Football: The Renaissance man, or the Ivy pedigree?

Princeton's Bill Foran knows how to make his mark on a football game.

In last year's double-overtime victory over Penn he led the Tigers in rushing yards (with 84), recorded a couple of tackles on special teams and downed the ball inside the five late on a crucial punt.

But this weekend the Quakers might see him in a different capacity - at quarterback.

Foran, a senior who left Purdue after redshirting his freshman year and now doubles as a sprinter on the Princeton track team, has gotten the majority of snaps this year.

But he's not the only one doing the signal-calling. Fellow senior Greg Mroz has seen almost as much time as Foran in the Tigers' quarterback-by-committee scheme.

While Foran is still listed at the top of Princeton's depth chart this week, he missed last week's win over Cornell and is still recuperating from a concussion.

Whether or not Foran suits up this weekend, Penn's defensive looks probably won't change much.

"Both quarterbacks are real athletic," senior captain and free safety Patrick Kimener said. They "make you miss out in space with that option offense they run."

Foran's fleet-footedness - his 4.5 speed helped persuade the Boilermakers he was more suited for the secondary - overshadows Mroz's solid athleticism, but both are ultimately capable of running Princeton's wide open sets.

"I think Foran's a much more explosive runner . [but] Mroz is really a more balanced quarterback," Quakers coach Al Bagnoli said. "I think he's a little bit better suited for a balanced attack as opposed to 60 throws - or 60 runs in Foran's case."

Foran may lead the team in rushing yards (287 net), passing yards (980), and touchdowns (five rushing, five passing), but one thing Mroz has that he doesn't is an Ivy League football pedigree.

Mroz's oldest brother, David, graduated from Princeton in 2003 after playing quarterback for the Tigers. And Jeff, a 2005 Yale graduate, got a serious look this offseason from the Dallas Cowboys, who were looking for a third-string quarterback.

"I've been very fortunate to have two brothers go through the same experiences I am going through now," Mroz said. "I've learned a lot of valuable lessons from them."

Mroz's only start this season has come in the absence of his platoon-mate, a fact that has probably not been helped by his suspect 46.9 completion percentage and six interceptions.

But even though Foran has completed passes at a clip of 56.9 percent and has thrown just three picks, Mroz's arm has kept him in the rotation.

It seems like a somewhat imperfect pairing, but the Tigers' opponents know what a threat the duo can be. And if Foran is out again this week, his team might miss him even more than it did in last week's close call.

Because for Princeton, it takes two.

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