COLUMN: Rader's offense was not a problem

Marc Edelman, Commentary The argument contends that this season Rader may be attending a new college, sporting a different uniform, and practicing alongside a new set of teammates, but he was 0-7 as a starting quarterback at Duke, and he's going to be a loser at Penn, too. This argument is bogus. Cynics again fail to realize that Rader did everything that a coach could expect from a new quarterback in his debut. And while he may not be the Red and Blue's savior, or even the second coming of Jason McCullough, Rader's Saturday should have been enough for the Quakers to have won. The New York Times predicted Penn to return to the top of the Ivy League behind Rader. But this assumption was drawn on the fact that Rader wouldn't have to try to do too much himself. With the stellar Quakers defense keeping opponents off the scoreboard, Rader wouldn't need to throw 200-plus yards per game to be a winning quarterback. He'd just need consistency. But yesterday, Penn's special teams was as sloppy as the 1996 Duke Blue Devils -- fumbling two kickoff returns in Penn territory and allowing the Big Green returners long gains. Rader, who is now 0-8 as a starter, once again threw the football impressively. But the costly fumbles prevented the signal-caller from earning his first victory. The Duke transfer completed 22 of 39 passes for 206 yards and managed one touchdown against the Big Green defense -- a solid unit that only allowed one Ivy quarterback 200-plus yards passing in '96. That was Brown's Jason McCullough, who finished first team All-Ivy. This performance was as much as any reasonable coach could expect from a new quarterback in his debut. Had the Quakers' special teams performed as well as they appear capable on Saturday afternoon, the 15-points Rader put onto the scoreboard, via two touchdowns and a two-point conversion, would have been more than enough offense for a victory. But Dartmouth, even with its anemic running game, mustered 23 points on Saturday -- scoring 20 of them off Penn's turnovers. Nevertheless, it's apparent that Rader played solidly, even though the Quakers lost. In addition to hooking up with wide-out John James on seven passes for 97 yards, Rader also found his third- and fourth-option receivers downfield, connecting with Melvin Alexander, Brandon Carson, Brian Cosmello, Alec Dafferner and Brian Bonanno. The transfer quarterback's good field vision made it difficult for the Big Green defense to employ double-coverage on James downfield. Rader also showed skill at handling the blitz. Unlike past Quakers quarterbacks Mark DeRosa and Steve Teodecki, the 6'4", 235-pound Rader was confident running the football across the line of scrimmage. In fact, Rader scored Penn's second touchdown on a 12-yard scramble down the right sideline. Rader's strong decision-making is also worthy of note. Despite throwing three interceptions, the Penn signal-caller made good decisions with the football. Twice in the first half it appeared that the Dartmouth blitz would sack Rader for a major loss. But each time, he managed to escape outside the pocket for just long enough to throw the football -- avoiding the big loss or a risked interception. While impatient Penn fans hissed and threw toast onto the field as Dartmouth pulled away to a 20-0 lead at halftime, things would've been all that much worse without Rader leading the offense. Last season, the Red and Blue had the luxury of Jasen Scott in the backfield, averaging 4.1 yards per carry. But Rader doesn't have a single experienced halfback to share the burden with him. With the inexperienced Alexander carrying the ball, Bagnoli's offense will turn to Rader to put points on the scoreboard -- and defenses will pressure him more than past Quakers' signal callers. On winning teams, the quarterback cannot be asked to carry the whole load -- running backs and kick-returners have to assist. Those who saw the Tennessee Volunteers' Saturday loss to No. 1 Florida are reminded that while quarterback is a high-profile position, teams win football games -- not individuals. For this reason, Tennessee isn't No. 1 in the rankings, even though their quarterback, Peyton Manning, is the leading Heisman Trophy candidate. So it's back to the drawing board for special teams coach Ray Priore to determine why his unit had such difficulty on Saturday. The kick and punt returners will have the next three weeks to practice holding onto the football against Patriot League opponents. Nevertheless the first-week verdict on Matt Rader is a positive one. Rader lost his Quakers debut, but he's proven himself a solid Ivy League quarterback.