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(02/13/95 10:00am)
A local kid and a transfer. A 6-foot-9 power forward and a 6-4 swingman. A shot-blocker with a sweet touch and a ball-hawk with a streaky jumper. An odd couple they may be, but Ira Bowman and Tim Krug have combined to form a devastating duo for Penn's Ivy League opponents. This weekend's games against Cornell and Columbia were just the latest examples. They took different paths in reaching this point, but their on-the-court stories are similar. Go back in time to Tim Krug at the Red and Blue Game in 1992. He was everywhere, blocking shots and nailing threes. Then came two somewhat frustrating seasons. Krug broke a backboard and Rick Hielscher with comparable ease, but whether it was a failure to help out on defense or an ill-conceived shot at the offensive end, Krug just seemed out of the game at times. Now go back to last season, when Ira Bowman toiled in the obscurity of his mandatory season off after transferring from Providence. I was lucky enough to see him practice and was awed by his quickness and -- ironically -- three-point range. My hopes were as high as Shawn Trice's old socks. But the season began strangely for Bowman. Always impressive defensively, he nonetheless gave up the occasional easy hoop. And offensively he was a mystery. Poor shooting and difficulty in the half-court game plagued him. In looking for a turning point in the Bowman-Krug connection, there are any number of candidates. For me the choice is obvious. In the Quakers' worst performance in years, in their most lopsided loss since 1988, it was Bowman and Krug who continued to challenge UMass with the game out of reach. Since that time, Bowman and Krug have gotten their minutes at the same time with increasing frequency. Although Penn coach Fran Dunphy recently asserted he is not "bright enough" to anticipate the effectiveness of this strategy, its consequences have been obvious. While no one expected Penn's bench to extend much beyond these two players, few could have anticipated them having such a clear and connected impact. These days the starting five may not be the Quakers' best lineup. They are steady and methodical in establishing Penn's halfcourt game, and for the first few minutes of each contest the night is theirs. Then the fun begins. When Bowman and Krug enter a game together, the defensive shift is dramatic. The first test for Penn's opponents is Bowman's one-man half-court press. Bowman is a frustrating flurry of hands and feet to the man he is guarding and is simply unbeatable on the perimeter. The spontaneous ovations for Bowman's defense are unlike anything I have witnessed before. Should the Quakers' foes get past Bowman, they are often met by Krug's ever-improving shot-blocking. With Bowman acting as the sparkplug, Krug seems to pick up his intensity by a notch or three. The aggressiveness of the defense of Bowman and Krug leads to another change in the Quakers' game. Spurred by turnovers and rejections, Penn's fast-break has become a thing of beauty. Often started by somewhat overlooked but nonetheless brilliant passes from Jerome Allen and Matt Maloney, the Quakers' version of Showtime has been punctuated most often by emphatic slams and weaving layups from -- you guessed it -- Ira Bowman. Few teams run as disciplined a break, and few are as proficient in getting back on defense. Five-point leads become ten-point leads, and ten-point leads become thirty-point leads -- all instigated by the unlikely combination of Tim Krug and Ira Bowman. The starting lineup, of course, does have its advantages. Against higher-profile, more athletic teams, its discipline and poise allow Penn to compete on any level. For a short-term spark, however, the value of the Krug-Bowman connection has become enormous. It is conceivable that Fran Dunphy truly does not insert Bowman and Krug into Penn's lineup at the same time by design. If so, then hey, Fran -- don't get any "brighter." Jason Liss is College senior from Dalton, Mass., and a sports writer for The Daily Pennsylvanian.
(01/31/95 10:00am)
Just over three months ago the Penn men's basketball team began making adjustments to its system. The system had carried an almost identical roster of Quakers to the best record in the nation the preceding two seasons. Midway through this season, the results have been more of the same. At 11-3, the Quakers continue to vie for national attention. And with victories in its first three Ivy League contests, Penn has extended its all-time record for consecutive Ivy wins to 32. The ingredients for excellence are largely the same. A star backcourt, a solid frontcourt and a dash of discipline combine to raise the Quakers a notch above their Ivy counterparts. For the first few minutes, a typical Penn game this season looks strikingly like one from last season. The major difference is Scott Kegler's starting role -- a spot in which the Columbus native has excelled. Kegler's outside marksmanship is well-documented. The senior forward's three-point shooting percentage of .522 leads the Ivy League and is one of the nation's best. Kegler led Penn with 26 points against Dartmouth and 19 against La Salle. The other pleasant surprise in the starting lineup has been the offensive contribution of senior center Eric Moore. Moore has upped his scoring from 8.1 points per game last season to 12.1 in 1994-95. All season he has teamed up with senior forward Shawn Trice to add a new dimension to the Quakers' offense. "Eric and Shawn as starters have provided great leadership," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "They defend well, they've rebounded fairly well, and when it has come time for them to be scorers, they've done that." Several minutes into this year's typical Penn contest, the tempo and style of the game change significantly with the entrance of junior forwards Tim Krug and Ira Bowman. Dunphy has inserted the Quakers' most important substitutes together several times recently -- with dramatic results. "Their minutes are going to come," Dunphy said. "But it's coincidence when they come in together. It's not like I say, 'Okay, let's put Tim and Ira in and change the face of the game.' I'm not that bright." Dunphy's coaching attributes notwithstanding, Krug and Bowman have proved to be an active, effective and crowd-pleasing combination off the bench. Krug, for one, averages 8.1 points in his 19 minutes per game. Krug, with his dunking and shot-blocking abilities, provides an emotional spark in many instances -- most recently Saturday's victory over Princeton. Improved defense and passing are the most telling signs of Krug's increased contribution this season. If Krug provides a spark, then Bowman provides nothing less than a volcanic eruption. With Bowman's harassing defense in the game, Penn plays what approximates a one-man full-court press. Offensively, Bowman is equally frenetic. Averaging 9.6 ppg in his 18 minutes, Bowman shoots 53.5 percent from the field. Bowman's season did not begin entirely auspiciously. Expected by many to replace the aforementioned Pierce after transferring from Providence, Bowman instead struggled to integrate himself into the Quaker offense. Against Canisius in the season opener, Bowman appeared out of control. "It was a natural reaction for someone who hadn't played for nearly two years," Dunphy observed. "But I think he's pleased with how things are coming along." Maloney and Allen have also continued to prosper in the half-court game. Maloney is averaging 12.8 points per game and has shot 42 percent on three-pointers. Allen, meanwhile, is averaging 15.5 points and over five rebounds per game. Together, Maloney and Allen have averaged over 10 assists against under five turnovers per game. Midway through this season of adjustment, it appears everyone has settled in. Last year's first 14 games yielded a 12-2 mark. This year Penn is 11-3 at the same point, and once again the Quakers seem to be doing almost everything right.
(11/12/94 10:00am)
Quaker win in Cambridge would end 20-year drought Last week, it was widely assumed that the matchup with Princeton would be the Penn football team's stiffest test of the season. This week, though, the Quakers (5-0 Ivy League, 8-0 overall) may be facing an even tougher foe – a 20-year losing streak at Harvard (1-4, 3-5). What's more is that the Quakers will be looking to sweep all-time powers Harvard and Yale on the road for the first time since 1958. But if Penn rids itself of the Harvard Hex the prize is a big one – a guarantee of at least a share of the Ivy League title. "We played about as well as we can play on both sides of the ball [against Princeton]," Penn coach Al Bagnoli said. "That was the good news. The unfortunate part is, we still have two more games to play. The question mark becomes, you play such a big game and it's built up so much and then you do win the game – what kind of energy do you have left? Because that game actually didn't decide anything. Now we have the problem of going to a place that historically has been very hard for us to play at. That's the next challenge." For some Quakers, though, the same streak that may seem intimidating to outsiders may have psychological benefits in preparing for the game. "We try to use it that way," Penn senior defensive end Dave Betten said. "People may have it in their heads that we're a better team than they are so we have to use [the streak] as a little bit of motivation that we've been better in the past and still lost. You're always looking for something in the other team that makes them better than you are that you can focus on." Other than home-field advantage, though, Betten is sure to be hard-pressed to find other areas in which the Crimson have the edge on the Quakers. Penn is standing alone atop the Ancient Eight, while last week Harvard fell to lowly Brown. On both sides of the ball, meanwhile, the Quakers remain the class of the Ivy League. Penn has scored the most points in the league while allowing the fewest. And if the aerial heroics of senior quarterback Jimmy McGeehan, senior wide receiver Chris Brassell and sophomore sensation Miles Macik weren't enough for Quaker fans, junior running back Terrance Stokes added another intimidating Penn statistic with his monster 272-yard effort against Princeton. Stokes's performance was good enough for him to be named co-Eastern College Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Week. The Crimson, on the other hand, have been inconsistent at best. Although they played well in losses to Princeton and Dartmouth, their only Ivy victory came against ever-unimpressive Columbia. One factor on Harvard's side, though, is versatile senior quarterback Mike Giardi. A second-team all-Ivy selection last year, Giardi has since become the Crimson's second-leading passer of all time. "Any time you have a great player at quarterback you have the potential for an upset," Bagnoli said. "Mike Giardi is just an unbelievable athlete. He can make some plays that I watch films and just shake my head at." Aside from his personal athleticism, Giardi guides a Crimson attack that has put up some impressive numbers at times this season, especially on the ground. In fact, Harvard ranks second only to Princeton in rushing among Ancient Eight teams. If there was any area in which Princeton succeeded against the Quaker defense last Saturday, it was in running the option. Thus, Harvard's offensive flexibility is a major concern for Penn. "Harvard's been running all over everybody this year," Betten said, "and last year they ran the option well against us. We've been trying to focus on the option responsibilities as well as the rest of the offense. They run so many different formations and plays that it's hard to keep the rushing numbers down." At the same time, off-the-field factors may give the Crimson an emotional edge. Coach Joe Restic, after 23 years at the Harvard helm, is coaching his final game at Harvard Stadium. Restic, who announced his impending retirement in May, has won more games than any other coach in team history while amassing a career record of 117-95-6. In honor of Restic, all of the Crimson captains from throughout his tenure will be in attendance. With the combination of a fired-up Harvard team, a 20-year Harvard Stadium jinx and the emotional leftovers of two weeks of pre- and post-Princeton hype, Penn must be wary of a letdown. McGeehan, for one, does not see that as a possibility. "Coaches talk about that, but as players we're not going to let down," McGeehan said. "There's no way we can let down. We realize that, and that's what's important. If you realize it, then you're not going to let down. We don't think we're too good [for Harvard]. People print up in these papers that we're unstoppable – that's b.s. We know that we can be beaten on any given day. During games sometimes, we've had lulls, and any team can hang with us and beat us." Barring the aforementioned letdown, though, that hardly seems likely.
