Mitchell near-perfect in win

Sometimes the numbers really do speak for themselves.

On a day when miscues and sloppiness reigned on both sides, Penn quarterback Mike Mitchell came very close to perfection, going 28 of 34 for 334 yards and three touchdowns.

"Another very productive day," Penn coach Al Bagnoli said. "I thought the offensive line in pass protection did a really nice job. [Mitchell] was able to find some kids. He was able to make some plays in the passing attack. We really played well on offense minus the turnovers, which is a big minus."

It was indeed a big minus, as Penn seemed determined to give a winless Brown team life with its seven fumbles, four of which were lost to Brown.

However, Penn staked a 21-7 lead at halftime largely on the strength of Mitchell's arm. The senior threw 19 times and completed 17 of his attempts.

His two touchdown passes came in spectacular fashion as well, a 38-yard bomb to senior Rob Milanese and a tipped ball to sophomore Daniel Castles in the back of the endzone.

"I didn't really feel any more pressure [because of the fumbles] because we were moving the ball well all day," Mitchell said. "I just told the guys if we hold on to it, we'll be fine."

Mitchell's day harkened back to departed Gavin Hoffman's 476 yard performance two seasons ago in a wild comeback against Brown. However, the Bears' deterioration of proficiency at the position ensured no such comeback would be necessary.

"Mike Mitchell is a lot like the quarterbacks we've had here in the past," said Brown coach Phil Estes. "He has four years under his belt, he's a first-year starter, but he's been in the program for four years. I think that's one of the reasons why we had success with James Perry. Then we had Eric Webber, who was in the program for four years, started his fifth year. Then, Kyle Riley was in our system for four years started his fifth."

Note that he did not mention the two quarterbacks who played for Brown today, juniors Nathaniel Poole and Kyle Slager, each of whom was largely ineffective in cracking the Penn defense or delivering the ball to star wideout Chas Gessner.

In sharp contrast, Mitchell was able to get his top two receivers involved early and often. Milanese finished with eight catches for 121 yards, and Castles had seven for 93, including two touchdown grabs -- the second of which sealed the win by making it 28-7 late in the third quarter.

Even more than his arm, it was his quick decision-making that impressed the competition. Senior quarterbacks "know the offense inside and out and they're pretty smart about which receiver to go to," Estes said.

While Mitchell has been at Penn for four years, this is his first season seeing significant playing time. So far, he is managing to build on the experience and improve seemingly week-by-week.

"I've got some more experience under my belt," Mitchell said. "You get used to certain situations. You know the right decision to make. It evolves over the seven weeks until you realize what you should be running and where you should go with the ball."

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