Lincoln-Way East can not slow down Loyola in IHSA Class 8A state championship game loss

NORMAL - Senior defensive end David Wuske was a big part of a Lincoln-Way East defense that dominated all season, having allowed just 68 points in 13 games coming into Saturday’s Class 8A state championship game, including just six in four playoff games.

Loyola, though, figured out how to attack the Griffins. Wuske tipped his cap.

“It was the fact that they have a team with perfect execution,” Wuske said. “I give so much credit to that team. They are off the charts. Everything they run, they run it as sound as possible. They run it as a unit. Everyone does their jobs correctly. They targeted our weak spots, which really allowed them to get through.”

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Lincoln-Way East’s Braden Tischer runs the ball up the middle against Loyola in the Class 8A championship on Saturday, Nov. 25, 2023 at Hancock Stadium in Normal. (Gary Middendorf/Gary Middendorf)

The Ramblers piled up 420 yards of total offense and did not punt all game, beating Lincoln-Way East in the 8A title game for the second straight season with a 26-15 win.

Nonetheless, Wuske is sure proud to have been a big part of the latest in a long line of great Griffins defenses.

“It was off the charts,” Wuske said. “This was the best experience of my life. I wouldn’t have traded it for the world. I’d lose to Loyola 1,000 times just to be a part of this program.”

Braden Tischer completed 18-of-26 passes for 165 yards and two touchdowns to lead Lincoln-Way East (13-1). Conner Durkin had 10 tackles, including one for a loss, while Wuske finished with seven tackles - 1.5 for a loss - and a fumble recovery.

But the Ramblers (14-0) had enough firepower to end the Griffins’ season for the third year in a row, including a quarterfinal loss in 2021. Ryan Fitzgerald completed 17-of-21 passes for 203 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 89 yards and another score on 16 carries.

“I want to take my hat off to Loyola Academy,” Lincoln-Way East coach Rob Zvonar said. “They’re unbelievable players and they’re unbelievably well-coached.

“The sting of this will last for a while but when it wears off, our players will realize they’ve done a lot of special things and they represent Lincoln-Way East, our community and high school football in an exemplary manner.”

The Griffins trailed 13-0 early in the second quarter and had not recorded a first down, but got going in a big way with a 16-play, 80-yard drive that was capped with a 2-yard touchdown pass from Tischer to Trey Zvonar - Rob’s son - on fourth-and-goal.

“Early on, they stopped our run game,” Tischer said. “Credit to their d-line and linebackers. We decided to start passing more and we were able to drive down the field. The receivers and o-line did a great job allowing us to make plays.

“We converted when we got to the red zone. We just tried to bounce back and help out our defense and try to win the game.”

Lincoln-Way East seemed poised to take a bit of momentum into halftime, but Loyola had other ideas. The Ramblers struck right back, with Fitzgerald hitting Nicholas Arogundade for a 32-yard touchdown with just 13 seconds left in the half.

Loyola was looking to add to the lead midway through the third quarter and had the ball at the Lincoln-Way East 2-yard-line when the Griffins forced a fumble and Wuske pounced on it to give his team the ball back while still in striking distance, down 20-7.

“We’re good on the goal line and that stuff happens a lot for us,” Wuske said. “That didn’t surprise me when it happened. It’s just another thing we’re able to do here at East.”

But Andrew MacPherson added a 12-yard touchdown run for the Ramblers early in the fourth quarter and Tischer’s 7-yard touchdown pass to Cade Serauskis was not enough for the Griffins to rally.

Still, Durkin knows this Lincoln-Way East team was special. He attributed the Griffins’ success to their bond.

“I think we all played as one,” Durkin said. “Throughout the year, we just kept getting better and better. We started playing better together. We understood each other and we loved each other so much. We were willing to lay it all out there for each other play after play.”