Oct. 25--Dara Laja and his Loyola teammates were aware of the pitfalls to avoid on the way the playoffs.
Some of them watched the state's consensus No. 1 team, Homewood-Flossmoor, lose to a .500 Bolingbrook team on a late field goal on Friday. Then there was their own history to recall.
"Sort of the same thing happened to us last year," Laja said. "Mount Carmel was 4-4 and they had to win to get in (the playoffs, which the Caravan did). Desperation can help a team out."
So can waves of talent, as Loyola continues to prove. The No. 2 Ramblers got two kickoff returns for touchdowns by Jonah Isaac, Laja set the school's career rushing record and Loyola rolled to a 49-21 Catholic League Blue win in Wilmette.
Emmett Clifford passed for 236 yards and three touchdowns for Loyola (9-0, 4-0), which also had four takeaways in the first half.
"It's the best offense I've ever had," 10th-year Loyola coach John Holecek said. "You concentrate on one thing, you've got a couple others to answer."
Mount Carmel (7-2, 2-2) had no answer for Isaac, who ran back kickoffs 99 and 97 yards in the first half. No team, let alone no player, had done that twice in one game during Caravan coach Frank Lenti's 32-year tenure.
"He showed that he's got the wheels that he can play at the next level," Holecek said of Isaac.
Kickoffs were a problem for Mount Carmel all day long. The Caravan fumbled one away in the first half. Then in the third quarter, Loyola tried a squib kick that caromed off a Caravan player's helmet directly into the arms of a Loyola player.
"Sometimes you almost have to smile," Lenti said. "Every time we do something good, they come back and do something better."
Laja ran 9 yards for Loyola's last touchdown with 4:12 left in the game. That gave him 92 yards on 22 carries Saturday, and 2,112 for his career. Ramblers receivers coach Pat Naughton, a 1996 Loyola grad, had the old record of 2,110 yards.
"How everyone was cheering me on, that shows how tight-knit we are," Laja said. "It's a testament to our offensive line last year and this year, our quarterback making the right calls, coaches ... giving me their words of wisdom."
mclark@tribpub.com
Player of the game: Jonah Isaac, Loyola, 99- and 97-yard kickoff returns for TD.
Key performers: Loyola -- Emmett Clifford, 13-for-16 passing, 236 yards 3 TDs; Dara Laja, 22 carries, 92 yards, TD. Mount Carmel -- Anthony Thompson, 15-for-23 passing, 185 yards, 2 TDs; 2 rushing TDs.
