Defense the key for Football in opening victory

Penn's defensive line stopped the Penn's defensive line stopped the Dartmouth offense on Saturday. The makers of NyQuil should watch out, because the 9,377 fans at Franklin Field found something else that's green and puts them to sleep -- the Dartmouth offense. The Big Green struggled offensively all day on Saturday and their final numbers were indeed offensive. Dartmouth managed only 169 yards of total offense, went 3-for-17 on third downs and fumbled the ball five times, turning it over twice. Penn coach Al Bagnoli, in his first game since assuming departed defensive coordinator Mike Toop's responsibilities, said that the Quakers defense made an effort to use different looks to shake up Dartmouth quarterback Brian Mann -- a sophomore making his first start. "You don't want to ever get comfortable in what you are doing defensively, so that kid's in a rhythm and everything is crystal clear to him," Bagnoli said. "So we tried to come up with a lot of different fronts, we tried to disguise some coverages. Just trying to keep people off balance is the key." And it worked, as just about the only positive for the Dartmouth offense was 240-pound punter Wayne Schlobohm's performance. Schlobohm punted 10 times during the game, racking up 408 yards and bringing his Dartmouth record-setting career total to an even 8,500 yards. The young Big Green offense --Ewhich featured three sophomores and four juniors and returned only five starters from a squad which went just 1-6 in the Ivies -- had trouble moving the ball right from the very start. After an interception set them up at midfield in the first quarter, the Big Green could only muster 10 yards before calling on Schlobohm. Penn again handed Dartmouth a golden opportunity to score when quarterback Gavin Hoffman's fumble was recovered at the Penn 18-yard line. But Penn defensive lineman Jason Maehr stuffed an option run by Mann for no gain. Then after a three-yard swing pass to tailback Reginald Belhomme, Maehr batted down Mann's pass attempt. Alex Csizinsky's failed 32-yard field goal attempt capped off a drive that would typify the Dartmouth offense's afternoon. On Dartmouth's next possession, Mann managed to drive his troops 14 yards to the Penn 42 but threw the first of two interceptions with 3:03 left in the first quarter. That was the last time the Big Green offense would see Penn's side of the field until there were two minutes left in the game. An overwhelming performance by the Penn defense never allowed Dartmouth to find any sort of offensive rhythm. Constant pressure from the defensive line rendered both the running game and the option ineffective. Workhorse back Belhomme gained only 59 yards on 18 carries. "We weren't able to run the ball as effectively as we wanted to, especially on first and second downs," Belhomme said. "They didn't blitz too much but their down lineman came pretty hard." And that was the plan, according to Maehr. "When we came in, we wanted to dominate," he said. And dominate they did, holding Dartmouth to a skimpy 85 rushing yards -- just 20 to set the tone in the first half -- and limiting the option-running Mann to a final total of minus-six rushing yards, 11 of which were gained on a scramble. Big Green coach John Lyons said that Dartmouth was the cause of many of its own problems, but gave credit to the Quakers defenders for keeping Dartmouth on its heels all day. "We had some bobbled snaps, we had some penalties at inopportune times," Lyons said. "I think if we could have scored early and got some momentum and got some confidence, I think that would have really helped us." Mann had limited success from the air, going 12-for-22 and passing for 57 yards. The sophomore was replaced halfway through the fourth quarter by another sophomore, Greg Smith. He led the Big Green to their only score of the day after a 35-yard drive against Penn's second-team defense. "Not only am I a sophomore but we're a young offense -- basically we showed that," Mann said. "We had a lot of sophomores in there and we played like sophomores." There was no learning curve, however, for Penn's defense, which featured seven returning starters, four of them on the defensive line. The unit which led the Ivy League in total defense last season picked up right where it left off, allowing a paltry 2.7 yards per offensive play to the Big Green. The strong defensive effort proved to be a big help on Saturday. The Quakers offense, still adjusting to new faces and roles, turned the ball over five times to the Big Green. And the Quakers 'D' will again be called on to come up big next week against Villanova. The Wildcats put up 35 points in a win against Richmond two weeks ago and churned out 26 more in an upset win against Division I-AA defending champs UMass.

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