By Patrick Mahanes ‘23

Brother Rice is set to play Mount Carmel in the quarterfinals of the playoffs. The game will take place this Saturday at 6 p.m. Mount Carmel is undefeated; however, the Crusaders gave them a tough time during the regular season when the Caravan scratched out a 28-21 victory.

The No. 24 Crusaders have been the underdog throughout their impressive playoff run. They defeated No. 9 Jacobs 27-0 in the first round of the playoffs. Then, they continued to defeat No.8 Collinsville 44-15 in the second round.

The No.1 Caravan has had a controlling playoff run as well. They defeated No.32 Buffalo Grove 49-3 in the first round of the playoffs. Then, they advanced to the second round against No. 17 Downers Grove. They beat Downers Grove 24-6.

The Caravan and Crusaders respective playoff runs shows the dominance of the Chicago Catholic League (CCL). The CCL tends to always have very strong playoff runs because of the tuff and talented teams.

The players have been honing their skills during the week.

Senior Ryan Kenney said, ¨We need everyone to stay locked in and not focus on distractions. It doesn’t matter who we play; we have to focus on ourselves and control what we can control.¨

Senior Jack Morrison said, ¨We are preparing like we always prepare. We are just staying in the moment and focusing on where our feet are.¨

Senior Nick Dorn said, ¨We have been studying harder than ever before and trying to perfect every detail.¨

The Crusaders seem to have tunnel vision and are locked into their goal. Hopefully, they will come away victorious on Saturday night. The game can be viewed in person at Mount Carmel for a $8 fee or viewed for free on Mount Carmel´s YouTube channel.