FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK: Quakers have longest current winning streak

With Saturday being homecoming against Yale, many Penn alumni, old and new, will be gathering at Franklin Field. In turn, much of Penn's history will be in the stadium. Appropriately, Penn might just make history if it is able to beat the Elis. The Quakers will be trying to win their 700th game in the school's history, which began in 1876. Penn's all-time record, now 699-409-42, places it sixth in the NCAA. Ironically, Yale is first with 773 total wins. Penn also has played more games than any other collegiate program, now totaling 1,150. On the subject of wins piling up, the Quakers have now increased their consecutive winning streak to 17, tied with Auburn for the longest in the nation. The streak, which is the longest since 1904-05, may have fans and the media excited, but to the team, it's just one more distraction. "It is something you appreciate more at the end of the season," Penn coach Al Bagnoli said. "If you spend too much time thinking about how many games you've won in a row, you don't take enough time to be focusing in on what you're supposed to be doing. So, to be honest, we don't even talk about it." · One problem which continues to plague the Quakers has been their kickoffs. Penn has repeatedly had problems, whether they happen to be short or drift out of bounds. Opponents have consistently been able to start their drives near or at the 35-yard line. Luckily for the Quakers, their No. 1 ranked defense has been able to more than make up for the opposition's consistently good field position. Nevertheless, the problems kicker Andy Glockner has been having still concern Bagnoli. "We've been so inconsistent," Bagnoli said. "Either we hit it perfect, or we hit it out of bounds. It's something that I have been concerned about. It's just something that we have to continue to work on." However, regardless of his performance on kickoffs, Glockner is still leading the nation by averaging two field goals per game. Also, his scoring average of 8.40 ties him with Harvard's Elon Hu as the league's top scorer. · One new wrinkle Bagnoli has added to the offense has been the addition of big defensive players being used as fullbacks on offense in short-yardage situations. Previously, Michael "Pup" Turner had been used, but lately, do to various minor injuries Turner had suffered, sophomore linebacker Tim Gage has gotten the call. Actually, the use of Turner and Gage on offense is not so foreign to these new blocking backs (who weigh 237 and 223 pounds, respectively). Both were used as fullbacks in high school and both have good speed for defensive players. However, whenever defensive players hit the field on offense, the question that naturally arises is will we ever see them get the call in the huddle? According to Bagnoli, that is a possibility. "It's something that we're going to talk about as we continue to refine things," Bagnoli said. "You're always looking to get the best possible combination of players on the field. We're going to continue to work on the short-yardage, red-zone attack, which wasn't too exciting against Columbia, but was certainly better against Brown." · On the injury front, running back Terrance Stokes, who sat out the second half Saturday with a mild concussion, should be at full steam as the Quakers face Yale. Stokes, who also suffered a slightly sprained ankle three weeks ago against Holy Cross, sat out for precautionary reasons but could have returned had the game been closer. "I was fine after the halftime," Stokes said following the Quakers' 24-0 win in Providence over Brown Saturday. "I got hurt at the end of the first half. I was fine, but Coach just decided, being the score was 24-0, there was no need to send me back into the game." Junior offensive lineman Bill Glascott, who sat out against Brown because of a knee sprain, has began jogging. His status for Saturday's game has yet to be determined. However, Glascott should definitely be ready to return to the lineup for the Princeton game Nov. 5. If Glascott is not ready to go, sophomore Sears Wright will again step in and start in his place. · Where Penn stands in Division I-AA? Junior all-American wide receiver Miles Macik is 10th in the nation in receptions per game averaging 6.20 completions per contest.