Cub Football - Loyola has chance to make history at Smith Field on Friday
A WIN AGAINST SIMI VALLEY IN THE CIF DIVISION 3 SEMIFINALS ON FRIDAY COULD ACCOMPLISH WHAT ONLY 13 OTHER LOYOLA TEAMS HAVE
Thirteen Loyola football teams have played for CIF Southern Section championships in the storied history of the Cub Football program, and this year's Big Blue squad has an opportunity to advance to a fourteenth title game if they defeat Simi Valley, the number one one seed in Division 3, in the CIF playoff semifinals on Friday night at Smith Field.
LOYOLA's RECORD IN THE SOUTHERN SECTION SEMIFINAL CONTESTS
Loyola has advanced to the semifinal round of the CIF Southern Section playoffs 22 times, dating back 78 years. Its first semifinal contest was in 1946. Two-time CIF Large Schools Player of the Year AL POLLARD led the Cubs to the semifinals where they downed Huntington Beach, 20-6. That win catapulted them to the title game where they lost a one-point heartbreaker, 7-6, to Alhambra. Dubbed the "Loyola Express" by the sporting press, POLLARD, a bruising halfback, was the first of 12 Cub football players to earn CIF Player of the Year honors.
Loyola advanced to an additional 21 CIF playoff semifinal playoff contests since 1946. The other appearances in the final four were in 1950, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1975, 1977, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2019, 2022 and 2024.
The Cubs have won 13 (62%) of their previous battles in the semifinals. Eleven of those semifinal victories have been in the highest level of Southern Section competition (Large Schools, AAAA, Division I).
The spirit of some of the greatest Loyola teams of the last eight decades will be pushing the Cubs this Friday at Smith Field. Tradition is an inspiring element in the motivation of the troops.
SOME CLASSIC LOYOLA SEMIFINALS OF THE PAST
The Cubs' 35-game winning streak from 1962 through 1964 still stands as a CIF Large Schools record. In each of those seasons, Loyola won their semifinal bouts by a combined total of 14 points, which serves as evidences as just how tough the competition is when there are only four teams left standing.
No Cub semifinal contest was a good as the one played against Anaheim at El Camino College on a cold December night in 1975. A trick play lateral and pass that covered over 90 yards with less than two minutes remaining in the fray gave the Cubs a 21-17 victory.
A 10-3 road win over Canyon of Canyon Country before an overflow crowd at College of the Canyons in 1990 was a defensive masterpiece.
In 1995, Loyola outscored Los Alamitos, 37-34, in a game for the ages.
The 17-14 win over nationally ranked Eisenhower in 2000 before a standing-room-only crowd at Glendale's Moyse Field was a classic.
In 2003, the Cubs won an overtime thriller, 22-16, against Los Alamitos before a huge crowd at the Home Depot Center in Carson.
The 2005 semifinal, 14-0, shutout of Mater Dei at East Los Angeles College was quite the satisfying victory.
A CALL TO BLUE
The school has requested that Loyola supporters wear Navy Blue to Friday's blockbuster.
If every reader of this newsletter convinces three friends and/or family members who have not attended a game thus far this season to attend the battle on Friday, an extra 2,000-plus fans would be present to support Loyola's quest to advance to the contest for the "Ring".
THE CUBS NEED FANS IN THE STANDS!!
ALUMNI FOOTBALL NEWS
JAKE ARELLANO '24, an All-CIF/All-League 2023 tough-as-nails standout safety and team captain has made the decision to transfer from the University of Arizona to Division II Bentley University in Massachusetts to continue his football career. He will be sure to succeed in a big way for the Falcons. JAKE's brother, inside linebacker STEVEN ARELLANO '20, was honored as the 2019 CIF Division 4 Defensive Player of the Year, and attended the University of Chicago. Their father, STEVEN, also a Cub grad, has had great success as Loyola's freshman head coach after a distinguished career in law enforcement.
2024 LOYOLA VARSITY FOOTBALL SCHEDULE/RECORD
8-23 @ Cathedral (L, 16-13, 2OT)
8-30 Damien (L, 30-29)
9-13 @ Leuzinger (L, 40-30)
9-20 @ St. Francis (W, 35-7)
9-27 @ Mount Miguel (Spring Valley, San Diego) (W, 46-38)
10-4 Serra (Home)* (L, 42-35)
10-11 @ Bishop Amat* (W, 24-17)
10-18 Chaminade (Home)* (W, 44-10)
10-25 @ Sierra Canyon* (L, 45-0)
11-1 Notre Dame (Home)* (L, 35-34)
CIF SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION 3 PLAYOFFS
11-8 @ Tustin (CIF Division-3 Playoffs first round) (W, 30-13)
11-15 Crean Lutheran (CIF Division 3 quarterfinals) (W, 23-20 (OT))
11-22 Simi Valley (CIF Division 3 Playoffs semifinals)
CUBS IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Below is the list of Loyola graduates playing college football in 2024 according to published collegiate rosters:
CHAD BAILEY ‘20, DB, Bentley University
NICHOLAS BARR-MIRA ‘19, K, Mississippi State
COLIN CRUCE ‘22, OL, Bowdoin
JEFFREY JOHNSON ‘21, TE, Cal
LUKE HARRISON ‘24, OL, University of San Diego
ANDREW KOZHAYA ‘21, OL, Grinnel
SHAWN LIN '22, DL, Columbia
LEIGHTON LINE ‘23, DL, Cal Lutheran
CONNOR McDOWELL ‘21, DB, Angelo State
BLAKE NEITHART ‘20, DB, Carleton
TAHJ OWENS '22, DB, Princeton
JACK PARIS '23, DL, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
RYAN QUINTANAR '20, LB, USC
ISAIAH SANDERS, ‘24, LB, UC Davis
PATRICK SODL ‘22, LB, Columbia
HENRY STICKLER ‘22, WR, SMU
JACK SUSNJAR ‘23, OL, USC
JOE TATUM ‘22, QB, Texas
EVAN THOMAS ‘20, DB, UCLA
RYAN TURK ‘24, OL, Dartmouth
ALEX WHITMAN ‘22, WR, Notre Dame
CHAMP WESTBROOKS ‘24, OL, Arizona State
CEYAIR WRIGHT ‘21, DB, Nebraska
SAM YOON ‘22, OL, UCLA
LOYOLA GRADS IN THE NFL
MYLES BRYANT '16, corner, Houston Texans
ALEX JOHNSON '19, corner, Indianapolis Colts (practice squad)
DAVID LONG, JR., corner, Indianapolis Colts
COLEMAN SHELTON '13, center, Chicago Bears
THE CUBS NEED THOUSANDS OF FANS IN THE STANDS THIS FRIDAY!!