Great Games in Penn History: Oct. 10, 1992

Three years ago, the lastThree years ago, the lasttime Penn hooked up withThree years ago, the lasttime Penn hooked up withWilliam and Mary, Al Bag-Three years ago, the lasttime Penn hooked up withWilliam and Mary, Al Bag-noli's Quakers almost upsetThree years ago, the lasttime Penn hooked up withWilliam and Mary, Al Bag-noli's Quakers almost upsetthe No. 10 Tribe.Three years ago, the lasttime Penn hooked up withWilliam and Mary, Al Bag-noli's Quakers almost upsetthe No. 10 Tribe._____________________________ The Penn football team was on the verge of tying the No. 10 team in Division I-AA Saturday. With 2:25 left on the clock, senior cornerback Maceo Grant had just brought the Quakers to within two points of undefeated William & Mary with a dazzling 79-yard fumble return for a touchdown. As the Franklin Field crowd of 9,685 rose to its feet, Penn needed a two-point conversion to tie the game at 21. However, sophomore tailback Terrance Stokes took a pitchout and was unable to finished the planned play, which was to throw the ball to junior quarterback Jimmy McGeehan, who had run into the corner of the end zone. Deciding to try to run it in himself, Stokes wound up three yards short of the end zone. Those three yards decided the outcome of the game. The Quakers gained possession of the ball once more, but with just 51 seconds and no timeouts left, they were only able to advance to their own 37, ending any hopes of an upset victory as the Tribe prevailed, 21-19. Penn (2-2) found no consolation in the fact that it came close to tying or defeating a team that had outscored its previous four opponents, including Harvard and Brown, by a combined score of 139-59. "When you're sitting there down 21-19," senior co-captain Tom Gibbs said, "and you can pull out the win, you have nothing to be happy about. It comes down to wins and losses, and we lost." "It's a loss," senior running back Ako Mott said. "That's all it is. 'Almost' doesn't count in football. We played better than we did last week [against Fordham], but it's disappointing." After a scoreless first quarter, the Tribe (5-0) got on the board first with the first of three touchdowns by sophomore tailback Derek Fitzgerald (22 carries for 125 yards). Soon after, the Quakers got to work. McGeehan replaced junior starter Mike Barthlow on Penn's second series and put together an eight-play, 39-yard drive that culminated in a five-yard touchdown pass to sophomore tight end Warren Rosborough. Marc Horowitz's point-after tied the game at 7. McGeehan, who had played for less than two minutes in the previous three games combined, went the distance, completing 18 of 29 passes for 140 yards. He seemed so much more effective than Barthlow that it appears another quarterback controversy might erupt. "We thought this would be a good week to try to solidify the position," said Penn coach Al Bagnoli, who declined to speculate on who will start against Columbia next week. "Jimmy's been playing very well in practice. We thought this was a good opportunity to try to play both and see what happens. We made the decision to play each for one quarter and then reserved the right to play who we thought was hot in the second half." Meanwhile, Tribe quarterback Shawn Knight didn't get hot in either half, as the Quakers secondary all but shut down the Tribe's passing game. Knight attempted a mere 11 passes, completing six for 99 yards. Despite a lapse that allowed a 45-yard pass, Penn forced Knight to turn to the running game. However, his only two completions of the first half both came on the Tribe's first possession following the Penn touchdown. William & Mary constructed a 10-play drive from their own 42-yard line and scored on a four-yard Fitzgerald run. The good field position was more or less typical for the entire game, as the Quakers seemed to have trouble covering kickoff and punt returns. The Quakers' rushing defense also had its problems, allowing William & Mary 246 yards on the ground. Knight himself often found wide lanes in which to scramble, which he did nine times for 53 yards. With such problems becoming apparent, it may have looked as if the Tribe's second TD signalled the beginning of the end. Yet Penn refused to fold. With just over three minutes left in the half, McGeehan's play was spectacular as he completed five straight passes for 39 yards and scrambled for six. The only thing stopping the Quakers was the clock, and with seven seconds left, Penn settled for a 43-yard field goal from junior placekicker Andy Glockner. The Quakers continued to fight on in the second half. After an important fourth-down defensive stop by sophomore linebacker Pat Goodwillie, Penn took over and set up Glockner for another 43-yard field goal to bring Penn within one, 14-13. Glockner has continued to provide the answer to the Quakers' preseason kicking worries, connecting on five out of six attempts in four games, all from 42 yards or more. Fitzgerald opened the fourth quarter with a 21-yard run for yet another touchdown. Two series later, with the score 21-13 and the ball at the Penn 18, it looked as if the Tribe were ready to put Penn away before Grant's fumble return. The general impression from the Quakers is obviously one of disappointment. Yet it is important for Penn to bounce back quickly. The Quakers' remaining six games are all against Ivy League opponents, with Columbia and Brown being the first two. "I'm happy we stayed with the No. 10 team and to know we were good enough to compete with them," McGeehan said. "We gave them a scare. They're lucky to get out of here alive. But William & Mary overlooked us." "I'm happy we played up to their level more than they played down to ours," Bagnoli said. "But we had a chance to win it. We really didn't get it done when we needed to. I hope we'll learn from this game and continue to play hard. "You always hope to get a positive out of this loss. We just have to use the disappointment of this week to make sure it doesn't happen again."