Unlike his counterpart in Philadelphia, Jack Siedlecki may not have had many tough decisions to make before his Yale squad kicked off the 2006 season. Matt Polhemus came in as the clear starter at quarterback, Mike McLeod returned as a proven threat at running back, and the entire offensive line emerged from graduation unscathed.
But two games into the schedule, it seems that the Elis have not yet hit their stride - if there is a stride to hit.
There certainly is on paper, even though Yale has not seriously challenged the upper echelon of Ivy teams for some time now. The Elis' season opener was a huge step in the wrong direction; they were embarrassed at home by San Diego, 43-17.
On offense, Polhemus has a pair of deep threats in senior wideouts Chandler Henley and Ashley Wright, in addition to McLeod, a sophomore who was the Ivy League's top rookie last year. He may sometimes be overshadowed by those around him, but Polhemus can make plays with his legs by himself - in his first college start two weeks ago, he had nearly as many rushing yards (54) as his sophomore running back (63).
Their coach certainly seems comfortable with that.
"The more threats a [quarterback] poses, the more difficult a team is to defend," Siedlecki wrote in an e-mail.
The X-factor looks to be the special teams, which - much like Penn's - has shown flashes of brilliance so far this year. The Elis came up with several big returns in their opening two games, including a 94-yard kick return for a touchdown by sophomore Steven Santoro against San Diego. It was the first runback he fielded in his career.
But if special teams are the Elis' wild card, defense could be their Achilles' heel. According to Siedlecki, the secondary will be anchored by cornerback Casey Gerald - a sophomore who totaled three tackles last year - and the linebackers by Bobby Abare, another sophomore. On the plus side, junior All-Ivy selection Brandt Hollander has emerged as one of the Ivy League's best lineman.
Yale gave up 105 more yards of total offense to Cornell last week than it produced itself, but the team was bailed out by several big plays in the red zone. If the Elis are to contend, they will not be able to count on a repeat of that performance.
Still, fans are rightly expecting bigger things out of McLeod in his sophomore year, and if he delivers, that could be enough to carry the team.
"He runs downhill and he runs hard," Cornell defensive end Jonathan Lucas said after McLeod racked up 104 yards and three touchdowns - all 21 of the Elis' points - in a win over the Big Red last week.
Ivy fans would be wise to watch the Elis in the weeks to come. With a convincing victory over Cornell - a team that embarrassed the Quakers at home in last year's season finale - Yale already has a win under its belt. But the possible weaknesses on defense could become more pressing as the season wears on. Yale could end up contending in the league or wallowing in the cellar this year, and neither would be all that surprising.
