Cub Football - Loyola embarks on its 47th trip to the CIF Southern Sectiion playoffs
LOYOLA TRAVELS TO ORANGE COUNTY ON SATURDAY FOR FIRST ROUND CIF SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION 3 PLAYOFF GAME AGAINST VILLA PARK
Angelus League co-champion Loyola (7-3) will hit the road on Saturday for a first round CIF Southern Section Division 3 playoff game against the Crestview League runner-up Villa Park Spartans (7-3). The game will be played at Fred Kelly Field on the campus of El Modena High School. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
Saturday’s playoff opener marks the Cubs’ forty-seventh trip to the CIF Southern Section playoffs. Out of the forty-six seasons Loyola earned a trip to the playoffs, the Cubs advanced beyond the first round thirty-six times. The Big Blue is planning to make it thirty-seven times on Saturday. The Cubs have won six AAAA/Division I championships and were runners-up an additional seven times, the most recent in 2019 in Division 4.
Loyola made it to the CIF Division 4 title game in 2019 in head coach DREW CASANI’s ‘91 inaugural campaign as the man in charge of Cub Football. This spring Loyola finished 4-0 in the pandemic delayed and shortened season. Had the spring season included a full slate of games, there is no doubt the Cubs would have contended for a CIF crown.
This is the first time in Southern Section history in which the playoff format is based on true competitive equity. What that means is all teams’ playoff divisions were not determined until after the regular season final games had been played last Friday.
Divisional placement and seeding were determined based on each team’s ranking by CalPreps.com. Previously, a team’s playoff division was determined by its record over the two previous years. The competitive equity format is a much more realistic formula for playoff placement of the most deserving teams. It will make for much more competitive first round contests
Following its nail biting loss to St. Paul at home last Friday, Loyola was ranked thirty-fourth in the Southern Section by the CalPreps computer formula. Villa Park is ranked thirty-first. The Cubs are the tenth seed in the Division 3 bracket and the Spartans are the sixth seed.
The number one through four seeds in Division 3 are Redlands Citrus Valley (8-2), Etiwanda (10-0), Foothill (9-1) and San Clemente (7-3).
A LOOK AT VILLA PARK
How about these statistics for the Villa Park quarterback through nine games: 134 of 189 passing (71% completion rate) for 2,341 yards and 23 TDs with just two interceptions, an average of 17.5 yards per pass completion, an off-the-chats 147.9 quarterback rating and an additional 261 rushing yards with a 4.9 yard per carry average.
The senior gun slinger who amassed those impressive statistics for Villa Park is Nathan Kornely (6-1, 194). Fate dealt Kornely a heartbreaking blow on the final play of the Spartans’ ninth game, as he fell awkwardly and sustained a fracture to his arm that is expected to prevent the talented passer from lining up under center against the Cubs on Saturday.
Loyola cannot breathe a sigh of relief, though, as Spartan back-up quarterback, senior Cooper Adams, led a late 91-yard scoring drive to pull the Spartans within one point of league champion Yorba Linda (10-0) last Friday. The two point conversion attempt failed, but Adams served notice that he is a more than able replacement for Kornely.
The Spartans’ receiving corps is outstanding. The top three pass catchers are senior Diego Sanchez (5-9, 160, 36 receptions for 673 yards, 18.7 yards per catch, 6 TDs), Senior Cole Cassara (5-10, 160, 24/487/20.3 ypc/ 1 TD) and senior Kaden Baptist’s (19/353/23.5 ypc/3TDs).
It is expected that Villa Park will run the ball more than they did before Kornely’s injury. The leading rusher is senior Jackson Christie (5-10, 175), who has rushed for 488 yards at a 5,4 yards per carry clip and scored 10 touchdowns.
Villa Park’s defense packs a serious punch. The top players are senior linebackers Owen Duckworth (5-11,185), Arthur Ora (6-1, 205) and August Kraft, and senior safety Kaden Baptista.
GAME OUTLOOK
Villa Park head coach Dusan Ancich did a great job preparing the Spartans for their final league showdown with undefeated Yorba Linda following the loss of their offensive star. Ancich’s teams play a tough, physical brand of football.
The Spartans’ average score is 32-25. Nine of their ten regular season opponents have qualified for the Southern Section playoffs. Villa Park’s strength of schedule is higher than that of the Cubs’ according to CalPreps. The Spartans’ opponents’ cumulative record is 64-33. Loyola’s average score is 32-20, and it’s opponents’ cumulative record is 53-39.
Villa Park will look to keep the ball out of the Cubs’ hands. For Loyola to win, it will probably need to score at least 30 points. The Cubs cannot afford to make critical mistakes and commit infractions as they did against St. Paul on Friday. This a contest where Loyola’s offensive line will need to step up. Defensively, the Cubs will need to force punts and stop the Spartan offense from getting into a rhythm.
THE SERIES
Loyola and Villa Park have only met once on the gridiron. Loyola defeated the Spartans, 45-28, in the quarterfinal round of the CIF Division 4 playoffs in 2019 in a game played at Smith Field.
