Penn 17, Lehigh 35 — Ellie Clark, Sports editor
The Mountain Hawks are steamrolling every opponent they take on, and the Quakers are next in line.
Despite some chaos leading up to the game with a last-minute change in the pick for starting quarterback, Penn football managed to find their footing against Bucknell last Saturday. Sparks of greatness were evident in freshman quarterback Miles Teodecki’s 37-yard pass to fellow freshman wideout Mason Page. Although rookie offensive mistakes were made on the gridiron, a veteran defensive line made quick work of the Bison, limiting Bucknell’s offense to 124 yards and six first downs.
However, Lehigh is a far, far more threatening opponent than their Patriot League comrade.
The No. 7 Mountain Hawks enter Franklin Field looking to build upon their undefeated season. I could do some reverse fortune-telling to prove that the Quakers will come out on top after Lehigh’s near-loss to Dartmouth last Saturday, but their uncharacteristically weak performance was likely a fluke.
Lehigh has the run game with running back Luke Yoder, who’s ranked second in the nation for rushing yards on the season. They’re able to play the long game and move the ball down the field, ranking third in the nation on third-down conversions. Although Teodecki and the Quakers will likely manage to get some points on the board for their first home contest, I suspect the walk back to the locker room won’t be a happy one.
Penn 30, Lehigh 34 — Anshika Sinha, Sports reporter
Fresh off a 20-7 win against Bucknell, Penn football wants to continue their undefeated season by beating the Mountain Hawks. Lehigh is currently 4-0 in their season, having maintained comfortable leads against Holy Cross, Georgetown, William & Mary, and Dartmouth.
The Quakers outpaced Bucknell in their season opener, with Teodecki accounting for all three touchdowns. Penn established a strong lead at the bottom of the first quarter with two touchdowns, one with 3:23 remaining and another with 0:38 remaining. Bucknell got their first points on the board with a pick six off Teodecki’s blind side, but the Quakers were able to shut down the Bison’s attempt to reclaim the game.
Despite the Quakers’ strong performance last Saturday, an over-reliance on Teodecki against Lehigh may cause them to fall short. Lehigh’s scoring offense has done incredibly well, with players like senior running back Luke Yoder giving them the No. 1 rushing offense in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision. In Lehigh’s last matchup against Dartmouth, Yoder rushed for 150 yards. By contrast, junior running back Donte West recorded 39 rushing yards.
Although Penn shines in their defensive capabilities, limiting Bucknell to 124 total yards last Saturday, it’s only the Quakers’ second game of the season. Lehigh is playing with a much more experienced squad with a veteran coach, returning starters, and a longer season. If they’re able to hold it down on the defensive line, the Quakers may have the potential to upset the Mountain Hawks — but only time will tell.
Penn 24, Lehigh 20 — Daniel Obstgarten, Sports reporter
The Quakers will play host to the undefeated, seventh-ranked FCS team on Saturday. Fortunately, coach Rick Santos has the right cards up his sleeve to take the Lehigh Mountain Hawks down from their perch.
Ironically, the Mountain Hawks are a run-first offense; they’ve put up nearly 300 ground yards per game, and their sophomore quarterback Derek Morgan attempted only 13 passes in his first career start last week against Dartmouth. I’d imagine this will be a problem for Lehigh, as the Quakers allowed only 2.1 rushing yards per attempt last week against Bucknell. If the Quakers can mitigate this threat even a little bit, Lehigh will have trouble putting as many points on the board.
The Penn offense, in contrast, has the stage set for a markedly improved performance. Sophomore kicker Mason Walters missed a field goal and had an extra point blocked against Bucknell, but I’d expect a rebound performance from last year’s second team All-Ivy kicker. One would also hope that Teodecki will have more opportunities to show off his arm against a Lehigh defense that has allowed nearly 250 passing yards per game.
I think the Mountain Hawks’ inability to get their game off the ground will cost them, narrowly, against Penn, letting the Quakers get their 150th season off to a 2-0 start.
Penn 20, Lehigh 24 — Glen Finnie, Sports reporter
Penn football looks to improve its record to 2-0 this Saturday in what looks to be one of the most difficult games of the Quakers’ season.
In their first game of the year, Penn football earned a 20-7 victory over Bucknell. The game was full of firsts for Teodecki, who led the way with two passing touchdowns, one rushing touchdown, and 284 all-purpose yards. The Quakers’ debut under Santos started strong with two first-quarter touchdowns, and the defense remained rock-solid through all 60 minutes to start the year with a win.
Lehigh has been an unstoppable force, off to a 4-0 start and outscoring their opponents by an average of 21 points. However, they struggled for the first time last week against Dartmouth, who were 26 yards away from winning the game at the end of a narrow 24-20 victory for the Mountain Hawks. The key to Lehigh’s success has been their dominance of the run game on both sides of the ball. The Mountain Hawks lead the FCS in rushing yards per game and sit just outside the top 10 in rushing yards allowed per game.
Still, Penn’s defense was spectacular against the run last week, and despite the small sample size, the Quakers’ defense leads the nation in rushing yards per game and ranks fifth in the country in yards per rush, respectively. If Penn’s defense can hold firm, Teodecki could find success through the air against a Lehigh passing defense that has been subpar, and the Quakers will keep this one close.
Penn 28, Lehigh 35 — Grant Han, Sports reporter
After Penn’s dominant performance last week against Bucknell, it’s hard not to feel a tad bit optimistic about the Quakers’ potential outlook this season under Santos’ new look defense and an explosive debut from Teodecki. Unfortunately, I believe that the one-game hype train ends this Saturday afternoon.
The Lehigh Mountain Hawks team that the Quakers will soon be lining up looks dangerous and is in the middle of a sizzling four-game winning streak. The key threat to look out for is Yoder, who amassed a whopping 569 rushing yards, 11 rushing touchdowns, and an average yards per carry of 6.5 so far this season. Holy moly. And that’s not even mentioning their defense, who look especially well equipped to deal with the Quakers’ dynamic rushing attack.
Fortunately, the Mountain Hawks’ passing attack has been pretty quiet as of late, being held to under 90 yards in the air for both of the last two games. If the Quakers want any chance of winning, they’ve got to dominate the trenches for all four quarters, and I just think that’s asking a little too much.
Penn 24, Lehigh 27 — Rachel Berliner, Sports reporter
With both the Quakers and the Mountain Hawks coming off thrilling wins last week, this upcoming game will be a question of who can leverage their team’s energy to best execute the necessary technical skills.
Penn is still feeling the excitement of last Saturday’s 20-7 win against the Bucknell Bison. Not only did this game open the 150th year of Penn football, but it also marked the start of Santos and Teodecki’s careers as Quakers. Although he ultimately finished with a 53% pass completion, Teodecki had a strong start with 197 yards in the air and 87 rushing yards. Sophomore wide receiver Luke Johnson and Page added to a strong offense with six receptions and a 37-yard touchdown, respectively.
Lehigh is entering this Saturday’s game with the hopes of adding to their four-game winning streak. This team, currently undefeated and ranked first in the Patriot League, might have just enough momentum to match the Quakers’ energy. On Sept. 19, the Mountain Hawks defeated Dartmouth in a 24-20 game. Despite Dartmouth’s lead in the third quarter, the second half of the game saw strong offensive efforts from Lehigh with a 27-yard field goal from kicker Connor Poole and Yoder’s game-winning touchdown. Lehigh’s field goal unit might be the team’s decisive strength against Penn during this upcoming game.
With Lehigh’s formidable offensive force, the game will be a challenge for the Quakers, but it’s nothing that 150 years of Penn football pride can’t handle.
