MUIR REVVED UP BUT STALLS OUT LOYOLA 22, MUIR 7.

PASADENA - Speed is only a factor in football when there's someplace to run as Loyola High showed Friday night.

Muir of Pasadena clearly had the fastest players, but they were bottled up by a tight Loyola defense in a 22-7 Cubs victory in a nonleague game at Muir High.

The Cubs (2-0) put pressure on Muir's heralded quarterback, Ryan O'Hara, and didn't allow speedy sophomore tailback Ian Bell to break any runs outside.

O'Hara showed great mobility and completed 12 of 21 attempts for 168 yards but Bell gained just 9 yards on 10 carries.

``(Muir) has some talented players, and we missed a few tackles but overall I thought we did a good job on defense,'' Loyola coach Steve Grady said.

In a way, Loyola's offense used Muir's speed to its advantage. The Mustangs swarmed to the ball, but the Cubs effectively used misdirection and play-action plays to keep Muir defenders off balance.

The Cubs were also bolstered by the accurate short passing game of quarterback Adam Gonzalez, who often succeeded with simple out and screen routs and let his receivers break free for bigger yardage.

Gonzalez completed 15 of 18 attempts for 180 yards and ran for the Cubs' second-half touchdown. Quintin Daniels caught six passes for 98 yards and both of Gonzalez's touchdown passes.

``He's improving, he's a gamer and he's very intense,'' Grady said of Gonzalez, a junior. ``He's young but he made some nice plays.''

Muir got off to a deceptively good start, as on the first play of the game, O'Hara faked a handoff and threw long down the left sideline to receiver Jason Martin, who completed the 56-yard play.

The Mustangs took a 7-0 lead six plays later when O'Hara sprinted right and hit Darryl Stephens near the goal line for a 14-yard scoring play.

Muir would get only one first down for the rest of the half, however, and the Mustangs were not able to adjust to the Cubs' quick-strike offense.

Loyola needed just five plays to drive 64 yards and score on its first possession. The Cubs tied the game on a 35-yard pass from Gonzalez to Quintin Daniels.

That duo connected again on the Cubs' next possession for a 13-yard touchdown on the third play of the second quarter.

A two-point conversion run gave the Cubs a 15-7 lead, which they would take into halftime because of a fumble deep in Muir territory with two minutes left in the half.

Loyola extended its lead to 15 points on the first drive of the second half, when the Cubs went 74 yards in nine plays.

On first down from the Muir 9, Gonzalez faked a handoff and ran around the left end for a 9-yard score.

Muir almost made the game close midway through the fourth quarter.

Loyola tailback Bo Renaud (17 carries, 126 yards) fumbled inside his own 10, and Muir's Trevor Thomas picked up the ball and appeared to be headed to the end zone. Thomas had his foot caught by a Loyola lineman, however, and stumbled down at the Muir 22.

``I thought he was gone,'' Grady said. ``If he scores on that, it's a different game.''