Seven games into an up-and-down season, Quakers one game back

Penn has lost two in a rowto bring its Ivy record to 2-2, a game ahead of sixth-place Princeton. PENN 17 Dartmouth 6 WHAT HAPPENED: Dartmouth's sputtering offense totaled just 169 yards as Penn took the first step toward defending its Ivy League crown with a sloppy opening day victory at Franklin Field. Quakers sophomore Kris Ryan broke several tackles on a 48-yard touchdown run to put Penn up 10-0 in the second quarter, and Northwestern transfer Gavin Hoffman's 19-yard touchdown pass to Ben Zagorski with 5:56 remaining sealed the win. Hoffman, in his debut in a Penn uniform, completed 23-of-36 passes for 196 yards, but threw two interceptions and fumbled once. Ryan, junior Mike Verille and sophomore Matt Thomas combined for 189 total yards as replacements for departed Bushnell Cup winner Jim Finn. KEY PLAY: Penn sophomore Erik Bolinder partially blocked Dartmouth kicker Alex Csizinsky's 32-yard field goal attempt 8:27 into the game, causing the kick to sail wide right. The Big Green had started their drive on the Penn 18 after a Hoffman fumble but could not capitalize to take the early lead, and the Quakers control led the rest of the game. OFFENSIVE HERO: Ryan. The sophomore running back grinded out 99 yards on 15 carries. DEFENSIVE HERO: The whole Penn defense. The Quakers limited the Big Green to just 2.7 yards per play and forced four turnovers. Villanova 34 PENN 6 WHAT HAPPENED: Villanova quarterback Chris Boden completed 33-of-43 passes for a school-record 424 yards and two touchdowns, handing Penn its first loss of the season. The Quakers kept within striking distance of the No. 14 Wildcats early, as Villanova clung to a 3-0 lead after the first quarter. But after a Boden touchdown pass to Brian White and a Joe Kearing interception return, Penn went into the locker room down 17-3. Kris Ryan had another solid day with 81 yards on the ground, but the rest of the Quakers' rushing attack could only muster 26 yards on 26 carries. Hoffman completed just 14-of-28 passes for 108 yards as Penn was overmatched on both sides of the ball. KEY PLAY: Kearing's second quarter interception. Hoffman was trying to throw a screen to back Mike Verille, but the pass went right into Kearing's hands and the Wildcats' defensive end rumbled 16 yards to paydirt. Penn was only down 10-3 at the time but the interception changed the momentum of the game. OFFENSIVE HERO: Boden. Villanova's quarterback abused Penn's secondary all day, although he did throw three interceptions. DEFENSIVE HERO: Kearing. His interception return all but put the final nail in Penn's coffin. Credit also should go to Quakers freshman Travis Belden, who had two picks himself in the losing effort. Bucknell 23 PENN 16 WHAT HAPPENED: Penn's fourth-quarter comeback was stopped short as the Bison held on for a seven-point win after Penn quarterback Gavin Hoffman fumbled with 18 seconds remaining. The Quakers trailed 23-6 after Bucknell quarterback Don McDowell's two-yard touchdown run on fourth down with 5:41 remaining. But sophomore Erik Bolinder caught a 49-yard pass from Hoffman to cut the lead to 10. Penn's two-point conversion attempt was unsuccessful. Then, after an onside kick, a 39-yard Jason Feinberg field goal, and a defensive stand, Penn had the ball on its own 25-yard line with 48 seconds remaining. The Quakers drove down to the Bucknell 29, but Bison defensive end John Papadakis sacked Hoffman, who coughed up the ball, which Bucknell's Eric Green recovered. Kris Ryan had another impressive day on the ground for Penn, as the sophomore back rushed for 152 yards on 24 carries, including a 33-yard touchdown in the first quarter to give Penn a 7-0 lead. KEY PLAY: Hoffman's fumble with 18 seconds remaining. The game's result was in question until then. OFFENSIVE HERO: Bucknell flanker Jabu Powell. After Bison tailbacks Dan Palko and LaMario Bradwell went down with injuries, Powell moved to running back, where he gained 102 yards on 12 carries. DEFENSIVE HERO: Papadakis. He had the sack to end the game. Enough said. PENN 35 Fordham 18 WHAT HAPPENED: Penn tailback Kris Ryan exploded for 256 yards and four touchdowns as the Quakers stormed past the winless Rams to even their record at 2-2. Ryan averaged 7.3 yards per carry en route to the third-best single-game running performance in Penn history. It took less than five minutes for Ryan to set the tone of the game, as the sophomore back rumbled 52 yards for a touchdown on Penn's second possession of the game. The Quakers had a 21-3 lead at halftime but Fordham wide receiver Gerry McDermott caught two touchdowns in the third quarter