COLUMN: Time for Football to make progress

Miles Cohen, Commentary Whether it stems from Wharton freaks obsessed about their GPAs, or University President Judith Rodin's personal mission to see a top-five ranking in the U.S. News and World Report magazine or the Quakers' recent success in collegiate sports, the climate here in West Philly has become much more intense as of late. The "Un-Ivy" is no day at the beach. While some parts of Penn have thrived in this pressure-cooker atmosphere, other areas have not fared as well, thanks to the new standards. Nowhere has this been more apparent than at Franklin Field, where the Quakers -- who in 1993 and 1994 won back-to-back titles -- now look to a 5-2 Ivy League record and a third-place finish as a "big" disappointment. For the Quakers, who appeared much better on paper than their 6-4 record in 1997 indicated, this should be the case. The entire team spent more of the fall building a list of excuses for why Penn was not winning than actually fixing several nagging problems. (OK, that's not entirely true -- Penn quarterback Matt Rader did find a way to snap the ball before the play clock ran down to zero.) The penalty problem, which existed in 1996, continued through much of the 1997 season. The performance of Penn's special teams in the opening few games was woeful. The rest of Quakers took all the routine parts of playing football and made them look difficult. Catching Rader's passes, fielding kickoffs and punts, making field goals, consistent pass rush and coverage and, until Jim Finn was inserted into the running back position, grinding out positive yardage on the ground were problems in the first half. With spring ball and countless hours of practice over the summer, how is it possible for a team to show up in the fall and make all these errors? Can the coaches be solely blamed for everything that went wrong this season? Certainly Penn coach Al Bagnoli and defensive coordinator Mike Toop -- whose philosophy is "anytime you don't win it all, it is a disappointment" -- can not be held accountable for all of the dropped balls by Quakers receivers or special teams players, but in the end, all of the mishaps in 1997 do point a finger in the direction of both coaches. Anyone knowing Bagnoli and Toop are well aware of the many 50-plus hour work weeks they put in each season. Their desire to build the Penn football program into a consistent winner year-in and year-out has succeeded, with the exception of 1996 when Penn was .500. But is winning and being competitive really enough? Bagnoli seems to think so. "If we do not go undefeated in the Ivy League or take home a title, our season is viewed as a let down and that is just not true," Bagnoli said. "For five of the six years I have been here we have been in the Ivy title race going into the final three games of the season and we always say at the beginning of each fall that this is our goal." If Penn fans think Bagnoli's goal is slightly bogus, I'm with you. There is nothing wrong with wanting to be above .500; however, there have to be seasons, like this fall, when being in contention is just not enough. It should not be enough for the coaches, nor the players. On the whole, Penn -- courtesy of Rodin -- has made the greatest of efforts to try to move away from just being "in contention" with fellow Ivy League universities. This is not the 1980s, nor the early 1990s for that matter. It is 1997 and Penn is all about setting the record straight. Overall, the Penn has moved up to No. 7 in the all-powerful U.S. News and World Report, and in the process has made it clear to the rest of the Ivies and the United States that the gap between Harvard, Yale, Princeton and Penn might not be as wide as it once had been. Now it is time to make the same statement on the field as well. Following 1996, the Quakers football program and the University were in similar situations. On the gridiron, Penn had suffered its worst season under Bagnoli. Outside of Franklin Field, the campus had been hit with a rash of crimes. Both Rodin and Bagnoli knew that Penn would have to rebound in 1997. The president did her part, lighting up the campus like a Christmas tree and installing flood lights on the top of the high rises. All of a sudden it looks like a festival of lights every night at Penn. Not to mention crime is down in nearly every category from last fall. On the newly lit campus simple assaults are down 26 percent, along with a drop of 4.5 percent in thefts. Not able to follow in the footsteps of Rodin, Penn improved only marginally over last year. For Bagnoli and the Penn football program to keep up its end of the bargain, a future Ivy title will be necessary. In the meantime, no Quaker should be content with the outcome of the fall 1997 season.