2020 St. Ignatius Football

I missed this, but I was told that Ignatius announced back in June that they would open the 2020 season in Maryland against Baltimore Mount St. Joseph.

To give you some idea of the level of competition, MaxPreps ranked Mount St. Joseph as the No. 3 team in Maryland in 2019. DeMatha was ranked No. 4.

Clarkson Football North is scheduled for Week 10.
 
 
Hard to get excited for the 2020 iteration of Wildcat football after this season. There is a lot of young talent coming up, but the rising seniors struggled at lower levels and almost all starters need to be replaced.

The Cats need to make some changes on the offensive side of the ball. Would love to see more short / intermediate passing game with a higher completion %, and a more downhill running game. The drawn out stretch plays with the zone blocking aren’t working. Way too many 3 and outs and 3rd and longs.
 
Offense (returning starters* and those with significant playing time in ’19)

OL Salopek*
OL Montgomery (jr)*
TE Lamirand
WR Dunstan
PK Mangan* (All-Ohio, 1st team)

RB Simcak should be returning after being injured most of the season
Next year’s juniors one could anticipate starting or with significant playing time: French (QB), Waldron (RB), Lenehan (RB), Bodamer (WR), Tompkins (WR), Joe Norris (WR/DB) + couple linemen

Defense (returning starters* and those with significant playing time in ’19)
DL Adler*
LB Hubbard* (All-Ohio, 2nd team)
LB Conway* (named one of 4 captains)
DB Emmett Hanna*
LB Velotta (named one of 4 captains)
DB Chime
DB Lair (jr)
DL Jaylyn Norris (could depend if his uncle stays with the Browns)
DL Luca LaSpina

Next year’s juniors one could anticipate starting or with significant playing time: Chalhoub (DL), Taliak (DB), Joe Norris (DB/WR)

I've heard the staff anticipates a large number of juniors to be starting.

Agree, 2 seasons away from a state title contending team
 
Ignatius first four are:

A Mount St. Joseph (MD)
H Mentor
H Akron Hoban
H DeMatha (MD)

Yikes. Not the preferred opening path for a team that looks to be breaking in young talent. MSJ was the MIAA champs this year in Maryland. While not as competitive as the WCAC (Dematha, Gonzaga, OLGC, St. Johns), MSJ did lose a close game to eventual WCAC champ OLGC. Not sure what they bring back next year, but those east coast trips have not been favorable to Ignatius over the years when they've taken them.

As for the other three, Mentor may very well be the R1 favorite going into next season, Hoban will be very talented once again, and Dematha is absolutely loaded. At least Dematha will be making the long road trip this time, and the young Cats will have three tough games under their belt.
 
Ignatius will have some good talent coming back Adler, Hubbard, Conway, Hanna, on defense, and an excellent JV team my point is why schedule these teams? Ignatius will be good because they reload but you want to be better at the end of the year and to make the playoffs and that should be your goal. This year's team was the 3rd best team in Region 1 and because of there schedule they did not make the playoff, I think if you asked the kids if you replaced Dematha with Euclid or someone comparable and you win and make the playoff they would take that any day. The AD has to be smarter I know it is hard to schedule but you can't go some top heavy where you lose and get no points and schedule a Canadian team who is win less and you get no points. You need to have a better balance. Just my opinion.
 
Absolutely stupid scheduling.

That 42-0 pasting by Dematha wasn't bad enough?

Yes they are forced to play those few teams who agree, but come on.
 
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This year's team was the 3rd best team in Region 1 and because of there schedule they did not make the playoff, I think if you asked the kids if you replaced Dematha with Euclid or someone comparable and you win and make the playoff they would take that any day. The AD has to be smarter I know it is hard to schedule but you can't go some top heavy where you lose and get no points and schedule a Canadian team who is win less and you get no points. You need to have a better balance. Just my opinion.
I've been critical of the AD in many of my posts. Right now he is scheduling some of the best in the country AND some of the worst on the continent.
 
