It was a special day for football at Franklin Field, but not for Penn’s special teams unit.
Penn (1-1, 0-0 Ivy) lost their home opener to Lehigh (5-0, 3-0 Patriot) in a defensive slog. The Mountain Hawks’ offense, led by standout running back Luke Yoder, finished with 217 yards and two touchdowns. The Quakers struggled offensively, but a strong performance from the defensive line held the Mountain Hawks to only 168 yards on the ground — well below their 291 rushing yards per game so far this season.
Freshman quarterback Miles Teodecki also felt the pressure throughout the game, ending the afternoon with 133 yards on 48.6% completion and two interceptions. He also took four sacks, with Penn’s offense only taking one trip to the red zone for the duration of the game.
“We’re never going to be perfect, we’re never going to make every play, but the defense clearly was the most dominant unit on our team today,” coach Rick Santos said.
The Red and Blue’s opening drive ended with Teodecki — playing his second collegiate start — throwing an interception. This was a sign of things to come. Lehigh’s offense was unable to capitalize on the subsequent drive, but a defensive stop was followed by a 48-yard field goal by Mountain Hawks kicker Connor Poole for the only points in the first half.
“[The Mountain Hawks] have an incredible running game,” senior linebacker Zach Darche said. “They lulled us to sleep a little bit when they give it, and give it, and give it, and we’re working on making plays.”
The two sides traded punts in the coming drives until Lehigh drove all the way down to Penn’s 25-yard line. A crucial stop on fourth down just after the first half’s two-minute timeout could have set up a shift in momentum, but there was none to be found. Despite the team’s offensive struggles, Penn’s defense remained strong, holding the Mountain Hawks to just three points and 109 total yards in the first half.
The second half began with more of the same, as both sides opened with three-and-outs. But the Quakers soon found trouble as a muffed punt gave the Mountain Hawks prime field position at the Quakers’ 28-yard line. Backed by a pass-interference penalty, the Mountain Hawks marched down the field before quarterback Derek Morgan scrambled up the right for the first touchdown of the afternoon.
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The Quaker offense went cold, totaling just 11 yards in the third quarter. Following another poor special teams sequence for Penn’s punt unit, Lehigh’s next drive also ended in a touchdown to give Lehigh a commanding 17-0 lead following the extra point.
Santos attributed his offense’s lackluster start in the second half to an inability to execute their team’s core offensive philosophies.
“We prided ourselves in the past on being a 12-personnel team and getting heavy run sets, controlling the clock, and … controlling the line of scrimmage,” Santos said. “Right now, I’m not sure if we’re doing a good enough job with that.”
Santos later took the brunt of the blame.
“That’s on myself; that’s on the offensive staff,” Santos said. “We need to make sure we take a hard look in the mirror, that we’re putting these guys in the best situation to be successful.”
Lehigh later widened their lead to 20 to open the fourth quarter as Poole split the uprights from 29 yards out. A missed field goal created some excitement, and a late bit of magic from Penn’s offense kept the game from ending with Penn scoreless, but the result ended up being too little, too late.
Sophomore running back Tommy Lafayette, who rushed for Penn’s lone touchdown of the afternoon, attributed the offense’s success on their penultimate drive and their ability to finally get the run game going.
“We preached this entire week preparing for the game that we have to win the run game,” Lafayette said. “When you establish the run and you kind of get yourself in a, you know, like, a way of doing things, it just continues to push forward.”
Despite the loss, Santos commended his team for their effort and persistence. “I think our guys play extremely hard,” Santos said. “I think there’s no quit in this group.”
Penn gears up for their first Ivy conference game on the road against Dartmouth on Oct. 3.
“We’re focused on one week at a time,” Santos said. “We got the league opener against a phenomenal Dartmouth opponent. We’re excited for it.”
