On Top Of The IVIES: A Season of Champions

Photos By Matt Samuelowitz - Design by Dipen Shah They were supposed to win. There was the former Division I quarterback. The hulking running back who didn't get to play in his natural position until midway through his junior year. The defense anchored by seniors at the line, linebacker and in the secondary. Yet two weeks into the season there were discouraged looks. A scant three-point win over Dartmouth, followed by a sloppy performance against Richmond. All of which made the joy that followed unexpected and endearing. It seems crazy to point to a single play as the turning point in a season, but how might things have changed had Joe Piela not rumbled 52 yards for a touchdown on a punt return four minutes, 20 seconds into the second quarter against Bucknell in week three? The run gave the Quakers a 10-0 lead, and their first breathing room since the first half of the opening game. From there Penn began an eight-week journey of increasing dominance. Even a horrific gash to quarterback Matt Rader's throwing arm during a freak collision in the following week's 34-31 win at Fordham could not stop the budding confidence of the team. Seven days later Rader was back -- as a receiver no less. The 20-0 shutout of Columbia, the first shutout for Penn in four years, included running back Jim Finn throwing two passes, one for a touchdown and one to Rader. For all the fuss made over Finn's two touchdown passes, it was nothing compared to his running. Record after record fell with each broken tackle, as Finn piled up a school single-season record 1,450 yards on the ground. As Finn piled up yardage, Penn piled up wins, except oddly enough, on the day Finn ran for his most yards. October 24, 1998 -- a day Penn scored 51 points, Finn ran for 269 yards and the Quakers lost. In the highest scoring game in Ivy history, Brown beat Penn 58-51 on a last second touchdown. Dropped into a four way tie and a series of must-win games, Penn never trailed in the final four weeks of the season, blowing out opponents. It was 21-0 against Princeton before five minutes had passed. Fans were chanting 'goal post' before the end of the first quarter against Harvard, and Cornell didn't find the endzone until it was 28-0 in favor of the Quakers. A team of destiny? Maybe. A team of experience, of players who played with class and joy? Yes. A team of champions.