I missed this, but I was told that Ignatius announced back in June that they would open the 2020 season in Maryland against Baltimore Mount St. Joseph.
Cool. I was born about two miles from there. Grandmother lived a block or two away until the late 90s. Saw a lacrosse game there in the early 00's. They were terrible. There was no visitor side. There was a track, some trees, and then the street. Unless they tore out the track, take lawn chairs ha ha. There's a massive and absolutely beautiful St Joseph's church about a block or two away made of Italian marble that used to be run by the Passionist Priests. Across from it is the New Cathedral Cemetery where a couple generations of my family is buried. Couple miles north is a massive city park that is a great place to dump a dead body if you don't want to use the cemetery. The whole area is black, but it was safe the last time I went to the cemetery - around 2010 or so. All working/middle class folks. There's a creek that separates it from the rat infested west Baltimore. Don't know anything about the football team. I know St Frances has been buying up all the players lately. They have separation over there, so the MIAA is the wild west compared to Ohio. I think MSJ and everyone else refuse to play them now given the talent disparity. MSJ probably prefers to beat up on everyone else. I'd bet they have 4-5 D1 recruits on their team. Most MIAA teams do.
 
The AD is between a rock and hard place. Schools in Ohio won’t schedule Ignatius (as well as Ed’s, the GCL-S and now Mentor). That’s a fact. Once in awhile, a public may schedule a private – but only one. So, the AD’s options are to look out of state or Canada. As mentioned by Sapientia, the MIAA and WCAC in Maryland/D.C. as well as the northern Jersey parochials are the “wild west” and play by a different set of enrollment (aka recruiting) rules. The other option is to work with the 3rd party “brokers” like the one that brought Rockledge Florida to this past season’s schedule. In those cases, the “brokers” get their profit and Ignatius (and the other Ohio schools mentioned above) have to pay the expenses of flying/busing in the visiting team, feeding them and perhaps even putting them up for the night. The home gate receipts are small for those games and the competition is a wild card. Those arrangements cost a lot of money and the AD doesn’t have that much money in his budget to work with.
I recognize the frustration, but let’s also recognize the reality - it is what it is. Perhaps the more viable option is to go to a 9 or 8 game schedule.
 
The AD is between a rock and hard place. Schools in Ohio won’t schedule Ignatius (as well as Ed’s, the GCL-S and now Mentor). That’s a fact. Once in awhile, a public may schedule a private – but only one. So, the AD’s options are to look out of state or Canada. As mentioned by Sapientia, the MIAA and WCAC in Maryland/D.C. as well as the northern Jersey parochials are the “wild west” and play by a different set of enrollment (aka recruiting) rules. The other option is to work with the 3rd party “brokers” like the one that brought Rockledge Florida to this past season’s schedule. In those cases, the “brokers” get their profit and Ignatius (and the other Ohio schools mentioned above) have to pay the expenses of flying/busing in the visiting team, feeding them and perhaps even putting them up for the night. The home gate receipts are small for those games and the competition is a wild card. Those arrangements cost a lot of money and the AD doesn’t have that much money in his budget to work with.
I recognize the frustration, but let’s also recognize the reality - it is what it is. Perhaps the more viable option is to go to a 9 or 8 game schedule.
I think we all know the realities of scheduling, although I still don't know why. Ignatius isn't nearly the program it was and hasn't been for a very long time.

I would prefer to have 8 games over playing Dematha, or some of the Jersey teams.

It's funny how Ignatius gets kids from all over and can't even compete with Dematha. Tells you where that program is at.
 
I recognize the frustration, but let’s also recognize the reality - it is what it is. Perhaps the more viable option is to go to a 9 or 8 game schedule.
I have posted that before. If the goal is to make the playoffs, open dates is a better strategy than what is being done now.
 
Ignatius played a 9 game schedule during a number of years in the early-mid 2000s. It doesn’t hurt and gives everyone a chance to rest any injuries.
 
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