(11/04/94 10:00am)
Say what you will about Princeton's super tailback, senior Keith Elias. He's rushed for a zillion yards, and scored a million touchdowns. When football teams set out to win games, though, the key man is always the quarterback. For the Tigers, that man is senior Joel Foote, and his 14-1 record as a starter means a great deal more than anyone's rushing totals. With just three games left in their careers, it is unlikely that Foote will ever escape the shadow of his more famous teammate. But while Elias gets the headlines, Foote simply gets the job done. "Keith is a real emotional, motivational leader," Foote said. "He comes out on the field and gets everyone fired up. My role is basically to keep everyone focused. I'm very comfortable with that." In fact, Foote is having a splendid season, completing 60 percent of his passes for 1,171 yards thus far. While his touchdown total of four is unimpressive at best, that is partially accounted for by Elias's scoring prowess. After all, why risk an interception when Elias can score 15 touchdowns on the ground? In any event, Foote is currently ranked 18th in Division I-AA in passing efficiency. "Having those numbers there," Foote said, "I can say I'm not just a guy who turns around and hands the ball off to Keith." Foote's most important numbers, though, are the same as Princeton's: 7-0, the longest Tiger streak to open a season since 1968. He has also given Princeton a solid shot at the Ivy League title it tied for in 1992. Winning is not a new thing for Foote. At Lancaster High in Ohio, Foote led his team to a 10-2 record and its first-ever playoff appearance. Playing in a run-and-shoot offense, he threw for over 30 touchdowns and led the state in passing yards with 2,305. While putting up those stellar numbers, Foote was recruited by a number of scholarship schools, including Minnesota of the Big Ten and, especially, Mid-American Conference schools. The Ivy League, though, appealed to him from the start. "In the Ivy League, there's no mandatory focus on football," Foote said. "That was important to me...At a scholarship school there are certain things you owe the school. In the Ivy League you can decide how much effort you want to put into academics as well as football." Ironically, Penn was one Ivy League team interested in Foote. Its efforts to win his services, though, were hampered by external factors, and Princeton eventually won out. "Penn sent someone to talk to me but they were in the middle of changing coaches at the time," Foote explained. "They actually had one guy recruit me who was fired, and by the time they got back to me, I had decided. "Princeton pursued me as much as an Ivy League school can," Foote continued. "They can't offer money, they can't offer cars. But I really liked the school and I liked what the coaches had to say." Since then it's been pretty smooth sailing. In 1990 Foote led the freshman team to a 5-1 record, and he's only gotten better. "The thing he has excelled in is his ability to be a winner," Tiger coach Steve Tosches said. "He's a big part of that senior class. They feel very confident with him. They respect his toughness as a quarterback and know he's going to make some plays." That confidence was earned last season, as Foote finished second in the Ivy League in passing efficiency behind Dartmouth star Jay Fiedler. Although inexperienced, Foote won this year's starting job before the season began. In the Tigers' third game of the year, though, Foote suffered a separated shoulder. After missing two games, he came back to start Princeton's final five contests. When all was said and done, Foote had thrown five touchdowns against just one interception and earned the praise of his coach. "I think his throwing ability was suspect early," Tosches said. "But I think he's really made some nice strides over the last couple of years. He's smart. He's ready. He's very poised. He's confident. Maybe his statistics are not nation-leading, but yet when you put it all together he's a good quarterback." This success is largely the result of hard work, Foote said, and the driving force behind this hard work is simple: "Winning." With a history to match his goal, you can't overlook Joel Foote – even if he isn't the most famous player on his team.
(10/21/94 9:00am)
The Brown football team will host Penn in its annual Homecoming game tomorrow. First-year Bear head coach Mark Whipple, however, has already come home. Whipple, a Phoenix, Ariz., native, spent his college years in Providence, leading Brown to a 13-5 record during two seasons as Bears starting quarterback. Brown finished second in the Ivy League in both 1977 and '78. Since then, the Bears have placed that high just twice. Although the decline of Brown football certainly cannot be traced to Whipple's 1979 graduation, it has been harsh. During the last six seasons, the Bears have managed just nine total wins, four of those in 1993. Despite last year's improvement, Brown athletic director David Roach, as well as many players, felt a change was needed. After the close of the season, Roach began looking for a new head man. "We all felt it was necessary," Bear co-captain Brett Atkins said. "Brown obviously wasn't doing very well. We made some improvements last year but they weren't strong enough or quick enough for the administration's tastes, and I don't think for the players' tastes either." In beginning the search, Roach did not confine himself to any specific criteria. Among the six candidates, aside from Whipple, then the head coach at Division II New Haven, were three I-A assistant coaches, including one in the celebrated Pacific-10. Three factors separated Whipple from the rest of the pack. First, Whipple was one of only two candidates with head-coaching experience. "There's a difference between someone who's been a head coach and pushed all the buttons and someone who hasn't," Roach said. "They come in with a little more confidence?.They really know what they want to do." The second key factor was Whipple's success at New Haven. In six years as the Chargers head coach and offensive coordinator, Whipple compiled a 48-17 record. His teams finished undefeated in each of the past two regular seasons and advanced as far as the national semifinals in the Division II tournament. Whipple earned a reputation as a master offensive strategist. Averaging more than 50 points and 550 total yards per game during the last two years, Whipple's Chargers were ranked in the top 20 in Division II in total offense in five of his six years at the helm. "At New Haven, we did things that nobody had ever done in the history of the game of football," Whipple said. "As time goes on, I appreciate that a little bit more. People talk now about a great innovative offense at Florida. We were doing those things every week at New Haven." The third element working in Whipple's favor was his connection to Brown. Aside from his time as quarterback, he was acquainted with Roach through his time as an assistant coach. "When I came back [to Brown] and walked around, I found it still had the same qualities that made it a great institution," Whipple said. "The commitment to the student-athlete was there, and they seemed to make it clear that they wanted to be successful in football." Meanwhile, from Roach's perspective, Whipple's Brown experience was enough to overcome the differences of the Charger and Bear programs. "He has, like most people, a lot of affection for the school he played at," Roach said. "The fact that he was a Brown graduate probably made it easier to convince someone like him who had been very successful to come here -- he'd had a lot of other opportunities over the last couple of years." Once at Brown, given free rein by Roach, the enthusiastic Whipple assembled an entire coaching staff in a matter of days. Some members of that staff, such as defensive coordinator Joe Wirth, accompanied Whipple from New Haven. Others, like recruiting coordinator and running backs coach Phil Estes, were Whipple's associates who had been at other programs. The speed with which Whipple assembled that staff gave his Bears tenure an immediate boost. "The Ivy League is highly competitive," Whipple said. "Recruiting is very important. We felt like we couldn't waste a day?.We tried to get going right away and I think because of that we got off to a good start." "We got a chance to meet with our new assistant coaches right away," Atkins said. "It's a totally different program from the smallest details, like the locker room being cleaner, to the larger details, like the more intense morning workouts during spring practice. [Whipple] definitely brought more intensity to the program." That intensity was important to Roach in considering Whipple for the job, and that intensity may have made the most important difference in the Bear program. While former Brown head coach Mickey Kwiatkowski did manage to assemble a talented group of players, he had been unable to translate that talent directly into wins. "The biggest thing about [Whipple's] coaching style is that he makes us work so hard," Atkins said. "We put so much time and energy into it now that he has raised our own expectations for ourselves and for the team." Those higher expectations have led to a dramatic improvement in the level of football. At 3-2, the Bears are hardly on top of the football world. But with a new coach, a new system and a new outlook, the Bears are certainly out of the basement.
(09/22/94 9:00am)
Dartmouth junior quarterback Ren Riley had a successful season playing freshman football back in 1992, throwing for 604 yards and four touchdowns. Then he disappeared. Riley didn't suffer a serious injury in 1993. Riley didn't study abroad. He also didn't play the usual backup's role, mopping up in blowouts and relieving an ineffective starter. That part is a bit different when the man above you on the depth chart is the most successful quarterback in Dartmouth history, Jay Fiedler. Fiedler owns most of his school's passing records, and led the Big Green to consecutive Ivy League titles. Destined for the Philadelphia Eagles, Fiedler undeniably owned the 1993 Dartmouth squad. That fact left the young Riley waiting patiently and invisibly on the sidelines. "Going into last year, I knew I wouldn't get much time," Riley said. "But to tell the truth, I thought I might play a bit more. I thought we'd have a few more games where I'd have an opportunity to play. It just didn't work out that way.?In terms of physical play, it was almost like I took a year off." Hoping for garbage time is the unfortunate existence of many a backup, but for Riley and the 1993 Big Green, there was little of it. Although Dartmouth did finish second in the Ivies, it began the season with consecutive losses and earned three of its seven victories by less than a touchdown. Still, playing understudy to a master was not entirely a negative experience for Riley. "I think playing behind Jay was a tremendous help for Ren," Dartmouth offensive coordinator Roger Hughes said. "Jay really took him under his wing. Ren would ask Jay why things happened, and why Jay did what he did, and what Jay was looking for. Also Jay was a guy a lot like Ren -- easygoing and confident but not cocky. He was very willing to help the younger quarterbacks, and he and Ren were friends off the field." Now the Big Green is Riley's alone to lead. That new role did not, however, simply fall into his lap. Riley faced a fair amount of competition for the starting job. Riley was pressed by sophomore Jon Aljancic, who threw for 762 yards and seven touchdowns on last season's junior varsity squad. In addition, transfer Jerry Singleton had thrown for more than 3,500 yards in two junior college seasons. Both Aljancic and Singleton had seen more collegiate action than Riley. "You can look at it and say I wasn't in the heat for a year, that I didn't have the game-time exposure," Riley said. "But?I came in [to preseason practice] with what I think was a little bit of an advantage. I'd been in the program and could understand the offense and what the coach wanted me to do." Indeed, Riley emerged from the preseason as the Dartmouth starter. His first action at that position, last Saturday at Colgate, produced mixed results. Although Riley did not come up a winner in his debut, his overall performance was promising. After Riley led the Big Green to a 16-0 lead, he saw that margin dissipate to a 20-16 deficit. Finally, on a fourth-down option play from the Colgate two-yard line with three minutes left, Riley slipped, sealing the Dartmouth loss. Nevertheless, Riley did complete an impressive 16 of 26 passes for 191 yards on the afternoon. "I think he played pretty well," Hughes said. "His numbers were excellent?and he made all his audible checks correctly. He was very poised and threw well under pressure." Despite the loss Riley remains confident, citing an Ivy crown as his only goal for the season. Several factors point to success for Riley. The first of these is a strong supporting cast. He is flanked by experienced targets in wide receivers David Shearer and Andre Grant, and should be able to count on tailback Pete Oberle for a solid running game. The second is an offensive system that has produced an Ivy title and a second-place finish in Big Green coach John Lyons' two seasons in Hanover. "We're running the ball better than we were last year," Riley said. "There's always the impetus to run the ball and I think that's true of every team in the country. For the most part, though, it's the same offense." Third is Riley's own combination of personal attributes. At 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, Riley possesses impressive size and a strong arm. He seems to possess the proverbial intangibles. "My strengths are my leadership qualities," Riley explained. "People respect what I'm doing. As a result, I think I can get my team to where it needs to be to win games." For his own sake, Riley must prove himself correct. The footsteps of a star, even when that star is a friend, are indeed "big shoes to fill."
