A few critical mistakes held Loyola back from a potential first-round upset of Mount Carmel in the Class 8A playoffs this past fall.

Seeking to protect their reign atop the 8A hierarchy, the three-time defending state champion Ramblers had a shot of reaching the next round. Loyola held a 14-7 halftime lead over the Caravan, moving the ball well on the ground and creating consistent pressure on defense.

But the Ramblers couldn’t close the deal, as a pair of letdowns in the secondary allowed Mount Carmel to convert touchdown passes of 92 and 80 yards in the second half. Those passes were the difference, as Loyola fell to the Caravan 21-17 and conceded the 8A crown to Mount Carmel, which went on to beat Oswego in the state finals at NIU.

For returning starters like junior linebacker Will Mettee, the CCL/ESCC Blue’s Co-Defensive Player of the Year, the loss to Mount Carmel and the ups and downs of the 2025 season provided learning experiences for the future. Part of a young core of sophomore and junior players, Mettee is ready to take on a leadership role and fix last year’s failures.

“The biggest thing we need to improve on is taking accountability,” Mettee said. “We need to improve on being disciplined and that’s what I saw over my first two years... Our defense did really well, but in the middle of the game, we had two errors that cost us two touchdowns. Pressuring the quarterback was a big positive for us and I know the guys who’ll be returning next year will be really, really nasty.”

In the history of Loyola football, 2025 is certainly an outlier. Playing only eight regular-season games due to a Week 2 cancellation, Loyola finished 4-5 after four consecutive losses to close out the season. It was the first losing season in 23 years for the Ramblers, who’ve made the state finals nine times and won five championships since 2011.

“The biggest thing is communication,” Mettee said. “Not every play were we communicating what our coverage was and that messed up the safeties and corners because they weren’t on the same page and didn’t know what guys to take. Communicating before every play and being vocal, that’ll change your whole defense. By the end of the year, we were locked in on that, but it shouldn’t have taken seven games.”

Mettee and his returning teammates are eager to turn last season’s struggles around. A Division I prospect who recently visited Boston College, Mettee recorded 88 total tackles, 7 TFLs, 6 sacks, 5 hurries, 2 PBUs, 1 FF, 1 FR, and 1 INT during the fall. Called up to varsity as a freshman, Mettee will be one Loyola’s most experienced defenders.

“I definitely think I had a really productive year,” Mettee said. “The biggest thing throughout my junior year was consistency... I had a big leadership role this year and I took a lot more accountability. I was so dedicated to doing the best I could, making every tackle and having a nose for the ball. I think I performed well in high-pressure moments.”

Offensively, Loyola returns its top two quarterbacks in junior Dom Maloney and sophomore Matthew Lee. Both players made starts in the fall and Lee, who has an offer from Wisconsin, threw for 1,063 yards and 12 touchdowns with two interceptions over eight games. Maloney, who suffered an injury Week 1, returned to start in the postseason.

The Ramblers also welcome back sophomores Melo Maldonado and Jordan McKinley, a Power 4 prospect who did a little of everything on offense in the fall. McKinley, a 6-foot-3, 220-pound wide receiver, caught 45 passes for 601 yards and six touchdowns. McKinley, who ran for three touchdowns, holds offers from SMU, Purdue and Illinois.

“I felt like I made an impact everywhere, but receiver is where I made the most impact,” said McKinley, who played on special teams during his freshman season. “I feel like my role will grow a lot this year since we still have the same young guys. They’re still going to use me as a halfback, receiver, in the slot... I can be the person to make a play.”

McKinley reeled in a team-high seven catches for 57 yards, including a leaping grab over Mount Carmel four-star defensive back Tavares Harrington, during the team’s playoff loss to the Caravan. McKinley, who’s also been offered by Kansas State, Wisconsin, Nebraska and Iowa State, said his improved technique led to his breakout season.

“During the summer, I wasn’t really good with my footwork or my releases,” McKinley said. “I had the physicality to work at the varsity level, but the footwork, working my releases and knowing what to do when the DBs are in Cover 2, Cover 3, Cover 4... I learned the mental side of the game. Working against DBs like Tavares, the best DB I saw all year, I had to do more to use my physicality and work my releases.”

Maldonado rumbled for 653 yards and six scores to lead the Loyola backfield, which includes sophomore Jayden Garrett. Garrett, another Power 4 recruit, has offers from Auburn, Purdue and Colorado. Tight end Charlie Fowler, a 6-foot-7 junior, caught eight passes for 129 yards and two scores in the fall and has earned Power 4 offers as well.

“I feel really confident about these guys,” McKinley said. “I feel like we can really make an impact and that really excites me for the next two years... We have a really good line coming back, even though we lost a couple of guys from the 2026 class. We could come back and be a very strong run-blocking team and a pretty good passing team.”

Loyola will graduate a senior class that has several players bound for college programs. Among them are Power 4 signees Tommy Fraumann (Michigan) and Kai Calcutt (NC State), an All-CCL/ESCC defensive lineman as well as a four-time state finalist and two-time state wrestling champion at Loyola. Calcutt will wrestle for the Wolfpack.

Other Division I signees include Henry Newton (Air Force), Chase Williamson (St. Thomas), Gavin King (Dartmouth) and Zak Zeman (Western Michigan), one of the top-ranked kickers in the country. Nick Richter (LB), Henry Lemmon (OL) and Colin Vardijan (OL) have each signed to play Division III football for the University of Chicago.