Cub Football - Bishop Amat uses big plays to stifle Cubs
LOYOLA CAN’T GET IT DONE AGAINST BISHOP AMAT, CUBS LOSE 30-14
The first offensive play of the game told the story of how the contest would play out, as Bishop Amat’s quarterback raced untouched for 58 yards down the Loyola sideline before he was stopped deep in Cub territory at Smith Field on Friday night in a critical Mission League contest which was not a definitive playoff elimination battle, but puts Loyola in a must-win situation next week when it travels to West Hills to take on Chaminade.
A 35-yard Bishop Amat touchdown pass as time expired in the first half, a Lancer pick six in the second quarter and another 49-yard QB keeper for a touchdown late in fourth quarter were the other big plays that did in the Cubs in a 30-14 loss to their longtime arch rival.
Except for those four devastating plays, Loyola made a gallant game of it, but, indeed, there was no room for error in the pivotal conference clash.
On the sixth play after the long distance game opening jaunt, Bishop Amat put six points on the board with a six-yard pass. The PAT kick was blocked, but the Lancers had a 6-0 lead they would not relinquish at the 7:17 mark of the first quarter.
The Cubs’ four first half possessions netted only 77 yards and ended in a turnover on downs, a punt, a pick six and a punt.
Bishop Amat increased its lead to 13-0 with 4:36 left in the second quarter on an interception that was returned 42 yards for a touchdown.
Aided by a pass interference call, the Lancers moved the ball 82 yards with urgency on four plays with the dagger coming on a 35-yard touchdown aerial with 0:00 left on second quarter clock. The 20-0 halftime lead ultimately proved insurmountable.
Loyola came out with fire in its eyes in the third quarter. The Cubs opened in an unexpected Wildcat formation which was run to perfection. Loyola drove 70 yards in ten plays, all with direct snaps to running backs, capped by a 14-yard KANE CASANI dash into the end zone. JACOB KREINBRING’s PAT kick made the score, Bishop Amat 20, Loyola 7 at the 4:58 mark of the third quarter. A 12 yard run by CASANI and a 17 yard carry by JAYDEN ROGERS highlighted the drive.
After the teams exchanged punts, the Cubs recovered a fumble at the Lancers’ 30 yard line. CASANI sprinted 30 yards for a touchdown on the first play, and Loyola had drawn within six, 20-14, with six seconds left in the third quarter.
The momentum jolt ended when Bishop Amat answered, driving 63 yards before connecting on a 27-yard field goal, to increase its lead to 23-14 with 7:05 left in the game.
Thereafter, the Cubs turned the ball over on downs on their 49 yard line, and the Lancers’ QB bolted 49 yards to pay dirt on first down with 2:21 remaining in the contest to make the final score 30-14.
POTENTIAL PLAYOFF BERTH ON THE LINE NEXT FRIDAY
Loyola (4-4, 1-2) will travel to West Hills next Friday to take on Chaminade (4-4, 2-1) in what for the Cubs will be a playoff elimination game. The Eagles flew by Serra (3-5, 0-3), 37-27, on Friday and Sierra Canyon (8-0, 3-0) trounced Notre Dame (4-4, 1-2), 45-10.
The Cubs will need to find a way to score points to have a chance for a major upset in its Mission League battle against Chaminade. The most positive takeaway from last night’s loss was the grit with which Loyola played.
CUBS IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Below is the list of Loyola graduates on college football teams in 2025 according to published collegiate rosters:
JAKE ARELLANO '24, DB, Bentley University
CHAD BAILEY ‘20, DB, Bentley University
BROCK BOJORQUEZ ‘25, DB, Johns Hopkins
COLIN CRUCE ‘22, OL, Bowdoin
KHALIL CUEVA ‘24, WR, University of San Diego
JEFFREY JOHNSON ‘21, TE, Cal
LUKE HARRISON ‘24, OL, University of San Diego
CONNOR KLEIN ‘25, LB, Cornell
SHAWN LIN '22, DL, Columbia
LEIGHTON LINE ‘23, DL, Cal Lutheran
JOSHUA LONG ‘21, TE, Eastern Michigan
TAHJ OWENS '22, DB, Princeton
JACK PARIS '23, DL, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
RYAN QUINTANAR '20, LB, USC
XAVIER RICE ‘23, QB, Duquesne
ISAIAH SANDERS, ‘24, LB, UC Davis
PATRICK SODL ‘22, LB, Columbia
ZAKHARI SPEARS ‘21, DB, Idaho
HENRY STICKLER ‘22, WR, SMU
JACK SUSNJAR ‘23, OL, USC
JOE TATUM ‘22, QB, Texas
SCOTT TAYLOR '25, LB, UCLA
RYAN TURK ‘24, OL, Dartmouth
DESI VALDES ‘25, DB, Pasadena City College
CHAMP WESTBROOKS ‘24, OL, Arizona State
ALEX WHITMAN ‘22, WR, Notre Dame
CEYAIR WRIGHT ‘21, DB, Nebraska
SAM YOON ‘22, OL, UCLA
2025 LOYOLA VARSITY FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
8-22 Cathedral (L 36-14)
8-29 @ Millikan (Long Beach) (W 35-25)
9-5 Mount Miguel (L 21-0)
9-12 @ Hamilton (Los Angeles) (W 42-21)
9-19 St. Francis (W 9-3)
10-3 @ Notre Dame* (L 35-10)
10-9 @Serra* at SoFi Stadium (W 13-10)
10-17 Bishop Amat* (L, 30-14)
10-24 @ Chaminade*
10-31 Sierra Canyon*
*Denotes Mission League game