By Stephen Spiewak
MaxPreps.com
PARMA, Ohio – On Saturday night, St. Ignatius (Cleveland, Ohio) took to Byers Field wearing its home uniforms, prepared to take on archrival St. Edward (Lakewood, Ohio).
Next Saturday, the Cleveland-area powers will replay that exact scenario. St. Ignatius beat St. Edward, 34-12, clinching the No. 1 seed in the the Division I Region 1 playoffs, setting up a home game back at Byers Field against No. 8 seed St. Edward.
“This is very awkward,” St. Ignatius head coach Chuck Kyle said with a chuckle after the game. “We’ve played a team twice before once we got to the playoffs, but honestly, I’ve never experienced that before.”
Ignatius received stellar performances from playmakers on both sides of the ball, highlighted by quarterback Andrew Holland and junior linebacker Scott McVey.
Already leading 6-0 on the strength of a 1-yard touchdown run by Patrick Hinkel, Holland capitalized on what proved to be a costly mistake by St. Edward. St. Ignatius punted from deep in its own territory, but got the ball back after the Eagles were called for roughing the kicker.
On the very next play, Holland launched a perfectly thrown deep ball to wide receiver Joey Parris for a 70 yard touchdown – their first of two scoring connections – to give the Wildcats a 13-0 lead.
“It’s pretty special to come out here and get a big win against our rival,” said Holland, who was injured last season when the two teams met.
Soon, it was McVey’s turn to make a big play. The junior, who has quickly developed a reputation as a big-game player, picked up a St. Edward fumble and raced to the end zone for a 58-yard touchdown to give Ignatius a comfortable 20-0 lead that it would never relinquish.
“What we’ve been finding out is teams are game planning around where number 40 is,” Kyle said of McVey’s growing reputation as a superb pass rusher and tackler. “Maybe our job is to move him around more. He’s a weapon. When a team starts to get some momentum, it seems like number 40 breaks the momentum.”
Taking the field after half time with a 20-6 lead, St. Ignatius came out flat with its previously potent air attack. That’s when Kyle called on Holland to show his ability to gain yards on the ground. Holland culminated a drive that featured several long runs with a 19-yard dash that went all the way to the end zone to push St. Ignatius’ lead to 27-6.
“He’s a very versatile young man,” Kyle said.
The Eagles had a very hard time offensively the entire game. Latwan Anderson was one bright spot, however. In addition to doing an impressive job on special teams, Anderson also broke a 78-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter to account for St. Edward’s final score.
NOTES
- The attendance was reportedly over 11,000. A “Sold Out” sign was taped to the ticket window more than an hour before kick-off. The game, a match-up between Cleveland’s two large, all-boys Catholic schools, is affectionately known as “The Holy War”.
- In addition to his great speed, Anderson showed he has delicate hands as well, making a beautiful one-handed catch. Teammate Maxwell Warren also made several nifty grabs that were highlight worthy.
- With St. Ignatius’ student body composed of students from grammar schools all across the Cleveland area, the public address announcer mentions each player’s grammar school before introducing him in the starting lineup, akin to NBA players having their college mentioned in their introduction
- Joey Parris is the younger brother of Notre Dame wide receiver Robby Parris. Furthering the Wildcats’ connection to South Bend will be senior linebacker Dan Fox, who has committed to play for Charlie Weis in the fall.
- How good has Scott McVey been this year? Cleveland Plain Dealer writer Mike Peticca speculated before the game that he alone has drawn between 15 and 20 holding calls this season.
- St. Edward’s offensive line seemed much bigger than the Wildcats’ defensive line, but save for some plays in the first quarter, never appeared to get much of a push off the ball.
- There was buzz on the field after the game that Colerain might meet up with fellow Cincinnati power St. Xavier in the first round of the playoffs. As it turns out, Colerain will draw another GCL school, Archbishop Moeller, down in Region 4.
- The St. Ignatius student body jeered when an announcement over the PA system was read reminding students that hooded sweatshirts are no longer allowed to be worn on the school campus. The announcement encouraged students to donate their sweatshirts to a charity to help keep the city’s homeless warm.