CORRECTION
In the St. Paul game summary it should have been reported that Cub senior JACOBY KELLY had two long distance (75 and 90 yards) kickoff returns for touchdowns. Senior TAHJ OWENS also took a long distance kickoff to the house, but the TD sprint was called back because of a penalty.
Kelly’s two kickoff returns for touchdowns in one game is believed to be a Loyola record.
LOYOLA OFFENSIVE PLAYMAKERS
If the Cubs make a run in the Division 3 playoffs it will likely be in large measure a result of its impressive group of playmakers putting points on the scoreboard.
Senior quarterback JOE TATUM has completed 116 of 167 passes (69%) for 1,672 yards (14.4 yards per completion) and thrown for 19 touchdowns.
Senior wide receiver PETER VANIS leads Loyola’s talented pass-catching corps with 48 receptions for 711 yards (14.8 avg.) and eight TD grabs. Senior JACOBY KELLY has 31 catches for 427 yards (13.8 avg.) and four scoring receptions. Junior BAYLIN BROOKS has caught 30 passes for 432 yards (14.4 avg.) and two scores. Junior WILKIE WILES has just eight catches, but two of them were for long distance TDs. WILES averages 21.3 yards per catch.
Senior All-CIF running back TAHJ OWENS is having another extraordinary campaign. OWENS has rushed for 1,391 yards on 184 carries (7.6 yds. per carry) and scored 16 TDs. He is the only running back in Big Blue annals to earn All-CIF honors as a sophomore (2019).
Credit for the Cubs’ offensive prowess also must be given to the blocking of the offensive line: senior left tackle SAM YOON (6-5, 302), sophomore guard RASHAD WESTBROOKS (6-2, 245), junior center MATTHEW POHL (6-2, 275), senior guard COLIN CRUCE (6-4, 250), sophomore guard RYAN TURK (6-3, 255) and junior right tackle JACK SUSNJAR (6-6, 313).
HEAD COACH DREW CASANI ‘91 KNOWS CHAMPIONSHIP PLAYOFF FOOTBALL
Loyola’s third yearly varsity head coach DREW CASANI ‘91 knows all about CIF championship level football. As a junior all-league inside linebacker in 1989 Casani helped lead the Cubs to the CIF Division I semifinals and a 10-2 record. In 1990 CASANI was named the CIF Division I Defensive-Player-of-the-Year after a monster senior campaign which saw Loyola win the CIF Division I title.
In his first season as head coach in 2019, his club made it to the CIF Division 4 title game where it lost a close one to San Juan Hills. As a varsity player and head coach CASANI’s CIF playoff record is 9-2. It is not a good idea to bet against a Casani-led Cub team in the CIF playoffs.
Angelus League co-champion Loyola (7-3) will hit the road on Saturday for a first round CIF Southern Section Division 3 playoff game against the Crestview League runner-up Villa Park Spartans (7-3). The game will be played at Fred Kelly Field on the campus of El Modena High School. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
Saturday’s playoff opener marks the Cubs’ forty-seventh trip to the CIF Southern Section playoffs. Out of the forty-six seasons Loyola earned a trip to the playoffs, the Cubs advanced beyond the first round thirty-six times. The Big Blue is planning to make it thirty-seven times on Saturday. The Cubs have won six AAAA/Division I championships and were runners-up an additional seven times, the most recent in 2019 in Division 4.
Loyola made it to the CIF Division 4 title game in 2019 in head coach DREW CASANI’s ‘91 inaugural campaign as the man in charge of Cub Football. This spring Loyola finished 4-0 in the pandemic delayed and shortened season. Had the spring season included a full slate of games, there is no doubt the Cubs would have contended for a CIF crown.
This is the first time in Southern Section history in which the playoff format is based on true competitive equity. What that means is all teams’ playoff divisions were not determined until after the regular season final games had been played last Friday.
Divisional placement and seeding were determined based on each team’s ranking by CalPreps.com. Previously, a team’s playoff division was determined by its record over the two previous years. The competitive equity format is a much more realistic formula for playoff placement of the most deserving teams. It will make for much more competitive first round contests
Following its nail biting loss to St. Paul at home last Friday, Loyola was ranked thirty-fourth in the Southern Section by the CalPreps computer formula. Villa Park is ranked thirty-first. The Cubs are the tenth seed in the Division 3 bracket and the Spartans are the sixth seed.
The number one through four seeds in Division 3 are Redlands Citrus Valley (8-2), Etiwanda (10-0), Foothill (9-1) and San Clemente (7-3).
A LOOK AT VILLA PARK
How about these statistics for the Villa Park quarterback through nine games: 134 of 189 passing (71% completion rate) for 2,341 yards and 23 TDs with just two interceptions, an average of 17.5 yards per pass completion, an off-the-chats 147.9 quarterback rating and an additional 261 rushing yards with a 4.9 yard per carry average.
The senior gun slinger who amassed those impressive statistics for Villa Park is Nathan Kornely (6-1, 194). Fate dealt Kornely a heartbreaking blow on the final play of the Spartans’ ninth game, as he fell awkwardly and sustained a fracture to his arm that is expected to prevent the talented passer from lining up under center against the Cubs on Saturday.