to cut the deficit to 28-18. Ryan ran for his fourth touchdown of the day with 10:13 remaining, and senior linebacker Jim Hisgen stopped Fordham tailback Al Lundy on fourth down with 8:16 left to wrap up the Quakers' victory. KEY PLAY: Ryan's 52-yard touchdown in the first quarter set the tone for the rest of the game. OFFENSIVE HERO: Ryan. With 256 rushing yards, there is no close second. DEFENSIVE HERO: The Quakers' defensive line. With cornerback Joey Alofaituli and safety Hasani White both out with injuries, the line needed to create pressure. And it did. Penn stopped Fordham short on all but one of its 15 third-down plays and sacked the Rams' quarterbacks four times. PENN 41 Columbia 17 WHAT HAPPENED: Penn quarterback Gavin Hoffman threw for a school record 399 yards as the Quakers posted 626 yards of total offense against the Lions to remain undefeated in the Ivy League. Hoffman was 25-of-32 with four touchdowns, while tailback Kris Ryan continued his stellar season with 172 yards on 30 carries. Rob Milanese caught eight of Hoffman's passes for 184 yards, including a 77-yard touchdown in the second quarter. Less than two minutes into the game, Lions running back Johnathan Reese caught a short pass over the middle from Mike Glynn and ran 72 yards for a touchdown to give Columbia a 7-0 lead. But Hoffman's 35-yard pass to receiver Brandon Carson evened the score three minutes later. Penn hung to a 21-17 lead at halftime, but a 63-yard touchdown pass from Hoffman to Brandon Clay on the second play of the second half gave the Quakers some breathing room. KEY PLAY: Clay's touchdown catch. On a play-action pass that Columbia cornerback Justin Logan bit on, Penn was able to take control of the game. OFFENSIVE HERO: Hoffman. After four games of mixed results, the Northwestern transfer finally broke through, shattering Mark DeRosa's record for passing yards in a game by 39. DEFENSIVE HERO: Defensive back Anthony DeSalle. The Penn senior had two interceptions and helped the Quakers hold Columbia to just 56 yards after halftime. Brown 44 PENN 37 WHAT HAPPENED: Brown quarterback James Perry passed for 440 yards and five touchdowns as the Bears held off a late Penn rally to pull out a seven-point victory. Perry broke former Columbia quarterback John Witkowski's career record for Ivy League passing yards in the process. Brown held a 21-point lead late in the fourth quarter but Penn quarterback Gavin Hoffman threw for two touchdowns in the final 1:05 to cut the lead to a touchdown. Bears tight end David Brookman recovered Jason Feinberg's onside kick with 25 seconds remaining to end the Quakers' comeback hopes. Brown receivers Stephen Campbell and Billy Rackley combined to catch 18 passes for 336 yards and all five of Perry's touchdowns. Hoffman, meanwhile, passed for 343 yards for a school record 742 yards in two games. KEY PLAY: Perry's 29-yard touchdown pass to Rackley on the opening drive of the game. The touchdown gave Brown a 7-0 advantage as the Bears led the entire way. OFFENSIVE HERO: Perry. After throwing for 470 yards and five touchdowns last year against the Quakers, the Brown quarterback did it again against the Penn defense. DEFENSIVE HERO: In a game with 983 yards of total offense, there was no real defensive hero. Yale 23 PENN 19 WHAT HAPPENED: Yale quarterback Joe Walland's 29-yard touchdown run with 6:41 left gave Penn its second league loss and dropped the Quakers to fifth in the Ivy standings. Walland threw for a career-high 290 yards and ran for 57 -- including the final 47 yards in two plays on the game-winning drive. Penn took a 16-13 lead into the fourth quarter, but a fumble by tailback Kris Ryan gave Yale possession on Penn's 28-yard line. The Elis turned the good field possession into three points to tie the score. But the Quakers answered right back with Jason Feinberg's school record-tying fourth field goal of the day. The two teams struggled in the red zone, as there were a total of seven field goals between Yale and Penn. Ryan had another strong day on the ground, gaining 166 yards on 33 carries, but failed to find the end zone. Sophomore Jimmy Keppel led the Elis with nine receptions for 160 yards. KEY PLAY: Penn drove to the Yale 41 following Walland's touchdown run but Hoffman threw an interception to the Elis' Todd Tomich on a third-and-20 play. That was the last offensive play for the Quakers, as Yale ran out the last three minutes of the game. OFFENSIVE HERO: Walland. Yale's quarterback used his mobility to throw for 229 yards in the first half and ran for 47 in the winning touchdown drive. DEFENSIVE HERO: Tomich. He tied a school record with his 12th career interception.