Friday, October 23, 2015

Trivia question: Who scored...

...the most points against Loyola this year? That's right, 16 by Fenwick in Week Four (above). And who held the Ramblers to the fewest points in a game? Right again! Brother Rice, 28, in Week Three. Now here's a hard one: Who held Mount Carmel to the fewest points this year? Gotcha! Only one, by Hales Franciscan last week in a forfeit.

Is any of this important? Of course not, but it's about the only original thing I can think of to write about tomorrow's storied -- and it is "storied" -- Catholic League Blue rivalry between the visiting Caravan of Mount Carmel (7-1) and the home team Ramblers of Loyola (8-0).

(If you want to read a more detailed analysis, here's Mike Helfgot's in the Tribune and Beth Long's in the Sun-Times.)

All I know is I saw the first half of the Brother Rice tilt and the entire game at Providence and this year's Loyola squad could be -- could be -- the best high school team I've ever seen. (And I choose my words carefully.) The Ramblers have it all: a good quarterback, a running back who broke the school's record for most career yards, tall receivers, huge linemen, stingy defense, the winningest coach in school history, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. Can these guys go undefeated and beat Homewood-Flossmoor in the 8A championship? Possibly. (Although the dream game that I'd really like to see would be 8A Loyola against 7A Glenbard West. Oh, well; that other one will still be great.)

Now before I go any further, here's a look at Mount Carmel's 2015 schedule (with home team in CAPS):

MOUNT CARMEL 21, Marist 14
MOUNT CARMEL 48, Morgan Park 0
MOUNT CARMEL 13, Providence 0
MOUNT CARMEL 35, St. Rita 14
Mount Carmel 63 DE LA SALLE 0
BROTHER RICE 31, Mount Carmel 14
MOUNT CARMEL 38, Leo 12
MOUNT CARMEL 1, Hales Franciscan 0 (forfeit)

And Loyola's:

LOYOLA 35, Marquette (WI) 0
Loyola 49, MAINE SOUTH 8
LOYOLA 28, Brother Rice 0
Loyola 54, FENWICK 16
LOYOLA 35, St. Ignatius 7
Loyola 31, PROVIDENCE 7
LOYOLA 42, DePaul 0
Loyola 56, ST. RITA 14

And for you junkies, here's the series since John Holecek took over the Ramblers nine years ago:

2014: MOUNT CARMEL 10, Loyola 7
2013: LOYOLA 24, Mount Carmel 17
2012: Loyola 30, MOUNT CARMEL 27
2011: LOYOLA 12, Mount Carmel 7
2010: Mount Carmel 31, LOYOLA 24
2009: Loyola 28, MOUNT CARMEL 15
            Loyola 24, MOUNT CARMEL 7 (playoff)
2008: MOUNT CARMEL 35, Loyola 14
2007: Mount Carmel 31, LOYOLA 24
2006: MOUNT CARMEL 32, Loyola 14

What do I think for tomorrow? Well, Mount Carmel is ranked No. 11 in the Trib, No. 13 in the Sun-Times but only No. 30 in MaxPreps (behind Maine South!). Loyola, on the other hand, is ranked No. 2 in the Trib, No. 3 in the Times and No. 1 in MaxPreps (where they've been all year). "So, what?" you might say. Okay, how about this? Brother Rice beat Mount Carmel convincingly while the Ramblers shut out the Crusaders just as convincingly. I'm with Mike Helfgot of the Tribune:

Loyola 41-14. All signs point to a rare blowout in this rivalry.

If you can't make the game, I'll be live-tweeting it from the stands (next to Jerry Gavin) @BoringOldWhtGuy.

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