A Carr who drives the Elis' offense

Penn's rush defense in 2001 was the best in the nation, and it has smothered its opponents again this year.

In its two Ivy League games thus far in 2002, Penn has allowed a microscopic 33 yards in 47 attempts.

This could then make for quite a spectacle this weekend, as all eyes at the Yale Bowl on Saturday afternoon will be focused on the Elis' new phenom in the backfield.

Robert Carr is not physically imposing in the way one might expect of such a prolific and devastating running back. But, at 5-foot-7 and 185 pounds, he's still managed to captured everyone's attention in the Ivy League.

Carr resides in the town of Baytown, Texas, a beachfront suburb of Houston along the Gulf of Mexico.

Yet, he has quickly made a name for himself in New England, powering his club to a surprising 3-2 record.

"Statistically he's far and away the leading rusher in our league," Penn head coach Al Bagnoli said. "He's very, very instinctive and he slashes and finds the hole and hides behind the big guys in front of him.

"And he's proven to be very durable."

Yale's offense has been quite impressive to this point, having scored 151 points in five games.

And it was nothing short of sensational in the first two weeks, in particular.

The Elis pounded San Diego, 49-14, in their opener, before disposing of Cornell in Ithaca, N.Y., by a final of 50-23.

A running back's success is often a reliable indicator of his team's as a whole. And that has certainly been the case with Carr.

"He's probably the No. 1 priority for us," Bagnoli said. "We're going to have to try to do a good job of containing him.

"I don't think anyone has really stopped him this season."

In the game against San Diego, the Texan carried 16 times for 104 yards. He then overshadowed that performance by rushing 28 times at Cornell for an electrifying 235 yards.

"He has great vision and he can he can see the cut very very quickly," Penn defensive coordinator Ray Priore said. "His speed, in my opinion, between zero and 25 yards, getting out of the hole, is what makes him dangerous. He's fast, but he is more quick than fast."

And although Yale's point total dipped to a comparatively paltry 28 in week 3, Carr topped the 200-yard plateau with 219, on a hefty 38 carries in a victory over Holy Cross.

Not coincidentally, as Carr's numbers began to tail off in the last two weeks -- perhaps from fatigue -- Yale has struggled mightily to score.

"If we let them run the football," Priore said, "then we're going to have a long, long weekend."

They recorded 17 points in a road loss to Dartmouth on October 12 (Penn roasted the Big Green for 49 a week earlier), and then only scored seven last week at Lehigh.

In those contests, Carr rushed 32 times for 108 yards against Dartmouth -- not bad, but just a 3-yard average -- and 22 times for 65 yards.

So, could Penn be catching Carr and the Elis at just the right time?

Possibly, but this Yale team is also fairly deep at the running back position. Though Carr is undoubtedly one of the premier backs around right now, his supporting cast is dangerous too.

His main backup, junior Pat Bydume, has accumulated 216 yards in 32 rushes, an average of 6.75 yards per carry.

Yale quarterback Alvin Cowan is also extremely mobile. He has run for 114 yards in 12 attempts.

And all of these players are capable of breaking a big play. Carr, who has averaged 146.2 yards per game and has eight touchdowns, has a long run of 45 yards.

"We're really going to try to put the game in the quarterback's hands," Bagnoli said, "as opposed to putting it in Carr's hands."

Bydume had a 51-yard sprint, and even Cowan has a long of 42.

Penn's remarkably stingy defense, meanwhile, has surrendered a total of only 286 yards over five games, limiting the opposition to just 1.9 yards per carry.

For the Penn front line and the Yale runners, each unit might be facing its toughest challenge to this point.

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