(04/06/94 9:00am)
Thirty-four hits. Thirty-four players. Twenty-three strikeouts. Twenty runs. Fifteen walks. Fifteen innings. Tired yet? The Penn baseball team certainly is. Down by six runs heading into the ninth inning yesterday at West Chester, the Quakers exploded to send the game into extra innings -- many extra. Six tense frames later, with the scoreboard still stuck on 10-10, the consolation game in the Liberty Bell Classic was called due to darkness. "Where do I start?" Penn coach Bob Seddon said. "I can't begin to describe how many times this game should have been won by both teams." As Seddon suggests, both the Quakers (12-5-1) and the Rams (5-8-1) had numerous chances to win. It was Penn that jumped out to the early lead, as senior co-captain Tim Shannon drove in two runs with a single in the top of the third inning. West Chester responded quickly in the bottom of the third. With the bases loaded, left fielder Craig Sweeney hit a deep fly ball to right. Quaker junior Ray Esquieres lost the ball in the bright spring sun, scoring all three Ram runners. The third inning was neither the first nor the last time the sun played a part in the 15-inning marathon. "Right field and center field were directly in the sun through the entire game," Seddon said. "It might have been the biggest factor in the game. We couldn't see the ball off the bat." Two innings after their three-run burst, the Rams tacked on three more. Four West Chester hits sandwiched around a passed ball by Quaker backstop Rick Burt knocked Penn starting pitcher Mike Shannon out of the game. Shannon allowed a total of nine hits and six earned runs in his six innings of work, but was hurt statistically by merciless scoring decisions. "He pitched better than that," Seddon said. "Only one of his runs was earned in our minds?.That was the poorest field we've played on this year." Freshman southpaw Mike Greenwood replaced Shannon, and pitched well for two innings. After inducing the first two Ram batters of the eighth to ground out, however, Greenwood walked West Chester pitcher Mike Krautzel and allowed consecutive hits to make the score 8-4 in favor of the Rams. Following an error by Penn second baseman Derek Nemeth, West Chester second baseman Shane Kenney doubled for one of his four hits on the day. Entering the ninth inning, the Rams held an apparently safe 10-4 lead. West Chester's advantage was not safe for long, though. To begin the Quaker ninth inning, a base on balls, two hits and an error scored one Penn run and left the bases loaded. After replacing Krautzel, Ram pitcher Todd Zarzecki began his short stint by allowing a sacrifice fly to Quaker third baseman Rob Naddelman. Following Naddelman's shot, Zarzecki threw a wild pitch and gave up singles to Penn's Allen Fischer and Jeremy Milken. With the score 10-8 in favor of the Rams, West Chester ace Chuck Fritz entered the game to attempt to quell the Quaker rally. Fritz was unable to stop Penn's momentum entirely, as Burt eventually tied the game on a sacrifice fly scoring Dan McCarthy. From then on, though, Fritz pitched well, allowing three hits and three walks while striking out six over the rest of the game. "We would have handled anyone else they brought in," Seddon said. "Their relief pitchers blew the game for them. The difference in the game was Chuck Fritz." Fritz's performance was nearly equalled by that of Quaker freshman reliever Alex Hayden. Like Fritz, Hayden entered the game in the ninth inning. Like Fritz, Hayden pitched scoreless baseball until the sun set on his remarkable game. Hayden's work was complemented by that of battery-mate Burt, who caught all 15 innings and called all of the pitches through the entire game as well. At the plate, meanwhile, Tim Shannon led the way for the Quakers, going 4 for 6 in the designated hitter slot while driving in three runs, drawing a walk and stealing a base. The six extra innings were thrilling ones for both teams. Penn had baserunners in every inning but the 11th, while West Chester had runners in every frame except the 12th. Adding to the drama were a number of close plays. Quaker center fielder Tim Henwood threw out two Ram runners at the plate in extra innings, and in West Chester's 14th inning, Kenney hit a double that fell just short of a home run. The result, meanwhile, fell just short of climactic, as the 15 innings of tension were ended unceremoniously by darkness. The four hour, 15 minute game was the longest in Serpico Stadium history and the longest Penn contest in Seddon's recent memory. There will be little rest for Penn, though, following its marathon matchup. The Quakers take the field again today at 3 p.m. at Bower Field against St. Peter's. The Peacocks are just 4-9, but have played a difficult schedule and can boast of a number of quality pitchers and skilled athletes. Hopefully for Penn, St. Peter's is coming ready to play -- and ready to leave quickly.
(04/01/94 10:00am)
The Penn baseball team began its season with an 8-2 trip west over spring break. Since then, however, it is the Quakers' fortunes that have gone on break. The Quakers will be seeking to turn around their 1-3 skid this weekend. Bower Field doubleheaders against Brown and Yale, at noon today and tomorrow, will provide the opportunity. Both the Bears and Elis have struggled so far. Coming off their own spring trip, the Bears have recently faced such difficult opponents as Top 25 Kent State. Brown's difficult early schedule has come as no surprise to Bear coach Bill Almon. Although Brown's 0-8 record is disappointing, Almon has been looking to give his team valuable experience. "All the teams we played on the trip have played 30 or more games already," Almon said. "I didn't want our guys to face a bunch of easy teams. We wanted them to face teams used to competition." There have been bright spots on Brown's winless trip, among them pitcher Al Hargrave, who came through with a strong performance against Kent State. Pitcher Mike Humphreys has hit three home runs and third baseman Matt DeFusco has had an impressive start at the plate. "There were some games we could have and should have won," Almon said. "We let some slip away. I thought we would win at least a couple." In Penn, the Bears face a team that handed them two losses by a combined score of 25-0 last season. This time around, Brown will be hoping to make up for those embarrassments. "Penn beat us soundly last year," Almon said. "We're naturally looking to see the other side of that this year. Penn's a solid team and they're not going to beat themselves." Beating themselves, though, is one thing the Quakers have majored in lately. Mixed into the three losses in Penn's last four games have been a variety of problems. In two of those games, against Rider and Columbia, the Quaker bats, which started off the season hot, were ice cold. Against Rider and Delaware, meanwhile, mental errors and bullpen letdowns cost Penn two games it could have won. "I'm concerned we're beginning to let some games get away from us," Penn coach Bob Seddon said. "That was a problem last year. But there's no reason to panic yet." At the same time, facing winless Brown and 4-7 Yale, the Quakers must avoid relying on their opponents' records as indicators of what's to come. Last weekend, Penn (9-5) faced 2-11 Columbia and came away with just a split. "I think we learned when we went up to Columbia that records don't mean much when it comes to Ivy League play," Quaker second baseman Derek Nemeth said. "Just looking at records, we might think we should be fine, but we can't look at it that way." That trap could prove especially dangerous against the Elis, whose 4-7 mark is especially misleading. Yale swept the Quakers last season on its way to the Ivy League title, and this season's seven losses include four one-run games, two of which went 11 innings. In addition, Yale's spring trip was extremely tough, as the Elis faced such difficult foes as North Carolina State, East Carolina and UNC-Greensboro. "We went down and played probably the toughest schedule in Yale spring trip history," Eli coach John Stuper said. "We were very much battle-tested. Our record is disappointing, but not disheartening." Despite the poor record and a 5.44 team ERA, Yale is counting on its pitching to lead it to another Ivy League championship. Although the Elis lost four players from last year's team to the professional ranks aside from graduation attrition, Yale returns all 33 pitching victories from the 1993 squad. Tomorrow, Jason Bohannon and Adam Doherty will take the mound against Penn. Doherty is 2-1 with a 3.18 ERA, while Bohannon's 0-1 record and 8.10 ERA are expected to improve quickly in Ivy play. "Jason hasn't had an easy spring by any means," Stuper said. "But last year he was 5-1 with a 2.15 ERA, and we're looking for the same type of thing this year." On the offensive side, the Elis once again rely on speed to get things going. Center fielder Dave Feuerstein has stolen 15 bases in 19 attempts, and has been equally impressive at the plate, batting .400. Feuerstein's partner in crime is shortstop Tom Hutchison, who has 13 thefts of his own. "We faced both of those guys last year," Nemeth said. "We know who they are. We have to try to keep them off the bases, but it doesn't mean we change our game plan. We just have to be extra careful." Providing the hitting firepower for perennially strong Yale have been first baseman Bryan Hobbs and outfielder Dan Thompson. Hobbs is batting .405, Thompson .333, but each has knocked in 13 runs. Despite his team's impressive talent and mostly impressive statistics, Stuper knows he must be wary against Ivy League competition. "Penn is a team I fear," Stuper said. "Bob Seddon has been around a long time and knows what he's doing. We're the two-time defending Ivy champs. These teams are lying in wait for us." The question for Penn, then, is whether or not the Quakers will be up to that challenge. Early-season successes have turned quickly into somewhat of a slump for Penn, and the Quakers know they cannot waste a chance to turn that around. "We have to play well to beat Yale and Brown," Seddon said. "I have confidence in our team, but we have to have a good weekend. We have to do everything right to beat Yale. And although Brown's off to a bad start, they've got some talent there. We just need this to be a big weekend for us."
(04/01/94 10:00am)
The Penn baseball team began its season with an 8-2 trip west over spring break. Since then, however, it is the Quakers' fortunes that have gone on break. The Quakers will be seeking to turn around their 1-3 skid this weekend. Bower Field doubleheaders against Brown and Yale, at noon today and tomorrow, will provide the opportunity. Both the Bears and Elis have struggled so far. Coming off their own spring trip, the Bears have recently faced such difficult opponents as Top 25 Kent State. Brown's difficult early schedule has come as no surprise to Bear coach Bill Almon. Although Brown's 0-8 record is disappointing, Almon has been looking to give his team valuable experience. "All the teams we played on the trip have played 30 or more games already," Almon said. "I didn't want our guys to face a bunch of easy teams. We wanted them to face teams used to competition." There have been bright spots on Brown's winless trip, among them pitcher Al Hargrave, who came through with a strong performance against Kent State. Pitcher Mike Humphreys has hit three home runs and third baseman Matt DeFusco has had an impressive start at the plate. "There were some games we could have and should have won," Almon said. "We let some slip away. I thought we would win at least a couple." In Penn, the Bears face a team that handed them two losses by a combined score of 25-0 last season. This time around, Brown will be hoping to make up for those embarrassments. "Penn beat us soundly last year," Almon said. "We're naturally looking to see the other side of that this year. Penn's a solid team and they're not going to beat themselves." Beating themselves, though, is one thing the Quakers have majored in lately. Mixed into the three losses in Penn's last four games have been a variety of problems. In two of those games, against Rider and Columbia, the Quaker bats, which started off the season hot, were ice cold. Against Rider and Delaware, meanwhile, mental errors and bullpen letdowns cost Penn two games it could have won. "I'm concerned we're beginning to let some games get away from us," Penn coach Bob Seddon said. "That was a problem last year. But there's no reason to panic yet." At the same time, facing winless Brown and 4-7 Yale, the Quakers must avoid relying on their opponents' records as indicators of what's to come. Last weekend, Penn (9-5) faced 2-11 Columbia and came away with just a split. "I think we learned when we went up to Columbia that records don't mean much when it comes to Ivy League play," Quaker second baseman Derek Nemeth said. "Just looking at records, we might think we should be fine, but we can't look at it that way." That trap could prove especially dangerous against the Elis, whose 4-7 mark is especially misleading. Yale swept the Quakers last season on its way to the Ivy League title, and this season's seven losses include four one-run games, two of which went 11 innings. In addition, Yale's spring trip was extremely tough, as the Elis faced such difficult foes as North Carolina State, East Carolina and UNC-Greensboro. "We went down and played probably the toughest schedule in Yale spring trip history," Eli coach John Stuper said. "We were very much battle-tested. Our record is disappointing, but not disheartening." Despite the poor record and a 5.44 team ERA, Yale is counting on its pitching to lead it to another Ivy League championship. Although the Elis lost four players from last year's team to the professional ranks aside from graduation attrition, Yale returns all 33 pitching victories from the 1993 squad. Tomorrow, Jason Bohannon and Adam Doherty will take the mound against Penn. Doherty is 2-1 with a 3.18 ERA, while Bohannon's 0-1 record and 8.10 ERA are expected to improve quickly in Ivy play. "Jason hasn't had an easy spring by any means," Stuper said. "But last year he was 5-1 with a 2.15 ERA, and we're looking for the same type of thing this year." On the offensive side, the Elis once again rely on speed to get things going. Center fielder Dave Feuerstein has stolen 15 bases in 19 attempts, and has been equally impressive at the plate, batting .400. Feuerstein's partner in crime is shortstop Tom Hutchison, who has 13 thefts of his own. "We faced both of those guys last year," Nemeth said. "We know who they are. We have to try to keep them off the bases, but it doesn't mean we change our game plan. We just have to be extra careful." Providing the hitting firepower for perennially strong Yale have been first baseman Bryan Hobbs and outfielder Dan Thompson. Hobbs is batting .405, Thompson .333, but each has knocked in 13 runs. Despite his team's impressive talent and mostly impressive statistics, Stuper knows he must be wary against Ivy League competition. "Penn is a team I fear," Stuper said. "Bob Seddon has been around a long time and knows what he's doing. We're the two-time defending Ivy champs. These teams are lying in wait for us." The question for Penn, then, is whether or not the Quakers will be up to that challenge. Early-season successes have turned quickly into somewhat of a slump for Penn, and the Quakers know they cannot waste a chance to turn that around. "We have to play well to beat Yale and Brown," Seddon said. "I have confidence in our team, but we have to have a good weekend. We have to do everything right to beat Yale. And although Brown's off to a bad start, they've got some talent there. We just need this to be a big weekend for us."
