Penn Football Media Day Notes
Penn football hosted Media Day at Franklin Field on Monday, giving us our first look at the Quakers on their home turf since the fall. Here are some key notes in addition to our full notebook.
>> VIDEO: Interview with starting QB Billy Ragone
- Coach Al Bagnoli made an interesting point about the fact that the Quakers only have eight returning starters from last season's championship team. While that number is technically accurate when comparing this year's preseason depth chart to 2010's, many of the 2011 starters have significant starting experience. Bagnoli cited running back Brandon Colavita, defensive backs Matt Hamscher, Dave Twamley and Justyn Williams, and tight end Luke Nawrocki as examples. All broke into the starting lineup after last year's opener against Lafayette, but certainly proved themselves capable starters.
- Bagnoli again praised the other seven teams in the league, saying this is the first time he can remember all eight teams returning their starting quarterbacks. As I wrote earlier this month, I wouldn't buy into Bagnoli's notion that all seven teams are threats. Nothing more than paying proper preseason respect to his fellow coaches and making sure his players don't underestimate anyone.
- Bagnoli sounded as if he expects the offense to hit its stride early on this season. It may be hard to recall given that Penn basically breezed through much of the league schedule, but the Quakers came out of the gates a bit slow last season. There was even some debate over whether Billy Ragone or transfer Ryan Becker -- both of whom came in with virtually no collegiate experience -- would start at QB. Well, that question got a resounding answer when Ragone had a first-team all-Ivy caliber season.
At this point, Ragone should know the ins and outs of the offense, allowing Bagnoli to open up the playbook earlier on rather than ease his young QB into a starting role. The coach said to expect more passing to take pressure off of the inexperienced offensive line.
- Speaking of the offensive line, 2010 first-team all-Ivy selection Greg Van Roten will be the only returning starter. The 6-4, 295-pound senior has already stepped into a leadership role -- defensive tackle Brandon Copeland called him the "anchor of the whole offensive line." As for replacing former anchors like the graduated Joe D'Orazio and Luis Ruffulo, Van Roten said the new starters have the benefit of being in the system for several years already. Thus, the issue will not be learning the blocking schemes but transferring practice knowledge to the games. Van Roten said it could take as little as a quarter or as much as half a season for things to click.
In Copeland's assessment, junior guard Mike Pinciotti and junior tackle Joe Bonadies have stood out the most during camp so far. Pinciotti was listed as the starting right guard in the team's first depth chart release, but interestingly Bonadies was listed as the backup at right tackle to senior Alec Smith.
- Receiver/running back/return man Aaron Bailey is no longer listed on Penn's roster and no longer shows up in the Penn directory. It is safe to assume he no longer attends the university. Bailey was one of the most promising freshmen on the team last season and had originally planned to run track for the Quakers. But when spring rolled around, he decided to focus on football.
The Quakers can certainly repeat without Bailey, but his departure takes away an explosive weapon for the offense. With sprinter speed, he may have been the fastest player in the Ivy League, adding another dimension to the Penn offense. Against Princeton last season, Bagnoli did some experimenting to employ Bailey on end arounds, and he came through with four rushes for 82 yards and two touchdowns. That could have been a preview for what was in store in 2011, but obviously we will not get the chance to see Bailey develop. Instead, look for Penn to stick to its bread-and-butter with the running game and a play-it-safe passing game.
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