Brian Kotloff | What's in store for the Quakers this season?

At this time last year, I thought Kevin Kolb would emerge as the Eagles’ quarterback of the future, Cliff Lee would never pitch in a Phillies uniform again and LeBron James would finally earn the title of ‘King.’

So much for that.

But to enter the prediction business, you have to risk looking like a dead-wrong fool. Keep that in mind as I publish a Penn-centric forecast for 2011:

1. Football will win its third straight title — but not outright.

No Ivy League team has ever run the table for three straight seasons, and I’ll say that history will be maintained rather than made.

A Nov. 12 loss at Harvard — Penn’s first Ivy defeat since Nov. 15, 2008 — will knot up the top two teams in the league before a frantic final week, but the Crimson and Quakers will finish in a 6-1 tie.

(More likely? I’m just trying to create some drama before another methodical march to a championship for Al Bagnoli. But that would be a boring prediction.)

1b. The new-look offensive line won’t miss a beat.

There’s a reason Bagnoli has consistently churned out the league’s best running game during his two-decade tenure: The man loves smash-mouth football.

And unlike another fixture on the Philadelphia gridiron — Bagnoli’s portly, mustachioed, red-headed Eagles counterpart — the Penn coach is actually willing to pound opponents into submission with his ground game.

That’s music to the ears of the deep, skilled group of O-linemen who seem to be delivered on a conveyor belt each recruiting season.

This year’s starters lack game experience but have been in the system for at least two years. Plus, if offensive linemen are said to be the smartest players on the field, aren’t Ivy League linemen virtual geniuses?

2. The men’s basketball team will ride the roller coaster to a second-place finish.

The Quakers’ Jekyll-and-Hyde act will continue in 2011, but this season will bring more highs than lows.

More nonconference challenges, plus a talented freshman class, will give Jerome Allen’s crew the boost it needs to compete with the league’s best. But Tommy Amaker’s loaded Harvard team is the true Ivy dynasty-in-waiting.

2b. Freshmen from Penn and Harvard will again duel for Rookie of the Year honors.

Last year brought us Miles Cartwright vs. Laurent Rivard, won by Rivard on a highly questionable judges’ decision. The 2011 installment will pit Crimson recruiting gem Kenyatta Smith against the Quakers’ Greg Louis, who could have a Cartwright-like immediate impact.

And as in the standings, Penn will again finish second.

3. Women’s basketball will post a .500 record overall and in league play.

Sometimes everything clicks at once and a team leaps from pretender to contender in a single season. I don’t foresee Mike McLaughlin’s squad having one of those magical runs, but I do see continued progress.

More decorated recruits have arrived to join Penn Athletics’ most impressive rebuilding effort. Most importantly, reigning Rookie of the Year Alyssa Baron will return with a year of experience as the go-to scorer under her belt.

She’ll have to wait another year to think about adding a championship trophy, however.

4. Men’s and women’s lacrosse will head in opposite directions.

W. Lax lost its title as Best Team at Penn (and as the DP’s darling) after losing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament last year. Meanwhile, Mike Murphy has reinvigorated the M. Lax program.

Bank on an NCAA tourney victory for the men.

5. This year’s turnaround teams? Men’s tennis, women’s tennis and softball.

The athletic department presented all three with state-of-the-art facilities. The athletes will reward such a generous commitment.

BRIAN KOTLOFF is a senior communications major from Elkins Park, Pa. He is Sports Editor of The Daily Pennsylvanian. His email address is kotloff@theDP.com.

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