With the Princeton defensive secondary focusing its attention on Penn wide receiver Dan Castles, someone else was going to have to step up and make big plays through the air for the Quakers.
Senior wide receiver Joe Phillips rose to the occasion on Saturday.
Phillips came through with a career afternoon to lead Penn's air attack against an overmatched Tigers team.
Phillips hauled in nine catches for 117 yards on the day. Castles had two big touchdown catches, but it was Phillips who seemed to be quarterback Mike Mitchell's favorite target when Penn absolutely had to have yardage.
"I was just going through my progressions, if the number one isn't open, you go back to number two," Mitchell said. "They were doubling up on Danny Castles and I kept coming back to Joe [Phillips] and he made a couple of really nice, key catches."
Phillips always seemed to have an extra step on his defensive counterpart and was the most sure-handed receiving option that Mitchell had available to him. On a day when some of the Red and Blue receivers had some difficulties catching the football, Phillips caught all the passes thrown his way.
The Tigers' game plan aimed to shut down Castles by surrounding him defensively with cornerbacks, linebackers and safeties. Despite Princeton's best efforts, Castles still managed to accumulate 88 yards receiving -- but he was held to just four catches.
"Castles was getting bracketed by a corner and safety, getting double teamed, and I was playing in the slot a lot," Phillips said. "I was just coming open underneath a lot and the line was doing a nice job of protecting,they were giving Mike [Mitchell] enough time to find me."
Most of Phillips' receptions were short passes that he was then able to turn upfield and make into big gains.
Rarely was the 5'9" wideout used on deep patterns, but his presence in the middle of the field was invaluable in keeping the Tigers' defense from placing too many men on the line of scrimmage in an attempt to stop the Red and Blue run attack.
Phillips' most productive receiving series came right before halftime, on a drive that overcame several personal foul penalties.
After Penn recovered a fumbled kickoff, Mitchell found Phillips on three consecutive pass plays, once for 23 yards and twice to gain crucial first downs, helping to put the Red and Blue in excellent field position. After Phillips' third catch, Mitchell found Castles in the end-zone, which gave Penn a 30-0 halftime lead and all but ended any hopes of an upset.
With Penn sophomore running back Sam Mathews rushing effectively behind a dominant offensive line, and Penn already boasting an effective passing attack, consistent play from Phillips should make for an even better offensive team as the Quakers head into their final two games of the season.
