Football: Hoyas redirect their running game, but the detour flops, too

Rarely does a struggling quarterback get removed from his play-calling duties only to re-enter the game as a punt returner.

But that's exactly what happened on Saturday to Georgetown sophomore Robert Lane, who was chosen, over regular starter senior Matt Bassuener, to helm the Hoyas' rush-heavy attack.

"We had trouble starting out the first quarter, so we wanted to try something different as far as running the football," Hoyas coach Kevin Kelly said.

Lane played quarterback in high school and is listed as the backup on the Hoyas' depth chart. In his 2006 freshman campaign, however, he played in every contest as a running back, wide receiver, or punt returner.

While Lane may have had a few tricks up his sleeve for his first collegiate start at quarterback, throwing the ball was not one of them.

Georgetown completed 16 of 28 passing attempts for 140 yards compared to Penn's 14-of-24 for 180 yards. But these numbers are deceptive. In the first quarter, while the Quakers compiled a 28-0 lead, Lane did not attempt a single pass in three possessions.

By the time he was pulled for Bassuener with four minutes to go in the first half, he had thrown the ball just three times, completing two for 17 yards.

Kelly said he did not feel that Lane's inexperience or skill set limited his team's ability to attack through the air. Rather, Kelly said, Lane played because "it's an option type of offense and it's predicated on the run game."

The Hoyas run a triple-option offense. As the name implies, the quarterback has three alternatives from which to choose on the fly: hand the ball off to the fullback, keep it and run with it himself or pitch it to the slotback.

But the Hoyas' implementation was less than perfect, and the Quakers were able to stop them with ease.

"I thought they executed a good game plan, they tackled well in space and never let the fullback assert himself," Penn coach Al Bagnoli said. "And I think the whole key to stopping the triple-option is making sure they don't have the fullback going, because if they do then you're in a lot of trouble."

Georgetown's offensive line was unable to get any push; nearly all of the Hoyas' runs up the gut were unsuccessful. Lane would run laterally towards one of the sidelines, before either trying to run forward through a non-existent hole or, when he was about to get hit hard, pitching it to one of his backs.

Either way, with the passing game a non-factor, Penn was never fooled with a rush. The Hoyas entered play with an unimposing 3.1 yards per carry, but they averaged just 2.37 yards on Saturday.

"It was a different attack than what we're used to seeing, but I think it really plays to the strength of our defense," senior linebacker and captain Joe Anastasio said, "We were lucky . to stop the run inside the tackles, so it just became a speed game to the outside. Luckily our nickels and defensive ends are fast enough to make the plays most of the time."

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