Penn offense's revised 1-2 punch: Efficient Hoffman, stellar Ryan

Penn tailback Kris Ryan was his usual brilliant self again on Saturday against Holy Cross, running for 169 yards and a pair of touchdowns. But the day was made more special and more significant by the resurgence of Quakers quarterback Gavin Hoffman.

The Red and Blue offense clicked to the tune of 41 points (a safety did account for two of the 43) against the Crusaders.

And unlike when Penn beat up on Lafayette in the season opener, it seemed that the scoring explosion was more due to Penn's ability than the opposition's futility.

Hoffman -- who completed under 55 percent of his passes in the Quakers' first two games, for 381 yards -- was 20-of-28 on Saturday for 222 yards.

Ryan, meanwhile, carried 27 times for a 6.3 yards-per-rush average before being lifted in the opening minute of the fourth quarter due to the lopsided score.

Hoffman departed shortly thereafter.

"Penn did a great job mixing things up," Holy Cross head coach Dan Allen said. "They mixed up well between the run and pass. That was a very good offensive performance."

Last year, Penn played arguably its worst game of the season against Holy Cross in a 34-17 defeat. In that Oct. 7 contest in Worcester, Mass., Hoffman completed only half of his 36 passes. Three more were "completed" to Crusader defenders.

On Saturday, Hoffman clearly played much better than he did that day at Fitton Field, though he also did not put up the borderline-ridiculous numbers to which the Quakers have become accustomed over the past couple of seasons.

But he didn't need to. And he shouldn't need to, as long as Ryan remains healthy.

Penn's signal caller this weekend was efficient. He did not throw 50 times to rack up 400 yards.

But most importantly, his accuracy was impeccable. Hoffman, who passed for one touchdown and ran for another on a sneak, threw no interceptions for the first time this season.

He also made a number of throws in which he threaded the proverbial needle, completing tosses to receivers well-covered by the same Holy Cross defensive backs that plagued him last year.

Ironically, it was Ryan who was on the receiving end of one such pass, a 23-yard bullet on a third-and-five play that advanced the Quakers deep into opposition territory.

"I felt the same as I did before. I wouldn't say I felt more comfortable," Hoffman said. "Things just sort of went my way today."

Things seem to go the way of the entire Penn team whenever Ryan is in the lineup.

He has been the mainstay of the Quakers' offense thus far in 2001 and has bought some extra time for Hoffman in his efforts to re-establish himself as the Ivy League's premier quarterback.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.