(03/23/94 10:00am)
The Penn baseball team achieved a split decision of sorts yesterday, continuing one trend while ending another. Unfortunately for the Quakers, both developments were negative. On one hand, Penn's 9-4 defeat by Rider (5-3) at Bower Field was another chapter in a string of Quaker losses to the Broncs. Last season, for instance, Rider topped Penn by a handy 10-0 margin. At the same time, this particular loss is especially galling. The Quakers (8-3) had put together a remarkable seven-game winning streak, featuring an average of more than 10 runs scored per game. Penn had also received outstanding pitching efforts of late, as Quaker hurlers had allowed just four runs in the preceding three games. All that success came crashing to a halt yesterday, as Penn played poorly in any number of ways. First and foremost, the Quakers simply did not pound the ball the way they had been. Penn began yesterday's game batting .365 as a team, and that stellar average was accompanied by an equally impressive .510 team slugging percentage. The starting lineup that faced the Broncs included six players batting .300 or better. In Rider starter Anthony Rawa, the Quakers were facing a pitcher with an ERA hovering slightly more than 2.00. Rawa and reliever Michael D'Andrea, who improved to 2-0 with the win, shut down Penn all day, allowing just five base hits. The combined performance of Rawa and D'Andrea was all the more impressive considering the lack of support they received from the Rider defense. Although the game ended on a well-executed double play, the Broncs' three earlier errors led to all four Penn runs. "We haven't played good defense since we started the season," Rider coach Sonny Pittaro said. "That was one area I thought would be a strength for us. We got the great play to end the game, but we've got to make the routine plays." Even as the Quaker bats were dependent on Rider miscues, the Penn defense was hardly faring better. Although all nine Broncs runs were earned, Penn mental lapses contributed significantly to the Rider offensive outburst. In the seventh inning, for instance, Bronc shortstop Joe Doto laid down an apparent sacrifice bunt with no outs and men on first and second. In the ensuing confusion between Quaker freshman pitcher Alex Hayden, whose loss brought his record to 1-1, and sophomore catcher Joe Piacenti, neither fielded the ball. Rider's seventh inning, however, was nothing compared to its eighth. Right fielder Kevin Lazarski led off the inning with a home run, evening the score at 4-4. From there, amazingly enough, things still went downhill for Hayden and his Quaker teammates. With two outs and Bronc center fielder Phil Ledesma (0 for 3) on first base, Quaker junior first baseman Allen Fischer committed his first error of the season, allowing Ledesma to take second base. Hayden followed that up with a four-pitch walk to Rider second baseman Brian Farrell to put runners on first and second. At that point, Penn's trouble had still just begun. Doto (2 for 5, one RBI, one run) then laced a sinking line drive to right field, and Quaker senior Tim Shannon (1 for 1, two BB) failed to make his attempted diving catch, giving Rider a 5-4 lead and leaving runners on first and third. When Hayden hit pinch hitter Jason Koehler to load the bases, Penn coach Bob Seddon had finally seen enough. In came Quaker freshman reliever A.B. Fischer to stop the bleeding. Fischer, though, only poured salt on the wound. Before throwing a single pitch, Fischer balked home yet another Bronc run. Three pitches later, Rider left fielder Mark Gola (3 for 5, one HR, four RBI, one run) hit a three-run home run to complete the scoring which led to the Quaker loss. "They only got nine hits, but out of the nine they got nine runs," Seddon said following the game. "That's a lot of runs with nine hits. The home run ball hurt us, and we hurt ourselves by not making a few plays.?The inning would have been over. It's just the little things that hurt us." The Penn miscues Seddon alluded to came in all shapes and sizes, but a common theme held them together. In virtually every instance, the Quaker errors were of the mental variety. A number of distractions may have contributed to that shaky mental state. Penn sophomore second baseman Derek Nemeth, for example, missed the game due to an exam he had yesterday. Quaker junior starting pitcher Ed Haughey, meanwhile, left the game in the fourth inning with a split nail. "It didn't seem like we were too psyched up for the game," Penn catcher Joe Piacenti said. "We had class today, a couple of us had exams. We didn't exactly get down here in time and get ready before the game. Before the game we were definitely a little lackluster." In addition, a logistical change limiting Penn's pre-game warmup time may also have affected the Quakers, who were playing just their second home game of the season. "We didn't come out to play today," Fischer said. "We all showed up late.?If you don't come ready to play, you're not going to beat by any team. Today we just weren't in it."
(03/02/94 10:00am)
Penn looks to capture title and NCAA berth Penn and Princeton have together won 23 of the last 25 Ivy League men's basketball championships. Tonight the Quakers will attempt to keep that dominance alive as they try to wrap up their second consecutive league title against -- who else? -- the Tigers. The Penn-Princeton rivalry has traditionally been one of the most hotly contested in the country. This year is no different, and the No. 25 Quakers (21-2, 11-0 Ivy League) and Tigers (16-7, 9-2) will battle it out tonight at 7 p.m. at the Palestra (WOGL 1210-AM, WXPN 88.5-FM). Penn's shot to clinch the Ancient Eight crown is not lost on its New Jersey counterparts. "That's in the back of our minds," Princeton freshman guard Sydney Johnson said. "An upset like this would add so much to our season?and it's a chance to redeem ourselves for the last contest." The outcome of that first Quaker-Tiger matchup this season was not to the Tigers' liking. Penn captured that game 66-55, a key step on the road to its current national ranking. Johnson, an Ivy Rookie of the Year candidate, was the one Princeton player to step up with a strong performance back on January 29, pouring in 17 points against the Quakers. This time around, Johnson can expect a much stiffer test from Penn's defense. "Whether Matt [Maloney] or Jerome [Allen] is guarding him, we're going to pressure him all over the floor," junior guard Scott Kegler said. "We're going to make him handle the ball and try to wear him down." Should Penn succeed in containing Johnson, the Tigers can turn to a number of others for output in their slow-moving, ball-control offense. Senior forward Chris Mooney, for example, leads Princeton with 11.8 points per game. But the Tigers' biggest offensive threat of late is Rick Hielscher. After winning Ivy Rookie of the Year honors in the 1991-92 campaign, the junior center struggled through the next season and a half. In the past several weeks, however, Hielscher has come on with a vengeance. Coming off two consecutive Ivy Player of the Week awards, Hielscher tops Princeton at 15.6 points per Ivy contest. "Rick Hielscher's probably the only guy who could say why he's more confident with his game now," Quaker coach Fran Dunphy said. "But the fact remains that he is, and we've got a tough job ahead of us." The man called upon to stop Hielscher will be Penn junior center Eric Moore. In the earlier matchup, Moore held his Tiger counterpart to a singularly-unimpressive zero points and one rebound. Although aware of Hielscher's recent surge, Moore is not overly worried. "It's not really a particular concern of mine," Moore said. "I just go out and play my same game. Obviously he's been playing better and that's good for [Princeton], but we'll see how well he plays against us." At the same time, Tiger coach Pete Carril is not necessarily expecting dominance from his unpredictable pivotman. "Rick's going to have to play a sound defensive game and a sound offensive game," Carril said. "He needs to react well to the pressure he's going to get from Penn and from the crowd." The crowd, as Carril suggests, may be another factor tonight. Much is made of home-court advantage in the Ivy League, and no arena is better suited to that role than a packed Palestra. With the 8,700 tickets long gone, the Quakers' homecourt will certainly fit that billing. And as last year's 64-46 Penn victory at the Palestra demonstrated, Penn fans love nothing more than a big win over Princeton. "It's very hard to win at the Palestra," Carril said. "I've always said through the years that the Penn fans are the best in the league.?They love their basketball." Carril and his Tigers may be facing Penn at just the wrong time. The aforementioned Quaker fans were treated to some of Penn's steadiest basketball of the season last weekend, as Penn crushed Yale and Brown by a combined 52 points. After the previous Saturday's harrowing one-point victory over Harvard, the Yale and Brown results left the Quakers significantly more confident. "We played pretty well this weekend," junior forward Shawn Trice said. "I think we're playing as a unit again. The frustration is gone from the Harvard game." Despite the relatively easy victories, Penn's weekend was not entirely without difficult moments. One scare came in Saturday's Brown game, when senior forward Barry Pierce hit the floor hard and left the game after a visit from the trainer. Pierce's injury was not significant, and he is expected to play his final game in a Quaker uniform at full strength. Pierce, along with fellow forward Andy Baratta, will be honored at Senior Night before the game. "I think you would have to hit Barry with a sledgehammer to keep him out of this game," Dunphy said. Aside from the Ivy championship and intraschool rivalry implications of tonight's game, Pierce and his Quaker teammates may have a few other trends in mind. Penn is aiming for its 27th Ivy League victory in a row, and at the same time hoping to prove itself worthy of its newly-earned AP Top 25 status. A win tonight would also assure the Quakers of another berth in the NCAA tournament -- one of their most important goals this season. At the same time, by clinching its spot as early as possible, Penn would be the first team in the nation to do so. Dunphy, though, in his usual manner, is quick to downplay the importance of such an accomplishment. "There's no extra motivation needed against Princeton," Dunphy said. "It's not even something we talk a great deal about with the team. They know what the deal is. They know Princeton is their number one foe right now." Just getting into the tournament is something Dunphy will not have to worry about at all, should the Quakers come through against their traditional rivals tonight.