Loyola cannot breathe a sigh of relief, though, as Spartan back-up quarterback, senior Cooper Adams, led a late 91-yard scoring drive to pull the Spartans within one point of league champion Yorba Linda (10-0) last Friday. The two point conversion attempt failed, but Adams served notice that he is a more than able replacement for Kornely.
The Spartans’ receiving corps is outstanding. The top three pass catchers are senior Diego Sanchez (5-9, 160, 36 receptions for 673 yards, 18.7 yards per catch, 6 TDs), Senior Cole Cassara (5-10, 160, 24/487/20.3 ypc/ 1 TD) and senior Kaden Baptist’s (19/353/23.5 ypc/3TDs).
It is expected that Villa Park will run the ball more than they did before Kornely’s injury. The leading rusher is senior Jackson Christie (5-10, 175), who has rushed for 488 yards at a 5,4 yards per carry clip and scored 10 touchdowns.
Villa Park’s defense packs a serious punch. The top players are senior linebackers Owen Duckworth (5-11,185), Arthur Ora (6-1, 205) and August Kraft, and senior safety Kaden Baptista.
GAME OUTLOOK
Villa Park head coach Dusan Ancich did a great job preparing the Spartans for their final league showdown with undefeated Yorba Linda following the loss of their offensive star. Ancich’s teams play a tough, physical brand of football.
The Spartans’ average score is 32-25. Nine of their ten regular season opponents have qualified for the Southern Section playoffs. Villa Park’s strength of schedule is higher than that of the Cubs’ according to CalPreps. The Spartans’ opponents’ cumulative record is 64-33. Loyola’s average score is 32-20, and it’s opponents’ cumulative record is 53-39.
Villa Park will look to keep the ball out of the Cubs’ hands. For Loyola to win, it will probably need to score at least 30 points. The Cubs cannot afford to make critical mistakes and commit infractions as they did against St. Paul on Friday. This a contest where Loyola’s offensive line will need to step up. Defensively, the Cubs will need to force punts and stop the Spartan offense from getting into a rhythm.
THE SERIES
Loyola and Villa Park have only met once on the gridiron. Loyola defeated the Spartans, 45-28, in the quarterfinal round of the CIF Division 4 playoffs in 2019 in a game played at Smith Field.
CORRECTION
In the St. Paul game summary it should have been reported that Cub senior JACOBY KELLY had two long distance (75 and 90 yards) kickoff returns for touchdowns. Senior TAHJ OWENS also took a long distance kickoff to the house, but the TD sprint was called back because of a penalty.
Kelly’s two kickoff returns for touchdowns in one game is believed to be a Loyola record.
LOYOLA OFFENSIVE PLAYMAKERS
If the Cubs make a run in the Division 3 playoffs it will likely be in large measure a result of its impressive group of playmakers putting points on the scoreboard.
Senior quarterback JOE TATUM has completed 116 of 167 passes (69%) for 1,672 yards (14.4 yards per completion) and thrown for 19 touchdowns.
Senior wide receiver PETER VANIS leads Loyola’s talented pass-catching corps with 48 receptions for 711 yards (14.8 avg.) and eight TD grabs. Senior JACOBY KELLY has 31 catches for 427 yards (13.8 avg.) and four scoring receptions. Junior BAYLIN BROOKS has caught 30 passes for 432 yards (14.4 avg.) and two scores. Junior WILKIE WILES has just eight catches, but two of them were for long distance TDs. WILES averages 21.3 yards per catch.
Senior All-CIF running back TAHJ OWENS is having another extraordinary campaign. OWENS has rushed for 1,391 yards on 184 carries (7.6 yds. per carry) and scored 16 TDs. He is the only running back in Big Blue annals to earn All-CIF honors as a sophomore (2019).
Credit for the Cubs’ offensive prowess also must be given to the blocking of the offensive line: senior left tackle SAM YOON (6-5, 302), sophomore guard RASHAD WESTBROOKS (6-2, 245), junior center MATTHEW POHL (6-2, 275), senior guard COLIN CRUCE (6-4, 250), sophomore guard RYAN TURK (6-3, 255) and junior right tackle JACK SUSNJAR (6-6, 313).
HEAD COACH DREW CASANI ‘91 KNOWS CHAMPIONSHIP PLAYOFF FOOTBALL
Loyola’s third yearly varsity head coach DREW CASANI ‘91 knows all about CIF championship level football. As a junior all-league inside linebacker in 1989 Casani helped lead the Cubs to the CIF Division I semifinals and a 10-2 record. In 1990 CASANI was named the CIF Division I Defensive-Player-of-the-Year after a monster senior campaign which saw Loyola win the CIF Division I title.
In his first season as head coach in 2019, his club made it to the CIF Division 4 title game where it lost a close one to San Juan Hills. As a varsity player and head coach CASANI’s CIF playoff record is 9-2. It is not a good idea to bet against a Casani-led Cub team in the CIF playoffs.
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