With the breakouts of sophomore running backs Karekin Brooks and Abe Willows, Penn football has proven it’ll have no shortage of talent in the backfield for years to come.
But as good as the team’s young blood has been, the running backs’ elder statesman still has got some moves himself — and those moves perhaps have never been put on display better than they were this weekend.
Dominating an outmatched Harvard defensive front all afternoon long, senior running back Tre Solomon put up a career-high 181 rushing yards on only 15 carries against Harvard, propelling Penn to a 23-6 win and comfortably earning honors as the DP Sports Player of the Week.
In a rivalry as heated as Penn-Harvard, setting the tone from the opening snap is a must, and Solomon quite literally couldn’t have done that better. On the Quakers’ first offensive play of the game, Solomon took an outside handoff to his right and went untouched for a 77-yard touchdown, the longest run of his career.
Harvard would never lead the rest of the way, and Solomon was a major reason why. Though the senior didn’t crack the end zone again, his consistent efforts helped Penn control possession and hold off any Harvard comeback attempts late. Led by Solomon, Penn ran for a staggering 281 yards — the team’s most against the Crimson in more than a decade — to finish off the dominant victory.
Though Penn can no longer win the Ivy title, Solomon still spearheaded a statement win to bring the Quakers back to .500 in Ancient Eight play. So as talented as Penn’s underclassmen are, Saturday’s win proved one thing: the Ivy League’s defending rushing champion is still here, and he’s got one week left to finish off a storied four years in the Red and Blue.
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