(02/23/94 10:00am)
Last November, Penn men's basketball fans were treated to their first glimpses of this year's Quaker team at Midnight Madness and at the annual Red and Blue Game. The usual standouts were all on hand, and the freshmen got an opportunity to show off their skills. Perhaps the most impressive performer in those early showings, however, won't be donning a Penn uniform at all this season -- at least not in a game. For Providence transfer Ira Bowman, the Quakers' 1993-94 campaign is one of patient waiting. According to the NCAA rules regarding transfers, Bowman must sit out the current season. He may not travel with them to away games or even sit on the bench at home. But Bowman does practice with the rest of the team, and he tries to view his time in officially-imposed limbo as an opportunity rather than a burden. "Sitting out is hardest mentally," Bowman said. "This is my first year in eight or 10 years that I haven't played games. It's hard not having that competition, but I look at it as an opportunity to get better." Bowman's situation is markedly different than that of teammate Matt Maloney two years ago. At that time, after transferring from Vanderbilt, Maloney spent a year at Camden Community College. Maloney's year off made his transition more difficult than it might have been. Bowman, on the other hand, could make next year's adjustment easier. "Playing with [the team] every day is good for me," Bowman said. "The first couple of weeks next season I won't have to waste getting to know everybody." If there has been any wasted time in Bowman's basketball life, it may have been at Providence. His experience there was up and down at best. But in high school, everything had pointed to a successful collegiate career wherever Bowman went. After leading Seton Hall Prep to a 31-1 record and a spot in the New Jersey state finals during his senior year, and finishing as the school's second all-time leading scorer, Bowman considered a number of top-notch basketball schools. These included current national powers Massachusetts and Connecticut, as well as traditionally strong programs at Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Maryland, Virginia and Stanford. Bowman's decision was not made entirely without the input of influential figures in his life. One of those was Ed Sweeney, a fixture in the Newark basketball community. Sweeney made a habit out of helping to steer the city's young basketball talent out of the troubled public schools and into establishments like Bowman's own Seton Hall Prep. When Sweeney's son ended up at Seton Hall Prep, he was befriended by, among others, Walter Morton. Morton, in turn, was a friend of Bowman's, and it was through Morton that Sweeney and Bowman became acquainted. Sweeney was immediately impressed with Bowman's modest determination, and saw an opportunity to lend a steadying hand. "Ira's not a fighter, not an arguer," Sweeney said. "But he's a quiet kid and a brilliant kid.?I liked him and I tried to help him when it was necessary to have an adult male in his life or someone to talk to." Sweeney, for one, was less than thrilled when Bowman's interest turned northeast toward Rhode Island. "I didn't want Ira to go to Providence," Sweeney said. "I would have preferred to see him go to a better academic situation. But he still had that dream of playing in the pros and the Big East, and wasn't receptive to going to the Ivy League and being a star." Aside from the potential for recognition, Bowman was impressed with Providence's style of play and coaching staff, headed by Rick Barnes. Ironically enough, in his two years as a Friar, it was that same coaching staff Bowman had his problems with. Bowman's Providence career actually started off fairly well. He was an immediate starter during his freshman year, playing 30 minutes or more in many games. The seeds of later troubles, though, were already planted. Those early-season starts were at point guard, a position in which Bowman, a shooting guard and small forward, was unaccustomed. After voicing his concerns, Bowman saw decreased playing time. Despite his rocky freshman year, Bowman still looked forward to a successful sophomore campaign. "I came back with high expectations," Bowman said. "I started off pretty well, but after moving around from position to position I just kind of got lost in the shuffle." With an injury to his shoulder adding to the pressure of unfulfilled expectations, Bowman's sophomore season quickly became even rockier. He played in just 15 games last year, averaging 3.1 points in 9.1 minutes per contest. It was in the middle of that troubled season that Bowman began to seriously consider transferring. By the end of the year, the tense atmosphere surrounding the Friars had made up his mind. "There were a lot of things that weren't necessary going on as far as tension and built-up emotions on the team," Bowman said. "In a situation where you can start any five out of 12 players, and it's tooth and nail at practice, things are bound to heat up. It really works on your nerves and on your mental state." With Bowman's mind and heart set on transferring, Sweeney once again offered his guidance. This time around, Sweeney was able to convince Bowman of the benefits of an Ivy League education. Sweeney soon began calling Ivy League coaches to test their receptiveness to the prospect of coaching Bowman. Penn coach Fran Dunphy was the most interested of the lot, and Bowman was equally enthused. "I saw this was a program on the rise?and I felt like I could really fit in here," Bowman said. "I felt I could bring some things to the table that other players might not. I thought this was somewhere I could play without looking over my shoulder, and just play." Dunphy's interest, meanwhile, was solidified after Bowman paid a visit to West Philadelphia. "After meeting Ira and talking with people at Providence about the kind of person he was, I was excited about it," Dunphy said. "He's a terrific kid, aside from the fact that he's a very good athlete and looks like he's going to be a good player here." Accepted into Wharton, Bowman has found a different academic environment from Providence. So far, he remains undaunted. "The work isn't that much harder than at Providence, but the load is heavier," said Bowman, a strategic management major. "Here I really have to bear down on the books to keep up. But that's something I wanted. When I graduate, I want to be rewarded for the work I put in. I didn't want to go to a school where I could cakewalk and not get anything out of it." Only after this year of academic and basketball adjustment will Bowman be a full-fledged Quaker. When that time rolls around, Bowman may find himself picking up at least some of the slack for the departed Barry Pierce, Penn's current captain. With their 6-foot-4 frames and swingman abilities, Pierce and Bowman clearly come from similar molds. Although Bowman seems a natural for Pierce's small forward spot, he knows it will not simply fall into his lap. "I think I can step in there," the diplomatic Bowman said. "But in no way am I trying to cut out [junior guard] Scott Kegler. He's been here for three years. I'm not just going to step in. There's a spot open, but it's a spot that's going to have to be earned." After his troubles at Providence, it seems likely Bowman has had his share of trying to fit into preconceived roles. There, Bowman was hindered by the inconsistent thinking of his coaches as well as his own visions of success. Likewise, Dunphy is wary of the dangers of trying to live up to expectations. At the same time, his assessment of Bowman's prospects is positive. "I'm certainly not ready to anoint Ira at [the small forward] position," Dunphy said. "That's not what we're looking for. When next year comes, everybody will be battling for playing time again." "Any time somebody new comes in, you're trying to feel your way around and find where they're best suited," Dunphy continued. "It's not the easiest thing in the world to do, but Ira has done well with it." Unfortunately for Dunphy, Bowman and Quaker fans, to find out just how well Bowman has made that adjustment, everyone involved will have to wait until next year. But for Bowman himself, after a pair of disappointing seasons at Providence and a year away from the competitive side of the court, just playing at Penn may prove to be a step up.
(02/18/94 10:00am)
Quakers put 7-0 mark on the line The perfect 7-0 Ivy League record of the Penn men's basketball team stands out sharp as black and white. This weekend the Quakers will add a little color to the dreary winter months, travelling to New England to take on the Big Green of Dartmouth tonight (6 p.m., WOGL 1210-AM) and the Crimson of Harvard tomorrow (7 p.m., WSSJ 1310-AM, WCZN 1590-AM, WXPN 88.5-FM). Judged simply by their records, neither of these two squads appears to pose much of a threat to the Penn steamroller. The Big Green (7-13, 3-5 Ivy League) got off to a horrendous start, winning just one of its first 13 games. The Crimson (8-12, 4-4), meanwhile, had similar troubles, beginning the season with an unimpressive 5-9 mark. Since their poor starts, both Dartmouth and Harvard have picked up the pace considerably, playing some of their best basketball of the year over the past few weeks. In that time, the Big Green has won six games in seven while the Crimson has emerged victorious in three of its last four Ivy contests. The Quakers faced both of these teams earlier in the season, drubbing Dartmouth and Harvard by a combined 36 points in early January. But the combination of entering the road games as a heavy favorite, and facing a team that has seen all its tricks, could work to Penn's disadvantage. "Every time you play a league game the second time around they're ready for you," Quaker junior guard Matt Maloney said. "They know the personnel better, and the coaches do a pretty good job of scouting the systems anyway. The players know our instincts better, and I think they're just going to come out and play. It's their home court and they don't want to lose. They realize that in order for them to win in the league, we have to lose." Tonight, Penn will face off against Dartmouth, whose strengths lie in shooting and spreading the floor for back-door opportunities. The Big Green's return to respectability after its atrocious early performance has been keyed in large part by two players. Senior forward Gregg Frame, for one, is second in the league in scoring, second in assists and eighth in rebounding. Frame's performance is no surprise after three successful seasons, and the rock-solid Big Green captain has taken on the leadership role for the young team as well. "That kid Gregg Frame is as good a player all-around as there is in our league," Quaker coach Fran Dunphy said. "He really presses Jerome [Allen], Matt [Maloney] and Barry [Pierce] for all the attention they get." More surprising is the effort turned in by freshman forward Sea Lonergan thus far. Lonergan has chipped in 11.6 points per game on 52.6 percent shooting from the floor. That figure is good enough for second in the league. Tomorrow night the Quakers (17-2, 7-0) will be lucky enough to pay a visit to the only player ahead of Lonergan in field-goal percentage, Kyle Snowden, at the Briggs Athletic Center. Snowden, like Lonergan, is a freshman forward and has scored 11.2 points per game for the Crimson. In addition, his 7.4 rebounds per game places him third in the league. Harvard coach Frank Sullivan has been pleasantly surprised by Snowden's outstanding campaign. "I think when it comes to freshmen, you're always a little bit cautious about having high expectations for them," Sullivan said. "I think there's a freshman each year who kind of emerges -- that's Kyle this year. I think it was Tim Krug last year. He came on and had a terrific freshman year. I think our expectations for Kyle were that he would be a contributor. I don't think we expected that he would be one of our most significant players." Fortunately for the Quakers, Snowden's playing status is currently day to day. After suffering a severe ankle sprain Thursday in practice, he sat out last weekend's games against Cornell and Columbia, which the Crimson split. Fortunately for Harvard, however, freshman forward Chris Grancio picked up the slack in Snowden's absence. Grancio scored 27 points and grabbed eight rebounds in last weekend's games. Aside from the dynamic freshmen duo, the Crimson is guided by sophomore forward Darren Rankin, the team's leading scorer, and senior point guard Tarik Campbell. Campbell, Harvard's captain, has scored 7.0 points per game despite playing with a severely strained ligament in his shooting hand. His quickness and playmaking ability, though, give opposing defenses fits. Campbell is leading the Ivy League with 6.5 assists per game and is closing in on the Crimson career assist record. Some of Harvard's troubles this season have stemmed from poor shooting, as the Crimson has managed to hit on less than 40 percent of its shots in Ivy League games. However, that flaw has been largely offset by outstanding rebounding. In one stretch, Harvard outplayed its opponents on the boards in 14 of 19 games. Clearly, both the Crimson and the Big Green have their strengths. Still, they face a Penn squad that has played especially well of late. Last weekend, the Quakers played what might have been two of their most balanced games of the season. Penn rolled past Brown and Yale, putting together solid all-around efforts in both games. The Quakers were led against the Bears and the Elis by a rejuvenated Jerome Allen. Apparently fully recovered from his strained right shoulder, Allen poured in 47 points in the two games. The play of Maloney, Allen's backcourt mate, also showed encouraging signs for the Quakers. Maloney has provided steady play throughout the season, but his shooting, especially from three-point land, has left something to be desired. Last weekend Maloney may have turned a corner, connecting on 6 of 11 treys. Three-point shooting, though, is not Maloney's primary concern. "My shot's always been steady throughout my career," Maloney said. "It really is just a tiny part of my game. I really concentrate on other things on the floor, like getting assists and creating shots for other players on the team?.Shooting the ball is just something I happen to do well. I can't really put all my eggs in that basket. Anyone can not shoot the ball well for a length of time, so I just pride myself on doing other things well." But with or without hot shooting from Maloney, the Quakers have still been able to beat every Ivy foe by a double-digit margin. However, on the road in the Ivy League, with back-to-back contests, upsets are prone to happen. "It's a long trip, but we've been there before," Dunphy said. "These players know what it's about so they know how to prepare themselves for it. There certainly won't be any surprises."
