (12-0) takes an unblemished record into Saturday's title game against No. 3 seed Monaca (11-1). The Indians earned their title berth with a 17-6 win against No. 2 seed Avonworth.

"I expect a close game with Monaca," Nola said. "We beat Rochester 16-0 and Monaca beat them 17-0. It should be a great game."

Clairton won WPIAL titles in 1929, 1931, 1954, 1989 and 2006. The Bears have placed second in the WPIAL eight times, the last in 2004.

Monaca won WPIAL titles in 1975, 1982 and 1985. The Indians have placed second in the WPIAL four times, the last time in 2000.Class A final

• What: Clairton (12-0) vs. Monaca (11-1).

• When: 10:30 a.m. Saturday.

• Where: Heinz Field.

• TV: FSN Pittsburgh.