Opponent Preview: St Ignatius (Week 2)

This is the second of my previews of Mentor's opponents for the 2013 season.  See the Week 1 preview here.

Week 2

Who: St Ignatius

What:   Non-league game

Where:  Jerome T. Osborne Sr. Stadium

When:  September 7th at 7:00pm

Opposing Coach: Chuck Kyle (31st season, 11 state titles)

History:  St Ignatius leads the regular season series (5-3) dating back to 2005.  These Region 1 juggernauts have played in the last two regional finals.  The Wildcats won in 2011 (23-17) and the Cardinals won in 2012 (57-56 3OT). 

Looking Back...
St Ignatius was 11-2 (including playoffs) in 2012. The triple overtime loss to Mentor last November in the regional final will not be soon forgotten by anybody in attendance.  The game won the 2012 "Sports Moment of the Year" by the Greater Cleveland Sports Awards.  St Ignatius dominated the regular season game (48-21) only to be upset a couple of months later on the same field.  RB Tim McVey (500+ rushing/receiving yards and seven TD's) and QB Michael LaManna (558 passing yards and 8 TD's) were simply dominant in the two games against Mentor.  Both have since graduated along with top WR Conor Hennessey and standout DE Kevin Kavalec (Boston College). 

Schedule...
The 2013 schedule includes in-state matchups with rivals St Edward and St Xavier - two teams (along with St Ignatius) ranked in Rivals top 100 nationally.  The 11-time state champions have a difficult time finding opponents willing to play them.  The other seven games on the schedule are against teams from Michigan, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Indiana, Maryland, and Canada.  Even though some of these teams are pretty talented, St Ignatius will likely be a favorite against all out of state opponents. 

2013 St Ignatius Outlook...
Chuck Kyle and his coaching staff know how to turn out successful teams year in and year out.  The graduation of key players will always have an effect, but the cupboard is not bare.  LB Kyle Berger (Ohio State) and OL Jimmy Byrne (Notre Dame) are major national recruits.  The hard hitting two-way player Dameon Willis is a talented returnee with offers from several DI college programs, including Indiana and Louisville.  The gifted 6-2 WR Michael Siragusa (offers from MAC schools) showed his worth with 170 yards and 3 TD's in the 2012 regional final.  John Hiland is another returning receiver for the Cats.  The key for St Ignatius will be quarterback play.  Senior Peter Mahoney is the top candidate to replace LaManna.

Expect the defense to be strong and the offense to be efficient - though probably not quite as potent as last year's bunch led by McVey, LaManna, and Hennessey.  Kyle will almost certainly have a team ready to be serious contenders for a 12th state championship.  Without a doubt, this will be the toughest opponent on Mentor's schedule in 2013. 

Next Preview:  Euclid (Week 3)