East St. Louis takes it to Loyola Academy in Week 1 battle of state football powerhouses

The Loyola Academy winning streak that stretched back to the first game of the 2022 IHSA Class 8A playoffs is history and so is the perfect record of second-year coach Beau Desherow.

So after a stunning 34-7 loss to last year’s Class 6A second-place finisher East St. Louis on Friday, Aug. 31 in Hancock Stadium on the campus of Illinois State University on Friday, Aug. 31, the Ramblers will regroup and start over in their quest for a third straight 8A championship when they play at Glenbard West on Saturday afternoon, Sept. 7.

In their opener they were no match for a lightning-fast team that seized the lead by scoring four unanswered touchdowns in the first half and dominated every phase of the game.

“That was a very good football team. I’ve never seen a team that fast,” Desherow said. “Their size up front was tough. Their defensive end (6-foot-2, 230-pound Keandre McClendon); wow, he’s a player. We were able to get pressure on their quarterback (Kendrick Lyons) but he was poised and he was accurate.

“They exploited a bunch of things. We made a lot of mistakes that we’ll correct.

“We have a whole season ahead of us.”

Loyola’s only touchdown came on an 80-yard fumble recovery runback by junior linebacker Gavin King followed by Zak Zeman’s extra-point kick that reduced the deficit to 26-7 with 3:01 to play in the third quarter.

The last time Loyola lost by more than 20 points was 16 years ago (2008: 35-14 to Mount Carmel).

The Flyers aggressive defense thwarted Loyola’s primary offensive weapons: senior quarterback Ryan Fitzgerald and senior running back Drew MacPherson.

“We weren’t clicking; we weren’t bringing any energy,” said MacPherson, who failed to get any significant yardage from his rushing attempts and pass receptions. “There’s not much else to say.”

“As quarterback I feel I fell short today,” Fitzgerald lamented. “It stings and it hurts but I have full confidence in our team. We’ll come back firing on all cylinders.

“Our goal was to go 14-0. Now, we have to focus on the task ahead — the next game and then winning the Chicago Catholic League and then the state tournament (for the third straight season).”

Fitzgerald’s only big play was a 48-yard run to the East St. Louis 26-yard line. But the Ramblers were unable to make headway and lost the football on downs just as they did after linebacker Charles Daly made an interception at the 26 on the Flyers’ first possession.

In stark contrast, East St. Louis kept making big plays.

In the first quarter, Lyons threw touchdown passes to Christopher Bennett Jr. and Kortez Ruppert on plays covering 26 and 74 yards, respectively.

In the second quarter, Laverius Woods ran 2 yards for a touchdown and Lyons scrambled for a two-point conversion and Lyons tossed a 7-yard TD pass to Ronnie GoMiller.

Lyons put the finishing touches on the decisive victory with a 14-yard touchdown pass to Amir Tillman with 5:38 remaining.

“They’re a great team and I definitely have respect for them but there were a lot of self-inflicted mistakes,” said senior wide receiver Will Carlson, providing a synopsis of the consensus of his Loyola teammates.

Compounding the disappointment of the defeat was an assortment of injuries to important players: senior defensive lineman Connor Sullivan (on the second play from scrimmage),  junior defensive lineman Kai Calcutt, senior defensive back Micky Maher and senior offensive lineman John Dooley. Senior defensive back Donovan Robinson, who excels as a kick and punt returner as well, also had to be helped off the field late in the second quarter but it was because of severe cramps rather than an injury.

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