(02/08/94 10:00am)
Quakers rout Bulls at Alumni Arena BUFFALO, N.Y. -- At the end of an up-and-down first half, the Penn men's basketball team led the Buffalo Bulls 35-27 last Monday night at Alumni Arena. Then a heat wave struck frigid upstate New York in the form of a Quaker burst to open the second stanza. Penn scored the first 21 points of the half and rolled the rest of the way to a 77-52 blowout. Penn (15-2) was led by a somewhat unusual cast of scoring leaders, paced by junior forward Shawn Trice's 14 points. Junior forward Eric Moore chipped in 13 points on the strength of 5-of-6 shooting, while junior guard Scott Kegler added 12, hitting on 4 of 5 three-pointers. Senior forward Barry Pierce also notched double digits with 10 points. To go along with Trice's team-leading scoring effort, he also tied a career-high with 12 rebounds, including five on the offensive end. But the story of the game was not to be found in simple statistics. Instead, it was one of the best halves of basketball the Quakers have played this season. Had everything gone as the first several minutes of the game suggested, that half might have been the first. After six minutes and 35 seconds, the score stood at 12-0 in favor of Penn. For the rest of the first period though, the Bulls (5-16) outscored Penn by a 27-23 count, led by ultra-quick 5-11 point guard Modie Cox. Turning virtually every Quaker miscue into a fast-break opportunity, Cox repeatedly sliced through the Penn defense for easy baskets. He scored 13 points before intermission, including nine of Buffalo's 11 over one four-minute stretch. Cox finished the game with 19 points, as well as nine rebounds and four assists. "The first half was tough," Pierce said. "We didn't get back on defense well enough. I think we played into their hands by playing man-to-man because their little guard could play make, control the tempo and dish off." A switch to zone defense to open the second half was just what the doctor ordered. After shooting well in the first half, Buffalo made just 8 of 39 shots in the second. "Our zone defense really bothered them," Pierce said. "They weren't getting shots they wanted and they couldn't run it down our throats like they did in the first half." At the same time, Penn's offense was also shifting to a higher gear. The Quakers began to execute smoothly and their shots began to fall. Before long, Penn was the proud owner of a 32-point lead. "Our defense is pretty solid every game," Moore said. "When we run our offense well, everything takes care of itself." With the game bordering on a rout, Quaker substitutes began pouring into the lineup. Even without the first-stringers, Penn was able to increase its lead. The widest margin of the game came at 75-38 after a Bill Guthrie layup with 4:11 remaining, and the Penn bench played the rest of the way. "The second half was the best we played all weekend," Trice said. "We talked about getting the other guys in because they hadn't played all weekend. Our bodies are tired after all the games, so it was good to get a big lead." Even more of a story than the backups is star junior guard Jerome Allen's playing time, which has been decidedly less of late. Suffering from a strained right shoulder, Allen saw limited action in Saturday's game against Cornell. Last night, Allen watched Scott Kegler take his starting role for the second straight game. Allen played 23 minutes to Kegler's 20, but did not appear to be at his best, finishing with just three points. "I'm just happy to play at all," Allen said. "I'm not too sure about how much coach [Fran] Dunphy's going to use me?.I came out in the first half trying to show that I can play even with my shoulder, instead of just coming out and doing the things I can do." Even without the services of a completely healthy Allen, the Quakers were nearly unstoppable in the second half. Indeed, after an Ivy weekend that was surprisingly difficult, it appeared that the Quakers took out their frustrations on the hapless Bulls, although Pierce disagrees. "When teams come into the Palestra they're going to come after us hard," Pierce said. "You're not really going to see a 20- to 30-point blowout by us in the Ivy League this year." Fortunately for the Quakers, they are more than happy to get that blowout on the road -- in this case, Buffalo.
(02/03/94 10:00am)
When a basketball team is 5-11 overall and 0-4 in its conference, it's generally hard to find any bright spots. But for the Cornell men, despite the aforementioned miserable record, one player clearly stands out -- senior center Justin Treadwell. Treadwell, one of the Big Red tri-captains, is currently leading the Ivy League in both scoring and rebounding. At 17.0 points and 8.4 boards per contest, Treadwell has provided virtually all of hapless Cornell's highlights. His performance, though, has not been entirely by design. "He has no choice," Big Red coach Al Walker said. "We have nobody else who can score. When he scores, we're good. When he doesn't score, we stink." Walker may actually be overstating Cornell's reliance on its pivotman. Senior forward Zeke Marshall, one of Treadwell's fellow captains, and sophomore guard Brandt Schuckman have both made significant contributions. But after last season's all-Ivy second team selection, Marshall's game seems to have fallen off somewhat. The relatively young Schuckman is not in a position to fill the role of team leader. Those factors, along with the transfer to Vanderbilt of 1992-93 Ivy Rookie of the Year Pax Whitehead, have placed the mantle of team leadership squarely on the broad shoulders of 6-7, 215-pound Knoxville, Tenn., native Treadwell. This burden has caught him somewhat by surprise, although he is enthusiastic about the role. "It's a young team, and there's not a lot of offensive firepower," Treadwell said. "I thought coming in that I'd score more than last year, but I certainly didn't expect to lead the team." "I would hope people see me as a leader," Treadwell continued. "I'm not much of a 'rah rah' type, trying to get everyone pumped up. I just try to lead on the floor." At that Treadwell has excelled, despite missing the first four games of the season with a broken hand. Since then, time on the bench has been rare as Treadwell has been called upon for an average of 32 minutes per game. "The problem we have is that Justin has to play too many minutes," Walker said. "That is our concern. We need somebody coming off the bench to spell Justin so he can play defense as well as have the opportunity to score points." The increased expectations for Treadwell's scoring have, in turn, allowed him to show off a new facet of his game. After last season, Treadwell had made a career total of one three-point shot in 12 attempts -- a horrendous 8.3-percent success rate from beyond the arc. Since then though, Treadwell has incorporated the long-distance jumper into his regular shooting routines. The improvement has been remarkable, as Treadwell has made 15 of his 44 attempts this season. Those numbers place him third on the team in successful three-pointers, while his .344 percentage is second on the Big Red. In addition, his marksmanship has fit into the team's transition game nicely. "I'm usually the person who gets the rebounds and gets the ball out, and then the last person coming down on the fast break," Treadwell said. "We like to kick it back out to the top of the key, so I'm definitely looking for that shot more." Treadwell's rebounding, on the other hand, is nothing new. Last season, he finished third in the league with 7.4 rebounds per game, and, like many top boardmen, Treadwell derives a great deal of satisfaction from his work. "You can't shoot the ball well every night," Treadwell said. "But it seems like if I don't get a good number of rebounds then maybe I'm not playing hard.?Part of my game is that I try to be consistent. I take a good bit of pride in that." That consistency is evidenced by the fact that Treadwell leads the league in rebounding despite leading his team in only four games. And for Treadwell, those steadily outstanding numbers seem to be in large part attributable to hard work and intensity, at least according to his former Cornell coach. "For the two years I coached Justin, he had without a doubt the best work ethic on the team," current Vanderbilt coach Jan van Breda Kolff said. "Before practice, when most players were casually shooting or talking, he would be on the side by himself working on his game." At the same time, consistency does not preclude greatness. On January 8 at Hofstra, for example, Treadwell had what might be termed a career game. In that contest, the Biggest Red of all scored a career-high 27 points and pulled down a career-high 20 boards. "I was really feeling it from the outside," Treadwell said. "They were playing a zone and I was hitting all my jump shots.?All the rebounds were coming my way also. I was really surprised when I got a look at the stat sheet after the game. I couldn't believe it." That game was a 16-point victory for Cornell, but unfortunately for Treadwell and his Big Red teammates, wins have been all too rare this season. Cornell's poor showing has been particularly difficult for Treadwell in light of his tremendous efforts. As the best player on what has been a bad team, incentive is hard to come by. "It's really depressing," Treadwell said. "I would definitely give up all my scoring if we could just get more wins.?It's really tough to keep working hard and plugging away at it when we just keep losing." In his Cornell career, though, Treadwell has had his share of basketball frustration. During his freshman season, under coach Mike Dement, Treadwell did not see much playing time as he adjusted to being smaller than he was in high school as compared to the other players on the court. The next year, meanwhile, was a difficult one for the entire Big Red squad, as van Breda Kolff took over the coaching spot. But for Treadwell, his sophomore season brought anything but a slump. And then last season provided Treadwell with his all-too-brief taste of team success, as Cornell surprisingly took third place in the Ivy League with a 16-10 record. This year, however, has been a struggle, despite Treadwell's personal brilliance. With his team on the ropes, though, Treadwell has kept "plugging away." He has provided both scoring and rebounding, as well as leadership, to a team that desperately needs all of the above?and then some.
(01/27/94 10:00am)
ESPN announcer Dick Vitale calls him "the Professor." Princeton men's basketball senior captain Chris Mooney calls him "super-intense." Penn coach Fran Dunphy says "he thinks the game like no one else in coaching." What, then, does oft-praised Princeton coach Pete Carril have to say about himself? "I miss a lot of things, but I always try to improve." That's it? "I miss a lot of things." Apparently Carril knows something the rest of the basketball-speaking world doesn't, because as far as everyone else goes, he's a veritable coaching legend. And after 41 years coaching, 26 of them with the Tigers, he's earned it. Carril's career reads like a virtual Hall of Fame plaque. Twelve Ivy League titles?12 post-season appearances, including an NIT championship in 1975?only one losing record in those 26 years at Princeton, and no losing Ivy League records?nine 20-win seasons?the only coach in the 24 years of Jadwin Gymnasium's existence? The list goes on, and so does Carril. In fact, even without the 469 career victories, the sheer length of his career would speak for itself. Carril seems to agree. "I've been coaching for 41 years," he says, "so I guess one of my strengths is to last a long time." "A long time" ago Carril graduated from Lafayette College and earned a master's degree in educational administration from Lehigh. Then, after successful high school coaching stints in Reading and Easton, Carril moved into the head coaching job with Lehigh. After guiding the Engineers to an 11-12 record in 1966-67, his only year at Lehigh, Carril moved on to the Tiger head coaching post. In a rather ominous development for Princeton's Ancient Eight rivals, Carril led the Tigers to a 20-6 record and a conference championship his very first year. Not much has changed, at least from Princeton's perspective. "Not too many guys do what he has done," Dunphy said. "With that much success, you generally see guys moving to bigger and better positions for more money or whatever. It's a wonderful thing, and I'm sure Princeton is grateful for his perseverance." Perseverance isn't the whole story, though. Carril's success has given him ample opportunity to move on to brighter lights and more famous basketball programs. At the same time, though, he has been attracted by the relative purity of Ivy League athletics. "I don't like what goes on on the other side of the fence," Carril said. "There's a lot of crooked stuff." In return for his extended service, Carril has received the admiration of his players as well as that of the college basketball establishment. "Everybody knows who he is, and he's a legend," Mooney said. "It's an attractive thing to get to play for him, especially now, since he's probably in the latter part of his career." However, Carril himself, who envisions coaching for no more than four more seasons, cares little for attention. "Everybody likes recognition, but it's meaningless really," Carril said. "It doesn't do anything good. Recognition and praise are the cheapest forms of reward?.It's one of the things that comes from longevity. You get your gray hair, you start to lose your hair, and all of the sudden you become a professor-type." Obviously, though, the source of the universal respect Carril has earned is not simply 41 years of devotion, or even his thinning pate. Known as a perfectionist, Carril has devised an equally well-known system that has served him and his teams well. That system is based on constant motion, precise passing and sharp cuts both to the basket and away from it. But even more than the discipline of their offense, it is the Tigers' intense defense that gives opponents fits. As a testament to that prowess, Princeton has led the nation in scoring defense 11 of the past 18 years. "You have to prepare for [Carril] more than you prepare for other teams," Dunphy said. "[The system] is so different and so unique to him." Carril, though, is quick to downplay the more unusual aspects of his coaching philosophy. "We move the ball around. We try to get good shots. We try to play like a team," Carril said. "That, in general, is what everybody else tries to do?.I think it's a little overrated myself. It's not quite as different as people make it out to be." Unique or not, the play of Carril's student-athletes was at its finest between 1988-89 and 1991-92. Over that span, the Tigers won four consecutive Ivy League championships. In the NCAA tournament, Princeton gave four national powerhouses stern tests. Although the Tigers lost all four games, they were outscored by a total of just 15 points. For an Ivy League team, which is suppose to be the whipping boy in the tournament, those numbers are certainly impressive. Or are they? "It wasn't success at all," Carril lamented. "The same thing happened to Penn last year. They had UMass by the proverbials. We had Arkansas. We had Georgetown. We had Villanova. "It's getting tougher and tougher for Ivy League teams. It's like the Buffalo Bills -- it's nice to get there, but you don't feel so good if you don't win once in a while." Dunphy, the coach who "had UMass by the proverbials," completely understands Carril's frustration. "[Carril is] as much a competitor as anybody you've ever met," Dunphy said. "I don't think anybody in this profession wants to come close. Winning is what you're in it for." Perhaps what's left out of that analysis, however, is that as much as anyone else in the country, as much as any of the four coaches who topped Carril in those close contests, Carril has proven that he can win. And he has -- hundreds of times in an astonishing 41-year career.
