While the Penn football team doesn't officially play a home game until Sept. 25, the Quakers had a chance to test out their new players and new playing surface Saturday when they scrimmaged Widener.
Though no official score or statistics were kept, Penn dominated the Division III Pioneers, allowing the squad to reach the end zone just once. The Quakers, on the other hand, rattled off over 40 points.
But for Penn coach Al Bagnoli, "the score is irrelevant."
Bagnoli was much more concerned with giving his squad some real-game experience.
"We're looking for execution, we're looking to get certain people game experience, we're looking for better game management," he told Penn Athletics.com after the game.
"We're just looking to execute under a different scenario than practice. We have officials, we have a 25-second clock, we have a scoreboard."
"Our kids were excited to play against somebody else because they've been hitting each other for the last 11 practices," he added.
Saturday's scrimmage was the first chance Penn's revamped offense had to play as a unit against an opposing defense. This year's Quakers will feature a new starting quarterback and five new starters on offensive line.
According to Bagnoli, junior quarterback Pat McDermott was "a little bit inconsistent at throwing, but I think you saw glimpses of what the kid can do."
McDermott was able to hit senior All-Ivy receiver Dan Castles with a long pass in the first half, and he found sophomore tight end Chris Mizell several times during the game.
But most of the heavy hitting on offense was done by the Penn backfield, which will have to play strong all year if the Quakers hope to win their third consecutive Ivy League title.
Starting running back Sam Mathews and starting fullback Kevin DeSmedt each had one touchdown, while second-string halfback Michael Recchiuti tallied two scores.
Junior running back Kyle Ambrogi also scored on a 54-yard touchdown run.
Bagnoli was not concerned with how his returning starters fared in the scrimmage, as the coach already has hours of game film to analyze their play.
The Penn coach was more concerned with the efforts of his inexperienced players.
"It's a very, very good learning experience for those kids," he said.
Overall, Bagnoli was pleased with his team's play.
"I think we showed signs of being somewhat explosive," he said.
The Quakers, who prior to Saturday's scrimmage had practiced just 11 times, now have to wait two weeks before squaring off against someone in a different uniform.
The team will open its season at San Diego on Sept. 18.
