November 8, 2022

Cub Football - Loyola advances to second round of CIF playoffs for 38th time; a look at the rematch with Culver City

LOYOLA MAKES 38th TRIP TO CIF PLAYOFFS SECOND ROUND
Loyola has competed in the CIF Southern Section football playoffs 47 times since private schools were first included in the playoff field.

Friday’s short trip down Venice Boulevard to Culver City for the second time this season marks the 38th time the Cubs have advanced to the second round of the CIF playoffs.

Twenty Loyola playoff squads that battled in second round contests moved on to the semifinals, and the 2022 Cub contingent is determined to still be playing as one of the teams in the Division 6 final four a week from Friday.

During the 18 seasons from 1988 through 2005, Loyola participated in the CIF Division I semifinals 12 times, and played in the Division I championship contest an incredible seven times during that span. That nearly two-decade run set the Big Blue standard.

The Cubs have won six CIF Southern Section AAAA/Division I titles (1962, 1963, 1975, 1990, 2003, 2005). Six Loyola teams were CIF Southern Section Division I runners-up (1946, 1964, 1992, 1995, 1996, 2000) and the 2019 Cub squad was the CIF Division 3 runner-up.

The 1975 squad was acclaimed National Champions by the National Sports News Service.  Loyola finished its undefeated 1963 AAAA title season ranked number two in the nation, and the 2000 Division I runner-up team finished the campaign ranked 15th in the nation.

Eleven Cub players have earned CIF Player-of-the-Year honors.

Suffice to say, Loyola has a remarkable CIF Souther Section playoff resume.

CUBS FACE TEAM THEY PLAYED IN REGULAR SEASON IN PLAYOFFS FOR THE TENTH TIME
It is thought to be very difficult to beat a team twice in the same season.

That scenario is what Loyola faces in the quarterfinals. In their second non-league game on September 2, the Cubs escaped with a 24-19 road win over Culver City.  Loyola will battle the Centaurs for a second time this Friday.

The Cubs’ record in games where they won a regular season game against an opponent they faced for a second time in the CIF playoffs is 7-1 (1990 L.B. Jordan (41-14, 42-14), 1991 Mater Dei (won in regular season 28-20, lost in playoffs, 35-21), 1995 Fountain Valley (24-21, 38-18), 2003 Bishop Amat (28-5, 10-9)).

The Big Blue has played the same team twice in a season nine times. It’s overall record in those 18 contests is 9-9. The team will probably need its best performance of the campaign to come away with a second road win over Culver City. Rest assured that both coaching staffs over burning midnight oil this week.

Loyola is a better team now than it was when it beat the Centaurs nine weeks ago, but it appears that Culver City is as well.

A LOOK AT CULVER CITY . . . FOR A SECOND TIME
Culver City head coach Jahmal Wright has his Centaurs hitting on cylinders coming off a 35-24 road victory over favored El Dorado in Placentia in the first round of the CIF Division 6 playoffs last Friday.

Culver City rolled up 554 yards of total offense in its impressive playoff win against the Golden Hawks.

The Centaurs (6-5) finished third in the Bay League, but are the conference’s only squad still alive in the playoffs.

Here is Culver City’s season record: (W) West Torrance, 35-13; (L) Loyola, 24-19; (W) Palmdale, 44-7; (L) Warren,  54-20; (L) La Serna, 42-7; (L) Mira Costa, 21-12; (W) Redondo Union, 28-0; (W) Peninsula, 55-33; (L) Palos Verdes, 28-7; (W) Santa Monica, 28-0; (W) El Dorado, 35-24.

The Centaurs possess a prolific passing attack. Junior quarterback Sammy Silvia (6-3, 195) has thrown for 22 touchdowns and just six interceptions. The strong armed field general has competed 58% of his passes for 2,570 yards.

A trio of fast, athletic wide receivers make the Culver City aerial attack dangerous. Sophomore Myles Singleton (6-1, 180) has 46 receptions for 860 yards (18.7 yard per catch) and has scored nine TDs. He also has three interceptions on the defensive side of the ball. Junior Mateo Torres (5-11, 190) has 48 receptions for 583 yards (12.1 ypc) and seven TDs. Sophomore Braylon Singleton (6-2, 175) is averaging 18.3 yards per reception with 30 catches for 548 yards and four touchdowns.

Senior Maurice Burgess (5-10, 185) headlines the Centaur rushing game. He has run for 954 yards (5.7 yards per carry) and scored 12 TDs.

Junior middle linebacker Pierce Reynoso (5-10, 190) is Culver City’s tackle leader with 114 stops, including 74 solos. Senior middle linebacker Nick Badour (6-2, 195) is the second leading tackler with 104. Junior Brandon “Cash” Mahoney (5-10, 160) has 86 stops, and junior corner J.R. Kirkwood (6-3, 205) has 85 tackles to his credit, to go along with three sacks.

