Cub Football - Loyola selected as Division 4 At-Large playoff team despite loss to Bishop Amat
LOYOLA HEADED TO CIF SOUTHERN SECTION PLAYOFFS FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2015
Loyola will return to the CIF Southern Section football playoffs for the first time in four years, as the Southern Section chose the Cubs as one of six At-Large teams in the Division 4 field.
The last time Loyola competed in the CIF playoffs was in 2015. It finished the campaign with a 9-3 record and ranked 17th in the state. Among the stalwarts on that team were current L. A. Rams defensive back DAVID LONG ‘16 and University of Washington safety MYLES BRYANT ‘16.
This marks the first time in the program’s history the Cubs will be competing in other than the highest playoff division (Large Schools, AAAA, Big Five, Division 1). Next Friday’s opening round contest against Bay League champion Palos Verdes (8-2), at a site to be determined, will be Loyola’s forty-seventh appearance in the CIF playoffs. It is probable that the Sea Kings are not happy with their first round draw.
The Cubs’ first CIF playoff invitation came in 1945. In the first three decades of the Twentieth Century private schools were not allowed to participate in the Southern Section playoffs. In 1946, led by two-time All CIF Large Schools tailback AL POLLARD ‘47, Loyola was CIF Large Schools runner-up, which was the first of six runner-up finishes in program history.
Pollard, dubbed “The Loyola Express” by the sports press, was named the CIF Large Schools Player-of-the-Year for a second consecutive year. The Cubs have won six CIF Southern Section AAAA/Division I championships, and ten Loyola players have earned CIF Player-of-the-Year honors.
It is fitting that varsity head coach Drew Casani ‘91, who helped lead the Cubs to the 1990 CIF D-I title and was named the CIF Division I Defensive Player-of the-Year for his ferocious play at inside linebacker, will once again be at the helm of a playoff squad in his first year as the man in charge of Loyola’s storied program. It is to Casani and his staff’s credit that they coached the Cubs to important victories that allowed them to qualify for an At-Large berth.
CUBS LET FINAL LEAGUE CONTEST GET AWAY FROM THEM ON FRIDAY
In La Puente on Friday, Bishop Amat and Loyola met in their final Mission League competition of the season. The Lancers started the contest with an offensive dam burst. Bishop Amat raced to a 21-0 lead as a Lancer runner scored from 16 yards out at the 6:44 mark of the second quarter. The Big Blue needed a fast start, but it was the home team that put the pedal to the metal.
Sophomore tight end JOE TAYLOR took a pass off a fake punt punt deep into Bishop Amat territory, setting up a 31-yard field goal by Loyola senior kicker DIEGO BURGOS to cut the deficit to 21-3. Unfortunately, the Cubs were unable to corral the ensuing on side kick, and Bishop Amat scored quickly on a 10-yard run with 2:27 left in the half to up its lead to 28-3.
Loyola refused to fold, as the Big Blue mounted a hurry-up 92-yard TD drive, capped by yet another spectacular 19-yard reception in the end zone by soph receiver JACOBY KELLY on a pass from junior signal caller BRAYDEN ZERMENO with 0:25 left on the clock before halftime to cut the gap to 28-10.
The Lancers (9-1), ranked 15th in the state, scored on a 29-yard touchdown run at the 6:27 mark of the third quarter to increase their lead to 35-10. For all intents and purposes that was the death knell for the Big Blue. The home squad followed that with a 25-yard field goal with 7:02 left in the fourth quarter. The Cubs drove to the Bishop Amat four yard line before the final gun.
Loyola’s defense could not get stops. Bishop Amat scored five touchdowns and kicked a field goal on their ten possessions and only punted three times. On the flip side, the Cubs were unable to muster sufficient offense to keep the defense off the field. Loyola punted five times, had a punt blocked (which led to a Lancer TD) and failed to convert on two fourth down attempts on its ten possessions. The Cubs are better than they played, and fortunately with a playoff invitation they have a chance to prove it, as a “new” season gets underway this Friday. Suffice to say, come Friday night’s kickoff tradition and pride will be on the minds of many alumni and Big Blue supporters.
