advertisement

Turnovers spell trouble for Warren

When it started to go badly for Warren in its Class 8A opening-round playoff game at Loyola, it didn't take much longer for it to get much worse.

Three consecutive Blue Devils turnovers in the third quarter aided a 27-point avalanche by the Ramblers. The outburst, featuring three scores in a three-minute span, turned a 12-10 Warren halftime advantage into a 37-20 season-ender in Wilmette on Saturday.

Warren saw its six game winning streak snapped as it closed the year with a mark of 7-3.

Loyola (8-2), which finished second in Class 8A each of the last two seasons, will move into the next round and a rematch of last year's 8A semifinal. Stevenson will host the Ramblers on Saturday, with the game time yet to be determined.

"It was just a snowball effect," said Warren coach Bryan McNulty. "We had a special teams error here and a long ball there - things that are not a characteristic of how we have played this year that got us. We just have to be better."

When things were better, early in the game, the Devils were moving the ball and hanging on to it, too. The Blue Devils stunned the Ramblers early when quarterback Jay Nickell hit Illinois-bound senior Caleb Reams in stride for a 70-yard scoring play, and the Devils went up 6-0 just three plays into the game.

Even when Loyola answered with a pair of scoring drives, the Devils and their potent ground attack had an answer. Junior Darrius Crump weaved his way through the potent Ramblers defense for a 65-yard scoring run and Warren built a 12-10 halftime edge.

"Defensively, we had a couple breakdowns in the first half and we knew that if we didn't get into our gap, (Crump) could hurt us," said Loyola coach John Holecek. "It came down to taking care of the ball and not making mistakes."

Loyola jumped on the Devils to start the third quarter with quarterback Aidan Walsh doing the damage with his arm and his legs. His 20-yard quarterback keeper on the Ramblers' first drive of the third quarter gave the hosts the lead for good at 16-12.

Within the next three minutes, Mark Dowdle and the Loyola defense dug in and made life miserable for Warren. Dowdle intercepted a pair of Nickell passes, including one that he returned 46 yards to set up a score.

"(Warren) had two plays - that's all they had in the first half," Dowdle said. "We just dug in and battled with a little more fire and worked to not let those plays happen again in the second half."

Dowdle's first interception led to a 6-yard TD run by Mark Nichol to put the Ramblers in control at 23-12. His next interception sealed the victory for Loyola and led to a 2-yard scoring run by Calvin Falkenhayn to cap the Ramblers scoring.

Regardless of the score, Crump and the Devils' running game never stopped going.

"We just weren't going to quit no matter what, no matter the score," Crump said.

After the last Loyola score, Crump busted off a 65-yard run that led to his second score of the day from 11 yards out. In his final game of the season, Crump carried the ball 20 times, for 169 yards.

"This group of seniors we had this year - I couldn't ask for a better group," McNulty said. "I think you saw as a program, we are going to be on the map."

Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.