Junior defensive lineman Keenan Carter (6-1, 290) leads the Centaur stop squad in the sack category with five. Junior two-way standout Mateo Torres leads the team with four interceptions. Culver City has an impressive 14 interceptions on the season.

The Centaurs’ offense averages 29 points per game, while their defense relinquishes an average of 27 points per outing.

CIF QUARTERFINAL GAME OUTLOOK
Loyola will have to play a nearly flawless game in all three phases to defeat Culver City for a second time. Cub senior CLAY WINNEK’s 33-yard run on a fake punt in the September 2 game against the Centaurs was a key play in the Cubs’ five-point win. Loyola probably will probably not be able to rely upon trickery this time around.

While Culver City is predominantly a passing team, do not be surprised if it tries to establish the run early. The Cub ‘Wolfpack’ defense will need to slow down the Centaurs’ 257 yards per-game passing attack and stop the run.

On offense, Loyola’s recipe for victory will require much better production from its aerial assault which managed a meager 48 yards in the teams’ first encounter, and a replication of its 225 rushing yards achieved in the non-league contest.

The Cub offensive line must have one of its best performances of the year for Loyola to advance to the semifinals.

Loyola was outscored 19-7 in the second half in the teams’ first battle. That cannot happen again. The CalPreps’ computer projection favors the Cubs to win by one point. It would help the Big Blue’s cause immensely if Loyola supporters fill the visitors’ stands.

EXTRA POINTS
In every game this season in which Loyola has out-rushed its opponent, it has won.

Second half offensive woes: the Cubs have averaged a paltry 7.7 points after intermission in 11 games. They have been outscored in the second half in seven contests and in all five of their losses. That has to change to advance in the playoffs . . .

If Loyola beats Culver City on Friday, it will mark the 21st time it will have made a trip to the final four . . .

The Cubs’ last appearance in a CIF championship game came in head coach DREW CASANI’s ‘91 first year at the helm in 2019 . . .

The 1990 CIF Southern Section Division I Defensive Player-of-the-Year, CASANI knows what it takes to win CIF playoff contests. As a starting linebacker for Loyola in 1989 and 1990, the Cubs were 7-1 in the playoffs . . .

As the head man, CASANI coached Loyola to the CIF Southern Section Division 3 finals in 2019 and has posted a 4-2 win-loss playoff record. Had the spring 2021 pandemic-delayed 2020 season included playoffs, most observers predicted a run to another championship tilt . . .

Cub senior JON BAUTISTA stopped playing football after his freshman year in 2019. With no experienced running backs on the roster heading into the 2022 campaign, the hard-running senior returned to the gridiron, and is the squad’s leading rusher with 589 yards, seven TD’s and a 5.7 yards per carry average. Quite the comeback story . . .

Loyola’s ‘Wolfpack’ defense did not give up any points in the Cubs’ 13-7 first round victory over Lawndale on Friday. It marked the first time since 2005 that the Cubs held an opposing offense scoreless in a CIF playoff game. In the 2005 CIF Div. I semifinals Loyola defeated Mater Dei 14-0. Lawndale’s sole TD came on a pick six . . .

Cub senior left offensive tackle JACK PARIS achieved a perfect score on the ACT exam. No wonder he recently made a visit to MIT. He will have a lot of impressive choices for his collegiate education . . ,

Particularly virulent strains of influenza raged like a wild fire through Loyola’s football ranks last week, which prevented two starters from playing against Lawndale. Hopefully the team will be in full health on Friday when it takes the field against the Centaurs . . .

What is a Centaur? According to Greek mythology, a Centaur is a creature that is part horse and part human,  dwelling in the mountains of Thessaly and Arcadia. Which begs the question, who do you like better in a fight between a Loyola Lion Cub and a Centaur? 

Freshman corner BRANDON LOCKHART is the first Loyola freshman to start in the secondary on the varsity squad in Cub Football annals. He made several big plays against St. Francis in Loyola’s epic 28-27 win that gave the Big Blue a share of the Angelus League title . . . 

Senior corner JORDAN HEWITT made a game-saving interception in the first round Loyola victory against Lawndale with 2:02 left in the contest. Expect HEWITT to have a great night against Culver City. The three-year starter leads the team with four picks on the season.

Cub junior defensive lineman ISAIAH “IKE” SANDERS is drawing a lot of attention from college recruiters. He is projected to be an edge/outside linebacker at the collegiate level. UCLA was at a recent Loyola game to watch IKE show off his talent.

TICKETS FOR FRIDAY’S QUARTERFINAL GAME AT CULVER CITY AT GoFan -THE CUBS NEED FANS I. THE STANDS
The Cubs need fans in the stands at Culver City High this Friday. Word has it that the home team will have its fans out in force. A standing-room-only crowd is anticipated. Tickets are going fast. 

Buy your game tickets early before they sell out. Tickets can be purchased at GoFan.co.