Loyola senior running back Drew MacPherson expects his future will include plenty of time in the secondary.
The 6-foot-1, 190-pound Iowa commit was recruited to play safety, after all.
“I usually come in to play defense for snaps here and there,” he said.
MacPherson didn’t play a single snap on defense during the Ramblers’ Class 8A state quarterfinal on Saturday, but he did spend some time in Maine South’s secondary — on his carries.
MacPherson rushed for 192 yards and two touchdowns as 12th-seeded Loyola won 35-14 against the 20th-seeded Hawks at Hoerster Field in Wilmette.
“He’s a fighter,” Loyola senior quarterback Ryan Fitzgerald said. “When you get that mindset plus the athletic ability he has, you get an all-state running back, and that’s a kid who is committed to the other side of the ball.
“You don’t really see that. But he’s going to do very well because he’s that type of kid.”
The Ramblers (10-2), who have won nine straight games since losing two of their first three, will play at top-seeded Lincoln-Way East (12-0) in the state semifinals. Loyola defeated the Griffins in the state championship game in each of the past two seasons.
“We have a lot of history with them in the playoffs, a lot of history and bad blood,” MacPherson said. “They are a great team. It’s going to be a good one.”
MacPherson certainly was good against Maine South (8-4). He helped break open a close game by busting loose for an 81-yard touchdown run up the middle early in the third quarter.
“I saw my guys making great blocks and saw a cutback lane and went from there, so I credit it to my offensive line,” MacPherson said. “I have decent trust in my speed, so I didn’t see anyone in front of me.”
MacPherson put the game away with a tackle-breaking 17-yard touchdown run on fourth down in the fourth quarter. That was part of his 150-yard effort during a second half in which the Ramblers scored 28 points.
“I think it was a wake-up call because I think we were sleeping in the first half,” MacPherson said. “The coaches definitely let us know, and we had 24 minutes of football to play.”
MacPherson is in his second season as Loyola’s starting running back. He split time with Will Nimesheim at the position for the first few weeks of his sophomore season but then suffered a broken ankle.
Last season, MacPherson finished with 855 rushing yards, 500 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns. During the Ramblers’ 26-15 win in the state championship game, he ran for 117 yards and a touchdown and made three catches for 51 yards.
“He’s the most selfless player I’ve ever seen, just his willingness to block,” Loyola coach Beau Desherow said. “He just has ‘it’ and is one of the best football players we have had here. There’s nothing he can’t do. He will block, run the ball or catch the ball. He does it all for us. He’s our leading receiver.”
Fitzgerald, an Iowa commit who is the son of former Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald, said MacPherson is a rare player.
“Drew is gifted with something a lot of people aren’t, even sometimes for the worse,” Fitzgerald said, smiling. “He’s got a special talent and never gets hurt, and if he does, he doesn’t care what he has, like a broken finger or ankle. He goes out and plays.”
MacPherson, whose father, Matt, played football at DePauw and worked as an assistant under Pat Fitzgerald at Northwestern, said playing football is what he loves to do.
“Football has always been my No. 1 sport,” MacPherson said. “I’ve been around the sport for so long because of my dad. My dad was super pumped to watch me play anywhere. I’m really football through and through.”
Bobby Narang is a freelance reporter.
