Loyola football enters 2025 focused on identity, growth and a demanding Mission slate

Loyola High School of Los Angeles heads into the 2025 football season with a clear challenge in front of it: establish consistency early, develop its depth and be ready for a demanding Mission schedule by October. The Cubs open with nonleague games against Mount Miguel, Hamilton and St. Francis before stepping into a stretch that includes Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks, Serra, Bishop Amat, Chaminade and Sierra Canyon. That lineup gives Loyola little room to ease into the year and should quickly define where the program stands.

The limited preseason notes provided by the program point repeatedly to Aidan Walter, whose name appears in both the team identity and outlook section and the strengths and areas to improve section. With no additional statistical or positional detail supplied, Walter stands out as one of the central returning figures around whom Loyola is building its preseason outlook. His presence gives the Cubs at least one familiar piece as they work to shape the team’s identity on both sides of the ball during camp and the opening weeks of the season.

Loyola’s roster includes a large varsity group, and that kind of number can be an asset over the course of a long season. Players such as Matt Adams, Brandon Alexander, Joey Curtis, Max Meier, Liam Mooney, Jayden Rogers, Jack Wagner and Walter are among the names on a roster that should provide competition for roles and opportunities for the coaching staff to sort out combinations. The frontend will present the full roster, but the broader theme entering the fall is how quickly Loyola can turn that group into a dependable week-to-week unit.

The schedule offers several early measuring-stick games. The opener against Mount Miguel gives Loyola a first chance to establish its tone at home, and the road trip to Hamilton follows a week later. A home date with St. Francis should provide another strong test before Mission play begins. Once league competition starts, the Cubs face a difficult run with road games at Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks and Chaminade, plus home contests against Serra, Bishop Amat and Sierra Canyon. Those matchups are likely to shape the standings and reveal whether Loyola has developed the physical consistency needed for league play.

Head coach Joe Cardenas and his staff will spend the early part of the season trying to define exactly what this team does best. Because detailed preseason assessments on scheme, returning production and newcomers were not provided beyond the references to Walter, Loyola’s preview is less about established numbers and more about projection. The Cubs appear to be a team searching for steady execution, with the schedule set up to test that progress almost immediately.

For Loyola, the season’s first month may say as much as the final record. If the Cubs can build momentum in September and carry it into a rigorous Mission stretch, they will give themselves a chance to be a factor deep into the fall. With Walter among the players tied most directly to the program’s early outlook, Loyola’s progress will begin to come into focus as those marquee October games arrive.