(11/04/93 10:00am)
Say what you will about Princeton's super tailback, senior Keith Elias. He's rushed for a zillion yards, and scored a million touchdowns. When football teams set out to win games, though, the key man is always the quarterback. For the Tigers, that man is senior Joel Foote, and his 14-1 record as a starter means a great deal more than anyone's rushing totals. With just three games left in their careers, it is unlikely that Foote will ever escape the shadow of his more famous teammate. But while Elias gets the headlines, Foote simply gets the job done. "Keith is a real emotional, motivational leader," Foote said. "He comes out on the field and gets everyone fired up. My role is basically to keep everyone focused. I'm very comfortable with that." In fact, Foote is having a splendid season, completing 60 percent of his passes for 1,171 yards thus far. While his touchdown total of four is unimpressive at best, that is partially accounted for by Elias's scoring prowess. After all, why risk an interception when Elias can score 15 touchdowns on the ground? In any event, Foote is currently ranked 18th in Division I-AA in passing efficiency. "Having those numbers there," Foote said, "I can say I'm not just a guy who turns around and hands the ball off to Keith." Foote's most important numbers, though, are the same as Princeton's: 7-0, the longest Tiger streak to open a season since 1968. He has also given Princeton a solid shot at the Ivy League title it tied for in 1992. Winning is not a new thing for Foote. At Lancaster High in Ohio, Foote led his team to a 10-2 record and its first-ever playoff appearance. Playing in a run-and-shoot offense, he threw for over 30 touchdowns and led the state in passing yards with 2,305. While putting up those stellar numbers, Foote was recruited by a number of scholarship schools, including Minnesota of the Big Ten and, especially, Mid-American Conference schools. The Ivy League, though, appealed to him from the start. "In the Ivy League, there's no mandatory focus on football," Foote said. "That was important to me...At a scholarship school there are certain things you owe the school. In the Ivy League you can decide how much effort you want to put into academics as well as football." Ironically, Penn was one Ivy League team interested in Foote. Its efforts to win his services, though, were hampered by external factors, and Princeton eventually won out. "Penn sent someone to talk to me but they were in the middle of changing coaches at the time," Foote explained. "They actually had one guy recruit me who was fired, and by the time they got back to me, I had decided. "Princeton pursued me as much as an Ivy League school can," Foote continued. "They can't offer money, they can't offer cars. But I really liked the school and I liked what the coaches had to say." Since then it's been pretty smooth sailing. In 1990 Foote led the freshman team to a 5-1 record, and he's only gotten better. "The thing he has excelled in is his ability to be a winner," Tiger coach Steve Tosches said. "He's a big part of that senior class. They feel very confident with him. They respect his toughness as a quarterback and know he's going to make some plays." That confidence was earned last season, as Foote finished second in the Ivy League in passing efficiency behind Dartmouth star Jay Fiedler. Although inexperienced, Foote won this year's starting job before the season began. In the Tigers' third game of the year, though, Foote suffered a separated shoulder. After missing two games, he came back to start Princeton's final five contests. When all was said and done, Foote had thrown five touchdowns against just one interception and earned the praise of his coach. "I think his throwing ability was suspect early," Tosches said. "But I think he's really made some nice strides over the last couple of years. He's smart. He's ready. He's very poised. He's confident. Maybe his statistics are not nation-leading, but yet when you put it all together he's a good quarterback." This success is largely the result of hard work, Foote said, and the driving force behind this hard work is simple: "Winning." With a history to match his goal, you can't overlook Joel Foote – even if he isn't the most famous player on his team.
(09/22/93 9:00am)
Now that the football season is finally under way, it seems only natural that we pause to reflect on the spectacle that is Ivy League football. It is a spectacle full of grief and horror and missed kicks and phallic references and wimpy quarterbacks, but, most of all, missed kicks. Certainly we here at Ivy Roundup are fortunate. Entering the weekend, who would have thought that our beloved Quakers would have the audacity to break the backs of Las Vegas bookmakers? So what if Jay Fiedler's National Football League aspirations have been crushed into nothingness by a ferocious Red and Blue defense? How much would it really matter if the real reason for Fiedler's Saturday troubles were to somehow be revealed? Ask us here at Roundup if we know just what happened to Mr. NFL Prospect, and we would surely be too clever to reveal that Dartmouth's quarterback was actually a Jay Fiedler impostor? Much as it saddens us to admit it, Daily Pennsylvanian Sports Editor Dan "I take it back – no really, I take it back" Feldman was apparently not the only victim of the recent rash of alien kidnappings. Shocking, yes, but also true. Given a second chance, then, might the anti-Fiedler not perform better against Penn? This question and others have preyed on our collective minds since Saturday's action took us collectively aback. Well, as former Brown quarterback Bill Pienias might have said at some point in his life (maybe?), "How low can you go?" The Big Red entered Saturday's game at Princeton with a fine history of placekickers. Well, an adequate history. Well, to get a handle on this puzzling issue, we asked Cornell Daily Sun Sports Editor Spencer Patterson what he thought. "We've never really had good field goal kickers," Spencer replied. "We always just assumed it was an Ivy League thing not to be able to kick the ball." Wrong-o, Spencer baby. One word – Nick Lowery. Yes, its true, the 93-year old Kansas City Chiefs Hall-of-Famer-to-be once booted the proverbial pigskin for our Fiedler-worshipping, liberal-bashing, cellar-dwelling neighbors in chilly New Hampshire, the 0-1 (0-1 Ivy League!) Dartmouth Big Green. Last year Cornell relied on the sure-footed leg (sure-footed leg?) of Mike Cochrane. Cochrane was no Lowery (for that matter, Cochrane was no Bjorn Nittmo – then again, who is?), but he sure beat a sharp stick in the eye, nailing 19 field goals in 31 attempts and 33 out of 38 extra-point tries for his career. "We never thought we'd miss him," Patterson lamented, "but we do." So do we Spencer, so do we. Not. But back to the story at hand... The Big Red scored two first-quarter touchdowns at Princeton on Saturday. So, naturally, the score was 14-0, right? Survey says...yeah, right. Freshman John Rodin "was pretty brutal out there" according to Patterson, and his lame attempt at kicking an extra point (does the phrase 'juuuuust a bit outside' ring a bell?) apparently frightened Cornell coach Jim Hofher away from letting Rodin try again. Instead the Big Red went for the two-pointer after their second touchdown, and were turned away. Then, with Cornell trailing 14-12 (hmmm...where could the Big Red possibly have picked up two more points along the way?), Rodin had a chance to redeem himself. Apparently thinking he was sending in a French sculptor to do his kicking, Hofher called on Rodin (that's pronounced looo-zuhr, not row-dan) again in the second half. Bad idea, coach. Rodin missed again, leaving the kicking chores to his eminently competent (snort) backup, junior Mike Ober. Ober knocked down the easy 23-yarder, and Cornell rode off into the sunset with an upset victory...oh, wait, we must be thinking of some parallel dimension. Ober was way off on his chip shot, and the Big Red's loss was all but secured. As might be expected, Saturday's events leave Cornell's kicking game in disarray. The third placekicker on the Big Red roster is junior Tim McDermott, who handles the oh-so-numerous Cornell kickoffs. For some reason, though, Hofher seems reluctant to use McDermott on field goals. "I guess he really has no accuracy," Patterson said. "That's the only thing we can think of." Accuracy, field goal kicking...accuracy, field goal kicking. Where's the connection? Perhaps McDermott was simply worn out by his duties as backup punter. For the time being, then, the Big Red are "kicking by committee," according to our man at the Daily Sun. The problem is, have you ever seen a committee try to kick? Trust us – it's a mess. Brown quarterback Gordie Myers played his first varsity game on Saturday. Brown quarterback Gordie Myers started his first varsity game on Saturday. Brown quarterback Gordie Myers may have stayed out a wee bit too late on Friday. Through three quarters of the Bears' game against the mighty Yale Elis, Myers was certainly no less than barely mediocre. The sophomore completed seven of 15 passes for 84 yards and rushed 14 times for 49 yards to boot. The Myers magic was a shot under the fingernail (hey, that hurts!) for Brown, and the Bears jumped out to a 3-3 tie. "Myers was exciting," Brown Daily Herald Sports Editor Bill Friedman said. "This guy, when he's a senior, will be something to watch." And so will John Rodin, no doubt. The events of the fourth quarter, in fact, cast aspersions on Myers' ability to reach even that lofty goal. Early in the final period Myers was leading a Bear drive into Eli territory when he gazed across the trenches and espied an unfamiliar Yale defensive formation. Dazed, confused and, rumor has it, exhausted by his late-night foray into Providence's seedy underbelly (is Providence even a real city?), Myers staggered to the sidelines for a moment's rest and a friendly chat with Brown coach Mickey "defense is my middle name – no, wait, I'm thinking of Buddy Ryan" Kwiatkowski. Confessing his fatigue to Kwiatkowski, Myers withdrew himself from the running for "Ivy Ironman of the Week," which eventually went to Cornell's McDermott. Some may suggest that Myers was just plain tired, and not really a sissy at all. Others might feel that he was stroking the ego of Bear backup Trevor Yankoff, and not really a sissy at all. Still others might not really care about Brown football – after all, they stink. Extensive Roundup research, though, has revealed that Myers is, in fact, a sissy. For further evidence of this, we examined his performance while he was still on the field. Perhaps the most telling piece of information came from Friedman, a known Myers supporter. "He never seems to get affected by the rush because he's so confident in his ability to run," Friedman said, apparently in an attempt to praise his favorite (teddy) Bear. "He's really comfortable in the pocket, and then he'll feel the pressure and just take off and run." What else would you expect? So in came (so to speak) Yankoff in relief of Myers. On just his second series, Yankoff managed to do what Myers could not – place the ball where it counts. In the end zone, that is. Yankoff approached the season as the only Brown quarterback to have any varsity experience at all anywhere ever in any way, having played in one game in 1992. In a fierce preseason battle of titans, though, he lost the starting job to Myers. As befits a Bear team that won a grand total of null set games last season, rumor has it that this struggle was highlighted not by any sort of actual football-related anything, but instead by a practice-field scuffle precipitated by Myers selfless sideline cheer of "Go Yankoff." Yankoff apparently misinterpreted Myers's remark, and responded with the suggestion that Myers's hair was not in fact his own (see accompanying photo). Whoever does get the major minutes for the Bears is likely to endure a rough season, as Brown funds its football program on the same level as it does its "Beat Penn in the U.S. News and World Report Rankings Club." Friedman, once again, has said it best: "They're no Jay Fiedlers, but this is football. This isn't our sport." So what is Brown's sport? You can bet we at Roundup will have our crack reporters out all night in search of the answer to that question.