Loyola (3-6) finished fifth in the Mission League thanks to Chaminade’s 24-14 win over last place Gardena Serra. Bishop Amat won the league title with a 5-0 conference record.
Loyola will return to the CIF Southern Section football playoffs for the first time in four years, as the Southern Section chose the Cubs as one of six At-Large teams in the Division 4 field.
The last time Loyola competed in the CIF playoffs was in 2015. It finished the campaign with a 9-3 record and ranked 17th in the state. Among the stalwarts on that team were current L. A. Rams defensive back DAVID LONG ‘16 and University of Washington safety MYLES BRYANT ‘16.
This marks the first time in the program’s history the Cubs will be competing in other than the highest playoff division (Large Schools, AAAA, Big Five, Division 1). Next Friday’s opening round contest against Bay League champion Palos Verdes (8-2), at a site to be determined, will be Loyola’s forty-seventh appearance in the CIF playoffs. It is probable that the Sea Kings are not happy with their first round draw.
The Cubs’ first CIF playoff invitation came in 1945. In the first three decades of the Twentieth Century private schools were not allowed to participate in the Southern Section playoffs. In 1946, led by two-time All CIF Large Schools tailback AL POLLARD ‘47, Loyola was CIF Large Schools runner-up, which was the first of six runner-up finishes in program history.
Pollard, dubbed “The Loyola Express” by the sports press, was named the CIF Large Schools Player-of-the-Year for a second consecutive year. The Cubs have won six CIF Southern Section AAAA/Division I championships, and ten Loyola players have earned CIF Player-of-the-Year honors.
It is fitting that varsity head coach Drew Casani ‘91, who helped lead the Cubs to the 1990 CIF D-I title and was named the CIF Division I Defensive Player-of the-Year for his ferocious play at inside linebacker, will once again be at the helm of a playoff squad in his first year as the man in charge of Loyola’s storied program. It is to Casani and his staff’s credit that they coached the Cubs to important victories that allowed them to qualify for an At-Large berth.
CUBS LET FINAL LEAGUE CONTEST GET AWAY FROM THEM ON FRIDAY
In La Puente on Friday, Bishop Amat and Loyola met in their final Mission League competition of the season. The Lancers started the contest with an offensive dam burst. Bishop Amat raced to a 21-0 lead as a Lancer runner scored from 16 yards out at the 6:44 mark of the second quarter. The Big Blue needed a fast start, but it was the home team that put the pedal to the metal.
Sophomore tight end JOE TAYLOR took a pass off a fake punt punt deep into Bishop Amat territory, setting up a 31-yard field goal by Loyola senior kicker DIEGO BURGOS to cut the deficit to 21-3. Unfortunately, the Cubs were unable to corral the ensuing on side kick, and Bishop Amat scored quickly on a 10-yard run with 2:27 left in the half to up its lead to 28-3.
Loyola refused to fold, as the Big Blue mounted a hurry-up 92-yard TD drive, capped by yet another spectacular 19-yard reception in the end zone by soph receiver JACOBY KELLY on a pass from junior signal caller BRAYDEN ZERMENO with 0:25 left on the clock before halftime to cut the gap to 28-10.
The Lancers (9-1), ranked 15th in the state, scored on a 29-yard touchdown run at the 6:27 mark of the third quarter to increase their lead to 35-10. For all intents and purposes that was the death knell for the Big Blue. The home squad followed that with a 25-yard field goal with 7:02 left in the fourth quarter. The Cubs drove to the Bishop Amat four yard line before the final gun.
Loyola’s defense could not get stops. Bishop Amat scored five touchdowns and kicked a field goal on their ten possessions and only punted three times. On the flip side, the Cubs were unable to muster sufficient offense to keep the defense off the field. Loyola punted five times, had a punt blocked (which led to a Lancer TD) and failed to convert on two fourth down attempts on its ten possessions. The Cubs are better than they played, and fortunately with a playoff invitation they have a chance to prove it, as a “new” season gets underway this Friday. Suffice to say, come Friday night’s kickoff tradition and pride will be on the minds of many alumni and Big Blue supporters.
Loyola (3-6) finished fifth in the Mission League thanks to Chaminade’s 24-14 win over last place Gardena Serra. Bishop Amat won the league title with a 5-0 conference record.
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