St. Ignatius uses run game, clutch turnovers to spoil Loyola’s title quest

A stuffed fourth-down attempt halted Loyola Academy’s comeback bid and state-championship hopes on Saturday afternoon in Chicago.

Clinging to a 21-16 lead, St. Ignatius stopped a Ramblers’ rush on fourth-and-1 with about a minute to play to cinch a dramatic upset and revenge victory in an IHSA Class 8A quarterfinal matchup Nov. 14.

In a game dominated by the Wolfpack’s rushing attack, the Ramblers gave themselves a chance late in the fourth quarter.

Matthew Lee’s 24-yard scoring connection with Jordan McKinley put Loyola within a score with five minutes to go.

The Ramblers then successfully tried an onside kick and moved the ball deep into Wolfpack territory before coming up short on fourth down.

The loss ends a resurgent Loyola season that followed an atypical 4-5 campaign in 2025. The Ramblers were 8-1 in the regular season, which included a 38-7 victory against St. Ignatius in October. Their only loss came against 8A semifinalist Mount Carmel in Week 9, and they earned the No. 3 seed in the 8A bracket.

No. 11 St. Ignatius moves on to an 8A semifinal showdown with No. 6 New Trier (11-1), which toppled No. 2 Huntley on Friday night.

The Wolfpack struck first on Saturday when the host’s drove 80 yards on all run plays to take a 7-0 lead.

Loyola answered with a quick drive to the 1-yard line, but a botched snap pushed the Ramblers back 20 yards. Ryan Edwards salvaged three points with a field goal for the Ramblers.

The Ramblers took their only lead of the day when Lee found Joe Haughey in the end zone from 2 yards away, but a missed extra point made it 9-7 in the second quarter.

Then came maybe the biggest momentum shift of the game. Loyola quickly stopped Ignatius, which elected to punt on fourth down late in the half. That punt, however, bounced off a Rambler and the Wolfpack recovered the live ball deep in Loyola territory.

Two plays later, Ignatius quarterback Reid Hites rushed to paydirt, giving his team a surprising 14-9 halftime advantage.

The Wolfpack scored on their first possession out of halftime, as well.

Stay tuned to TheRecordNorthShore.org for more details, photos and quotes from this game.

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