Before last weekend's sprint football game, senior quarterback Mike Loguidice told his team in the tunnel, "We're not letting them think they can run all over us."
But the Quakers might not have been able to do too much about it. Army wore down Penn's defense, and the Quakers were unable to build up any offensive strength, as the Black Knights won 16-7.
The Quakers came out fired up and ready to play. Penn's first defensive series provided even more confidence early in the game, as it forced and recovered a fumble on the third play.
The very next play, however, turned the game around completely. On Penn's first offensive snap, Loguidice dropped back to pass but overthrew the slant and was intercepted. From then on, Army took control of the ball and dared Penn to stop its run game. Army ran on 58 out of 66 total plays for a total of 263 yards.
"They grounded it out," Penn coach Bill Wagner said. "They won the ball game with some hard nosed football."
Army's passing game was limited but effective. Army's Robert Miner completed two passes (4 of 8 for the game) of over 30 yards, with one going for a touchdown.
Penn's offense was the complete opposite of Army's. The Quakers could not get much going, and once they did, their drives were stalled by costly penalties. The only scoring drive was the result of a failed onside kick by Army that gave Penn the ball on the opposing 36 yard line. Penn had 173 yards of total offense, with only 25 on the ground. In addition, the Red and Blue converted 25 percent of its third downs, and got into the red zone only once.
"Offensively, we just didn't do it," Wagner said. "We didn't score - we needed to complete more passes. We had some great throws and catches, but we need more consistency, and we didn't get it."
Penn's offensive line had trouble protecting Loguidice, as he was pressured almost every time he dropped back to pass. The senior got sacked six times for 42 yards, and was picked off three times.
"The young line has to protect the quarterback better, the quarterback has to make a quicker decision, and we can't take the sacks," Wagner said.
After the loss, the quarterback knows his team will bounce back.
"I have to tell the team to have short-term memory, and things from here on out aren't going to be easy, but we'll get back up," Loguidice said.
