Bagnoli goes for 2 in the pocket

EASTON, Pa. — This weekend marked the debut of a two-quarterback system in Philadelphia, with a pocket passer splitting time with a dynamic scrambler.

And no, Donovan McNabb and Michael Vick had no part in it.

Saturday the Quakers were the ones mixing their own version of the “Wildcat” offense — which coach Al Bagnoli calls the “slash” — into the gameplan. Junior Keiffer Garton ran the slash (though he looked more like Vick in slow motion), while senior Kyle Olson saw the majority of snaps in his first game back since Nov. 1 of last year.

But based on the results in the 20-17 overtime loss to Lafayette Satutrday, the slash gimmick needs some work.

Garton started the game, but his first drive in the formation came midway through the second quarter, when he took his first three carries for 22 yards. But after the initial surprise, the Leopards held Garton to four carries for six yards the rest of the game, including two failed third-down conversions and a failed fourth-down conversion.

Meanwhile, Olson displayed poise in the pocket leading Penn on its three scoring drives. The offense gained a rhythm after halftime when it went to back to basic run plays with Olson passes mixed in.

Even with this rhythm disrupted by Garton’s subbing in on third and short, Olson felt the slash only helped his game.

“It’s a nice mix-up and it gives the defense a little something extra to prepare for,” he said. “If anything it helps me out and I get a chance to take a quick breather to see what [offensive coordinator Jon McLaughlin] is seeing up in the box.”

Though Garton was used almost exclusively as a runner, Leopards defensive lineman Andrew Poulson thought the slash was a tough changeup to defend.

“He’s talented and he did well, but I don’t think we really just honed in on him because he’s a good athlete and I think we were expecting him to do whatever he needed to do to make a play,” he said of Garton.

If the performance of the other Ivy teams is any indication, Penn should stick with the multifaceted offense. New Hampshire quarterbacks combined to rush for over 100 yards and two touchdowns to win 44-14 over Dartmouth. The quarterbacks of last year’s Ivy co-champions, Brown and Harvard, squared off in Harvard’s 24-21 win, with each going for 50-plus rushing yards.

Keiffer Garton also gained 279 yards on the ground in his two Ivy starts last season.

Translation: when Penn isn’t going up against the Patriot League’s number one rush defense, those Garton scrambles may very well mean big yardage.

And when the signal caller returns to being a dual threat — an arm injury allowed him to throw only three passes Saturday — Penn’s slash will be much more difficult to defend.

Add in Olson’s pocket presence, not to mention several playmakers at running back that displayed their talents Sunday, and the Quakers may be onto something.

“They come out with several different offenses and really did a nice job mixing it up,” Lafayette coach Frank Tavani said. “[When] the other quarterback’s running and doing different things, you’ve got to make some adjustments.”

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