It’s almost time to hit the gridiron.
Nearly nine months after his hire, football coach Rick Santos made his first official preseason appearance on the TIAA Ivy League media day broadcast. While Santos emphasized his excitement to lead the program, he made a concerted effort to distance his offensive and defensive strategies from those of his predecessor, Ray Priore.
Santos believes that the defensive backfield should be an integral part of the team. He plans to employ a pressure operation utilizing man-to-man contests to challenge opponents — making every play a contested catch.
The Quakers will utilize a 4-2-5 defensive formation, with five defensive backs on the field at all times. Although rising senior defensive back and team captain Josh Narcisse will likely headline this effort, Santos emphasized that the team has a lot of “unproven” talent that will become prominent through the first couple weeks of play as players “take a hold of their position on this team.”
“We’re gonna communicate every single snap before the play, during the play, and we’re gonna swarm to the ball,” Narcisse said of the defensive overhaul. “We’re gonna tackle well, we’re gonna be efficient, and we’re gonna limit all explosive plays. We’re gonna cause chaos in the trenches, our d[efensive] line is coming back with a lot of energy and they’re gonna cause havoc for the quarterback.”
Santos plans on emphasizing the versatility of the tight end room on the offensive end of the field. He named rising senior Cadin Olsen and rising junior Jack Donnelly as players to watch, but noted that their starting positions will be challenged by rising senior Dante Barone, who didn’t see any action last season. The tight ends are expected to be flexible, steering the run game, the space, and the C gap.
Santos prides himself on the strong offensive line he was able to bolster at New Hampshire, and he plans to bring that to Penn while leaning into the program’s strengths.
This season, the Quakers will debut an eleven-person, pro-style, quarterback-friendly offense with some spread remnants to maximize scoring. This offensive line will be a versatile force, with the ability to play at a fast tempo with one-word calls while also being strong when trying to draw the air out of the ball in a more tactical game.
RELATED:
For Penn coaches, summer is anything but an offseason
The beginning of the Rick Santos era: Penn football introduces new coaching staff
Rising senior offensive lineman and team captain Luke Sacchetti is looking forward to competitive conference play following strong spring performances.
“The overall buy-in is greater than I’ve ever seen rolling into a season. It felt like every day of spring ball was like a new game,” Sacchetti said. “Guys were really fighting and battling, whereas some years it felt like we might have just been lulled to sleep.”
Quaker football fans can also expect to see a new face leading the line of scrimmage, as Santos announced rising junior Karson Siqueiros-Lasky will be taking the helm as starting quarterback. Siqueiros-Lasky made appearances in two games during the 2025 football season, going a perfect 2-for-2 on pass attempts against Dartmouth.
“[Siqueiros-Lasky] does a phenomenal job being a facilitator, getting the ball out of his hands on time,” Santo said. “So [we’re] really proud with what we’ve seen out of him the last six or seven months.”
Despite strong spring ball performances, Siqueiros-Lasky’s position isn’t necessarily set in stone — he’ll be challenged by rising sophomore quarterback Shane Throgmartin and incoming freshman quarterback Miles Teodecki for the starting post.
The Quakers enter the season ranked fourth in the Ivy League preseason poll. The football season will kick off with an away contest against Bucknell on September 19.
“It’s a different conference, but at the end of the day, you know, the football [field] is still 53 and one-third yards wide and 100 yards long, right?” Santos said. “And for us, we’re going to strap it up the same [way] we have at the previous institution.”
