Penn football picked to finish second in preseason media poll

Being picked to finish second in the Ivy League this season in the preseason media poll could be a blessing for the Penn football team. In each of the past three seasons, the team predicted to be runner-up for the Ivy title has gone on to win the championship.

The Quakers were chosen to finish second in 2009 and 2010, when they won back-to-back titles. Last season, they finished in a four-way tie for second in the league.

The Red and Blue return 39 letterwinners this year, including 17 starters, and are much more experienced than last year's team. However, they will have to prove themselves, especially against league-favorite Harvard, who beat Penn, 37-20, a season ago.

Harvard received 13 of 17 first-place votes and had a total of 132 points. Penn received two first-place votes and finished with 111 points.

This is the 20th consecutive season in which Penn has been selected in the top four of the preseason poll.

Here are the full predictions:

1. Harvard (13) 2. Penn (2) 3. Cornell (2) 4. Brown 5. Yale 6. Dartmouth 7. Columbia 8. Princeton

Where do you expect the Quakers to finish this season?