In their last clash, Princeton overwhelmed Penn for a 30-13 win at Franklin Field in front of a homecoming crowd of 20,036 fans.
That was the first time in 10 games that the Tigers were able emerge triumphant over the Quakers.
Now, Princeton (6-1, 3-1 Ivy) has emerged as this season's powerhouse, and is poised to get its first ever victory over Penn at Princeton Stadium.
The Tigers are ranked 23rd in the nation after opening with six consecutive wins before getting upset by Cornell last weekend. And although the stage doesn't seem to be set for an upset this time, that is exactly what Penn (4-3, 2-2) will try to do when it travels to Princeton tomorrow.
"This is Penn-Princeton. That should say it all," Princeton coach Roger Hughes said. "Records mean nothing. Past games and previous performances mean nothing. The team that plays the hardest, hangs onto the ball and executes better on Saturday has the advantage."
The Tigers' record can be largely attributed to senior quarterback Jeff Terrell, who leads the league with 243.9 yards of total offense per contest.
"He's the key to the whole team," Penn coach Al Bagnoli said. "We've got to do a good job of controlling him and hopefully minimizing the things he can do well, like keeping him in the pocket and trying to keep him a little bit unsettled inside."
Wide receiver Brendan Circle bolsters Terrell's production on offense, leading the team with 69.3 receiving yards per game.
But it has been Princeton's dominance on the other side of the ball that has caused problems for opponents all season, with its defense leading the league in yards allowed.
Penn will look to running back Joe Sandberg to jump start the ground game in an effort to take some pressure off of sophomore quarterback Robert Irvin.
"If we run the ball effectively with Joe and our offensive line works well up front, we can definitely open up the passing behind that," Irvin said. "We've been putting in some new stuff to go against what Princeton runs. . We picked out a couple of weaknesses in them that we think we can exploit."
Although he did not play in the game against Brown last weekend, backup quarterback Bryan Walker is also expected to make a contribution tomorrow. Bagnoli plans to use the two interchangeably - as he has for most of the season.
Bagnoli has also made some changes in light of poor kicking performances this season, bringing up senior kicker Peter Stine from the sprint football squad. Starter Derek Zoch has been struggling all season, and in Penn's last two losses, he has missed two overtime kicks.
Stine will be Bagnoli's first option when it comes time to kick tomorrow, but Bagnoli will continue to use wideout Braden Lepisto and Zoch depending on Stine's performance.
As the Quakers press on in what has been a season of ups and downs, serious doubts about their Ivy League title hopes have arisen.
Back-to-back overtime losses spell heartbreak no matter how you look at it, but the situation is more devastating considering that those losses could have cost the team its chances at an Ivy League title.
The loss to Brown means Penn will not be able to win the title outright. Penn would have to hope for three straight wins over Princeton, Harvard and Cornell, as well as at least two Yale losses to get even a share of the title at the season's end.
But in spite of the dashed hopes, the team continues to have a positive outlook and says they're putting the season in perspective.
"We might not accomplish what we set out to do this year, and as tough as that is, you still have to go on," senior captain Scotty Williams explained. "It's great to win a championship, but it's still about going out there and doing something that you love; taking advantage of some of the abilities that you've been given that maybe some people haven't been so fortunate to have been given, and be there for your team, or for your family, or for yourself and just make the most of every opportunity."
