Penn football still watching the throne

In 2012, Penn football began the year as underdogs to win an Ivy League title, and proceeded to surprise many with a 6-1 run through its Ancient Eight opponents all the way to a championship.

But this year, the Quakers won’t be sneaking up on anyone.

The Red and Blue are the preseason favorites to earn an unprecedented fourth outright Ivy title in five years.

Still, don’t expect any bravado from coach Al Bagnoli, who didn’t seem to give much stock to the preseason polls.

“I think we are cautiously optimistic,” he said during the Ivy Football teleconference earlier this month. “We think we have enough in place to be a competitive football team. We had some momentum from last season carry over and we’re excited to get going. But we certainly think we have our fair share of issues that we are going to have to confront.”

One of those question marks heading into this season will be the health of starting quarterback Billy Ragone. Ragone, a fifth-year senior, is still working back from a severe ankle injury that he suffered in last season’s home finale against Harvard.

“I think we are fortunate. Any time you have fifth-year kids back, it’s great,” Bagnoli said of Ragone. “We know we are going to have to take things slow and we know we are going to have to integrate him back into different pace than we normally would.

“But we also think, ultimately, he is going to be fine.”

Sharing the load

With Bagnoli wanting to take it slow with Ragone early in the season, fellow fifth-year senior quarterback Ryan Becker could receive some first-team snaps.

Becker is also returning from injury — a torn ACL cost him all of 2012 — but could take some of the load off Ragone.

And quarterback is just one piece to the puzzle, and the Red and Blue return many starters on offense.

In the backfield, the Quakers will have to replace the presences of Jeff Jack and Lyle Marsh, who is missing 2013 due to academic issues, but will have fifth-year senior Brandon Colavita returning after missing much of last season due to injury.

Penn also returns its two top receivers from last season in seniors Connor Scott and Ryan Mitchell, along with three starting offensive linemen.

Replacing Copeland

While the offense will have many returning faces, the defense lost some of its major cogs, including three-time first-team All-Ivy defensive end Brandon Copeland, who now plays for the Baltimore Ravens.

Not only will the Quakers miss Copeland’s strong defensive play, they will also lose his presence as the team’s defensive captain and leader.

“There is really no way for one player to make up for [Copeland],” senior defensive back Dan Wilk said. “Cope was one of the best leaders I’ve ever met in my life.

“But I think the way [we replace Copeland] is by having as many leaders as possible across the board on the defensive side of the ball.”

Wilk, one of Penn’s three captains, will be relied upon as one of those leaders, having led the team with three interceptions last season.

At safety, Wilk is one of the players expected to head a strong and experienced back seven for the Quakers, which includes senior defensive backs Evan Jackson and Sebastian Jaskowski and junior linebacker Dan Davis.

While Penn will have those experienced players to rely on defensively, they will also need to work in a new group of linemen to replace three seniors — Taylor Brown, C.J Mooney and Copeland — on the defensive line.

Fortunately for the Quakers, they have a group of three sophomores ready to step in, as Dan Connaughton, Austin Taps and Tanner Thexton are expected to take many snaps, despite combining to play in just four games last year.

“They are real big bodies. They are really young and raw,” Wilk said of the trio. “[Defensive line coach] Jim Schaefer was working with them all spring.

“With the absence of Copeland this year, we are really in need of a bigger presence at D-line. We are going to need to look for guys to shuffle in who bring different things to the table.”

Building a legacy

With three Ivy League titles in four years, Penn football is in the midst of one of its most successful eras. But past championship glories haven’t left the Quakers satisfied after last year’s 6-4 campaign.

And the senior class is especially motivated to cement its place in Penn lore with a third championship.

“I definitely want us to be remembered as one of the best,” Wilk said. “And with being one of the best, that comes with winning. At Penn, unlike other schools, you are judged based off championships.

“We feel we have a really good class. We have great chemistry with our class. And we are really determined to go out on top since if we don’t, it kind of puts a damper on our class.”

SEE ALSO

Tony | Quakers are in best of hands with Ragone

Roundtable: Will Penn win the Ivy League in 2013?

Penn football picked to defend Ivy football crown

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.