With a new football season comes a changing of the guard, and four newly nominated captains will take the helm for the Quakers in 2025.
This year’s captains are senior quarterback Liam O’Brien, senior linebacker John Lista, senior defensive lineman Paul Jennings, and senior center William Bergin. Jennings is returning to the captain’s position this season after he and two other captains led the team through the 2024 season.
All four of the 2025 captains spoke of the leadership position as a “great honor” and acknowledged the trust they are receiving from their teammates and coach Ray Priore in interviews with The Daily Pennsylvanian — and highlighted the unique skillset of their co-captains and teammates.
Liam O’Brien
After taking over the starting quarterback position in the middle of the season last year, O’Brien — who is from Boulder, Colo. — is experienced with leadership and truly understands the importance of his role.
“We are the people that 100 guys look to on a daily basis. We’re the ones coordinating, directing, organizing, and motivating a full team,” O’Brien said. “It’s a big honor. … [Our teammates] have the respect in us and they trust us.”
O’Brien, the six-foot quarterback, took the spotlight after 2024 Wharton graduate and former quarterback Aidan Sayin went down with a season-ending injury in a matchup against Yale last season. O’Brien shot to success during the rest of the season, earning FCS National Player of the Week honors and setting two program records in passing and total touchdowns in a single game.
O’Brien is looking forward to working with the team and his co-captains this season, citing effort as the biggest factor in deciding the team’s successes in 2025.
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“The two basic things that you can control no matter what [are] your attitude and your effort,” O’Brien said. “If you can always give 100% of your effort, you’ll be the best teammate and push yourself.”
John Lista
The 6-foot-2, 220-pound senior linebacker from Fair Haven, N.J. is looking to build on a season where he notched 62 tackles and 44 solo stops, tying him for fifth in solo tackles among Ivy League defenders and netting him second team All-Ivy honors. He echoed Jennings’ plan to round out the team and focus on the details as a captain this season.
“I think as a captain and a leader, what we need to do is refine all of our players and get everyone on the same page,” Lista said. “We’ve been doing a great job of it thus far … [but we need to focus on] the nitty-gritty and all the little things.”
Lista will lead a unit of 12 linebackers this season in the hopes of winning an Ivy League championship. But in terms of advice for his fellow captains and the team, Lista plans to take the season one step at a time.
“It doesn’t get better than this, these coaches, the people, the culture. Just embrace everything and take it in,” he said.
Paul Jennings
Jennings, who hails from Ambler, Pa., is entering his second year as captain. Last year, Jennings made two starts before being sidelined with a season-ending injury. But this season, he’s back on the field and looking forward to improving on last season’s 4-6 overall finish.
“It’s a huge honor. … It’s doing the stuff that’s going to help this team achieve our goals and win on a week-to-week basis,” Jennings said of being named captain. “But also, it has a lot to do with … making sure that the guys are aligned from a mentality perspective, and doing the right things day in and day out.”
As the team finishes its final practices of the preseason, Jennings said he would mainly focus on consistency across the offense and defense.
“In this league, it takes one loss to knock you out of championship contention,” Jennings said. “So we want to make sure that we’re not dropping the ball anywhere.”
In addition to leading an experienced team of defensive linemen, Jennings is also looking forward to working with his co-captains.
“I think our leadership this year is really strong … and I think that will really shine,” he said.
William Bergin
Rounding out the list of the close-knit group of captains is Bergin, a 6-foot-3 center from Cheshire, Conn who earned second team All-Ivy honors last season after starting all 10 games. Bergin views being a captain as being part of a “brotherhood.”
“You get to wear a brotherhood on your chest, loyalty, and putting everything that you work for,” Bergin said. “You stand for the whole Penn brotherhood and everyone that’s come over 100 years.”
This season, Bergin leads an experienced offensive line that allowed only 15 sacks last season, the ninth fewest in NCAA FCS football. As the team gears up for the season, Bergin is also looking to iron out the little details in practices.
“Practice like you want to be a champion,” Bergin said. “If we key in on [practicing] the little details, as in practice habits, we will be a very great team.”
Bergin emphasized the importance of keeping a level head and valuing everyone’s roles on the team to his fellow captains.
“Everyone has a part. There’s no one too little or too small to feel that they don’t have a part on this football team,” Bergin said. ”Everyone comes ready to play, no matter if you’re the last guy or you’re the best guy, it doesn’t matter.”
