Football tops Brown in slugfest

Penn coaches worried last week that winless Brown might be ready to explode.

Instead, even as the Quakers (6-1, 4-0 Ivy League) threatened to implode by committing five turnovers, they were still able to thrash the hapless Bears (0-7, 0-4), 31-7, at Franklin Field on Saturday.

With the victory, the Red and Blue remain tied with Harvard for the Ivy League lead.

"We really played well offensively minus the turnovers, which is a big minus, but I thought the running game was clicking. We had them off balance, and were able to control the clock," Penn coach Al Bagnoli said.

The Quakers fumbled seven times, all of which occurred within the first three quarters. Penn was fortunate to recover three of the loose balls.

"We've been very good the whole year. We have not really fumbled the ball at all," Bagnoli said.

Still, Penn dominated a Brown team that appeared confused and overmatched all afternoon.

Bagnoli was especially pleased with his team's resilience, considering all the potentially disastrous miscues that were committed.

"It says a lot for your defense when you turn the ball over five times and hold the other guy to seven, and it says a lot for your offense when you turn it over five times and score 31," Bagnoli said.

Penn senior quarterback Mike Mitchell was not bothered at all by the fumbles, as he continued his impressive season.

The Orlando, Fla., native has improved with each passing week, and he completed 28 of his 34 attempts on Saturday, for 334 yards and three touchdowns.

Mitchell was also able to distribute the ball effectively to all of his receivers.

Penn senior captain Rob Milanese made eight receptions, collecting 121 yards, and scored a 38-yard touchdown on a solid connection with Mitchell.

Sophomore wide receiver Daniel Castles contributed with seven catches and 93 yards. He also caught two Mitchell touchdown passes, the second of which culminated in the most prolific offensive drive of the day.

Ahead 21-7, Penn marched down the field late in the third quarter to score on a 75-yard, four-minute possession.

The final three plays of the drive were all completions to Castles -- for 29 yards, nine yards, and then the 19-yard touchdown pass.

"The more experience you get, the better you play," Castles said. "Mitch does a great job. We're both learning together."

Castles also played a major hand in Penn's previous touchdown, which put the game out of reach at an early stage.

On a 3rd-and-6 play from the Brown 12, Mitchell's pass was tipped at the goal line by free safety Shaun Eidson, redirecting the ball into Castles hands in the back of the endzone.

"I just happened to be in the right place at the right time," Castles said. "He tipped it right to me."

That made the score 21-0, with 8:37 remaining in the first half. Although Brown theoretically had plenty of time to mount a comeback, it was clear from the start that they were overwhelmed by Penn's front seven on defense.

The Quakers rushed only three men for most of the game but still generated tremendous pressure on Brown quarterbacks Kyle Slager and Nathan Poole, sacking them six times.

Brown's star receiver, Chas Gessner, was fairly quiet on Saturday, despite making nine receptions. Eight of them came in the second half when the Bears already trailed by a nearly insurmountable lead.

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