It would be easy for Penn to overlook tomorrow's football game against Brown.
After all, next weekend the No. 22 Quakers (5-1, 3-0 Ivy) will travel to Princeton, N.J., to take on a tough Tigers squad (4-2, 3-1) that is currently sitting in third place in the Ivy League.
The next week, No. 20 Harvard (6-0, 3-0) will travel to Franklin Field for what will most likely be the Ancient Eight title game.
It would be foolish, however, for Penn to overlook the Bears (4-2, 1-2).
Brown has quietly met all expectations for this season, perhaps even exceeding them.
The Bears have defeated tough opponents Rhode Island and Fordham. They also have played Harvard closer than any other Crimson opponent this season, eventually falling, 35-34.
Brown's only other loss this season came at the hands of Princeton.
Junior running back Nick Hartigan is the Bears' number one weapon on offense. Last season, Hartigan led Division I-AA in rushing, gaining 1,498 yards on the ground. This was the fourth-best single-season rushing effort ever in the Ivy League.
The Fairfax, Va., native has been almost equally impressive this season. His 118 yards per game is 11th best in the nation, while his 10 points per game is ninth in the nation.
Hartigan has struggled lately, however, rushing for 66 and 88 yards in the last two weeks against Princeton and Cornell, respectively.
He will meet his toughest test of the season this weekend against the vaunted Penn rush defense, ranked 10th in the nation and allowing just 93.3 yards per game on the ground.
Leading Brown's passing attack this week will be sophomore quarterback Anthony Vita.
The West Babylon, N.Y., native made his first collegiate start last weekend against Cornell, replacing former starting quarterback sophomore Joe DiGiacomo. Brown coach Phil Estes wanted a quarterback who was both a running and passing threat.
After a slow start, Vita rallied, completing 15 of 30 passes for 219 yards, while recording three touchdowns and one interception. He also ran the ball nine times for 22 yards.
Fortunately for the Quakers, this will not be the first time this season that they have faced a quarterback who likes to run.
The Red and Blue were able to contain Bucknell signal caller Daris Wilson, who is averaging close to 60 yards per game on the ground this season.
Vita's main target will be junior receiver Jarrett Schreck. The Montville, N.J., product of the Delbarton School is averaging close to five catches per game for 88.8 yards per game.
Brown's defense has been incredibly strong this season. Currently, the Bears are ranked eighth in the nation in total defense and 26th in the nation in scoring defense.
Opponents have been able to amass an average of only 274 yards and 19.3 points per game against the Bears.
Against Cornell last week, they registered six sacks, and the week before, Brown sacked Princeton quarterback Matt Verbit four times.
This will be a test for a young Penn offensive line which has allowed Quakers quarterback Pat McDermott to be sacked a dozen times this season.
If Penn is to run its record Ivy League win streak to 19 games, as well as beat Brown for a fifth consecutive time, it will need running back Sam Mathews to mimic his performance from a week ago against Yale.
Mathews was named Ivy League Offensive Player of the Week for his 169-yard, two-touchdown performance against the Elis.
The Navy transfer had struggled for several weeks prior to the Yale game, rushing for under 70 yards against Bucknell and Columbia.
Despite Mathews' struggles lately, the Quakers are still ranked second in the Ivy League in rushing offense, averaging 162.3 yards per game.
Harvard leads the Ancient Eight in rushing yards, tallying a whopping 214.8 yards per game on the ground.