(09/17/93 9:00am)
What Bagnoli did do was bring in new offensive and defensive coordinators and instill a change in the attitude of the Quaker squad. Bagnoli's efforts led to an unexpected 7-3 season and a third-place finish in the Ivy League. Now Bagnoli and his team will have to face the pressure of trying to repeat their 1992 performance against their usual Ivy foes and some new faces from the Patriot League. What follows is an in-depth look at Penn's opponents for the 1993 season: '92 Scoring average: 35.0 points per game '92 Opposition scoring: 20.6 ppg Returning starters: 13 Returning all-Ivy players: 4 Series record: Tied 29-29-2 · Overview: Dartmouth has either won the Ivy League football crown outright or shared the title in the last three years. With all-everything quarterback Jay Fiedler returning for his final season, the Big Green are definitely a favorite to capture the title once again. Head coach John Lyons, a 1974 Penn graduate, enters his second season with one of the best-ever quarterbacks in the Ivy League and a strong returning defense. If Fiedler stays healthy, look to Dartmouth to take the title. Offense: Fiedler is Dartmouth's only proven offensive weapon. Last season, Fiedler was the nation's top-rated quarterback in Division I-A and I-AA with an efficiency rating of 169.35. He racked up 2,748 yards and threw for 25 touchdowns. However, this season may be tougher for Fiedler due to the graduation of five top receivers, including first team all-Ivy selection Matt Brzica. Fiedler and Brzica connected on 53 receptions for 965 yards and eight touchdowns. Juniors Andre Grant and David Shearer along with senior John Hyland should be doing the bulk of the receiving for the Big Green. Dartmouth will also suffer from the loss of its top rusher, Greg Hoffmeister. Gone also is the fullback tandem of Russ Torres and Neal Martin. Taking the handoffs in 1993 will be senior fullback Chris Umscheid and Colorado State transfer Pete Oberle at tailback. Dartmouth's offensive line will be strong again in 1993. Gone will be all-Ivy first team right tackle Lance Brakee, but three starters return up front. Anchoring the offensive line will be 6-6, 275-pound senior tackle Andy MacDonald and senior center Nat Cook. Defense: Eight starters return for Dartmouth's defense, which allowed 317.1 yards per Ivy contest last season. Leading the way will be unanimous all-Ivy first-teamer linebacker George Neos, who notched 55 tackles and 12 sacks in 1992. The Big Green returns three of four starters in the secondary, including Jason Fell and Jim McGeehan. Dartmouth will be looking to lower its points allowed per Ivy game in 1993. Last season, it placed fourth with 22.2 ppg. '92 Scoring average: 18.3 ppg '92 Opposition scoring: 28.9 ppg Returning starters: 11 Series record: Penn leads 19-3 · Overview: Bucknell posted a weak record in the Patriot League last season, capturing only a single win in five contests. The Bison fared better out of conference and defeated both Brown and Columbia. Head coach Lou Maranzana may see things improve this year due to the comeback of quarterback and punter Travis Kopp. Kopp missed the last four games of the season with a broken ankle, but has lead the team to a 1-1 record so far in 1993. However, Bucknell's progress might be hampered by the departure of its four top rushers and its top receiver from 1992. Three starting offensive linemen are also gone. The linebacking duo of Dan Zappa and Russ Strohecker returns after a phenomenal season, but the Bison will be hurting due to the loss of three starting defensive linemen. Offense: Kopp was 92 for 140 while racking up 1067 yards and 11 touchdowns in only seven games last season. If he picks up where he left off, defenses across the Patriot League will have their hands full. Gone will be receiver Whitey Berardinelli who caught 42 passes for 735 yards and three touchdowns last season. But senior Damon Garner, who caught 19 passes in 1992, will return. Senior wide receiver Brad Bernardini should also be a factor on offense. Bucknell will have a big hole to fill in the backfield due to the departure of tailback Matt Walsh. Walsh ran for 839 yards last year and also performed the kick return duties. Filling the void will be freshman Rich Lemon and sophomore Darren Bloch. The Bison will also try to fill the shoes of two departing offensive lineman. Eric Rutter and Jeff Hart, both 6-4, 273 pounds, were all-Patriot League in their final season. Todd Hazlet will switch from defensive line to offensive to help replace the missing graduates. Defense: In order for Bucknell's defense to be effective, the linebacker pair of Zappa and Strohecker must repeat its brilliant performance of the 1992 season. They combined for 213 tackles, 7 sacks and 4 interceptions. The defensive line will be a weak spot for the Bison this season as they graduated three starters. John Lusk, Janne Kilpelainen, and Ted Malin combined for 94 tackles and 9 sacks last year. Senior tackle Cecil Boone, who collected 44 tackles last season, and junior Andy DeFalco, will try to help fill out the line. Bucknell's secondary will be led by senior free safety Todd Jessup and sophomore cornerback Mark Miller. Junior John Caldwell should stand out on the special teams unit, which allowed only 8.3 yards per return last season. Kopp, who averaged 36.7 yards per punt in 1992, will handle the punting duties for the squad again this season. '92 Scoring average: 14.7 ppg '92 Opposition scoring: 24.2 ppg Returning starters: 12 Series record: Penn leads 1-0 · Overview: Fordham shared the Patriot League cellar with Bucknell last season, but Fordham lost all of its out-of-conference games and posted a measly 1-9 overall record. The Rams look to be equally weak in 1993, considering they return only one starting running back and no returning wide receivers. Penn was victorious in last year's contest, the first meeting ever between the two schools, by the score of 13-10. Across the ball, Fordham seems stronger. The Rams field returning starters on the defensive line, at linebacker, and at defensive back. Last season, coach Larry Glueck hoped to make an impact on the Patriot League, but was able to notch only one win. With the loss of talent due to graduation, 1993 does not seem to promise much more for the Rams. Offense: Junior John Pohlman beat out two sophomores in spring practice, and will lead Fordham at quarterback. In his last five games last season, Pohlman went 62 of 151 for 641 yards and five touchdowns. If he slips at the beginning of 1993, look to see the sophomores vying for minutes. Returning in the backfield is the Rams' number one rusher from last season, junior tailback Chris Ross. Three-year starter fullback Tony Iasiello's presence will sorely be missed. Senior Adam Lang will replace Iasiello and sophomore Randy Zingo should see valuable time. The job for wide receiver will be wide open as Fordham will have to fill the void of the departure of the greatest receiving tandem in school history, Tom Garlick and John Potamousis. Inexperienced seniors Shawn Harris and Randy McKee will be called on to carry the brunt of the passing game. Defense: If Fordham is going to win any games in 1993, it will have to play excellent defense. The defensive line was realigned in the offseason. Returning starter Jason Jacobs will move to left end and will team up with Aaron Torgler to form a strong defensive end pair. In the secondary, the Rams return only one starting defensive back in Mike Wilt (33 tackles, 3 interceptions). The current linebackers will have a tough act to follow in 1993. The graduation of all-American Mark Blazejewski leaves a huge hole in the middle. Two other starters are gone and seniors Ryan Reinert and Aaron Daugherty will be called on to patch up the gaps. Sophomore placekicker Bob Hagan returns to his starting job, but Fordham must find a replacement for two-year punter Steve Muzzonigro. Senior Chris Savino or sophomore Peter Wilkinson should garner the honor. '92 Scoring average: 18.1 ppg '92 Opposition scoring: 26.1 ppg Returning starters: 10 Series record: Penn leads 3-2-1 · Overview: Coach Ed Sweeney has a real challenge ahead of him in his first season at the helm of the Red Raiders. Last season Colgate went 4-7 and this year it faces its toughest schedule in many years, including contests with Rutgers, Army, and Navy. Sweeney's previous coaching experience came at Dickinson College, a Division III program in Carlisle, Pa. His squad got off to a slow start, posting losing records in his first two years of rebuilding, but in his last six seasons at Dickinson, the Red Devils responded and Sweeney compiled a 51-8-3 record. Colgate is hoping Sweeney's magic will rub off on the Red Raiders. Improvements are likely to be seen over the long haul, but Colgate will probably suffer another losing season in 1993. Offense: With last year's starting quarterback Jim Russell graduating, Colgate begins the 1993 season with little varsity experience at this key position. Last year's backup, Chris Lane, gets the starting nod and looks to lead the Red Raiders' potent offense. Two-time first team all-Patriot running back Bill Sparacio is back for his third starting season at tailback. In 1992, he rushed for 820 yards and 11 touchdowns on 180 carries in only nine games. The Red Raiders have plenty of depth in the backfield, including junior Dana Farland and senior Jim Herrera. Farland's 1993 highlights included a 101-yard performance against Holy Cross. A big plus for Colgate is that five of last year's top six pass-catchers are back. Junior Tom Nash and sophomore J.J. Hope should see the majority of the action. Senior Barry Paquet and junior Glen Eisenberg will also push for time. The Red Raiders are losing both tight ends from last year. There is no stand-out at this position, but Jon O'Flynn had an impressive spring. Due to the departure of center Carlos Mollinedo and both starting guards, there is a huge hole where the offensive line used to stand. Seniors Eric Lachance and Ted Chmielewski are going to be counted on to plug the leaks upfront. Defense: Colgate's defensive unit will have a new look under coach Sweeney this year, as it switches from a 4-3 to a 4-4 front. Three of last year's starting front four on the defensive line have graduated, but sophomore Joe Kaszteejna and seniors John Soi and Matt Watts are ready to contribute. Inexperience is also a problem at defensive end. Joe Virgillo, Don Gunther, and Greg McNiff will be counted on to pressure the opposition. Graduation again takes it toll, this time on the Red Raiders' linebacking corps. Colgate loses its leading two tacklers from 1992, Kevin Scheffler and T.J. Donahue. Senior tri-captain and sophomore Brian Gianci will fill two spots but depth is lacking. On the other hand, the secondary is an experienced unit led by senior safety Ryan Cook. Two sophomores, Geno Monteiro and Todd Crowley, will see much action. '92 Scoring average: 20.5 ppg '92 Opposition scoring: 28.6 ppg Returning starters: 14 Returning all-Ivy players: 1 Series record: Penn leads 53-18-1 · Overview: Last season was the first time Columbia notched three wins since 1978. The Lions were 2-5 in Ivy competition and garnered their only other win against Fordham. Will coach Ray Tellier's squad be able to duplicate this feat for only the second time in 15 years? The good news for Columbia is senior Chad Andrzejewski is back to at the quarterback spot. The bad news is two-way phenom Des Werthman has been lost to graduation. Andrzejewski will have to post big numbers in 1993 if Columbia hopes to stay out of the Ivy cellar. The Lions will also have to improve on last year's dismal defensive performance if they hope to compete with preseason favorites Dartmouth and Princeton. In 1992, Columbia ranked seventh in the Ivies in scoring defense and dead last in passing yards allowed. Offense: Andrzejewski lead the Ivy League last season with 186 completed passes and 346 attempts. The athletic quarterback also racked up 1,897 yards and nine touchdowns. Werthman, Columbia's leading scorer with 11 touchdowns and five PATs, will be sorely missed. Gone also is leading receiver Mike Sardo, who hauled in 60 passes for 571 yards and four touchdowns. Columbia's rushing game is a glaring weakness. Starting fullback and leading rusher Joe Klosek is back, but he only gained 274 rushing yards in 10 games last season. Sophomore tailbacks Marcellus Wiley and Greg Evans advance to the varsity level and should see significant action. Four starters return for the Lion's sturdy offensive line. Junior guard Steve Miller and junior tackle Rich Weindel are the best of the lot. Junior punter Brian Bassett is back and junior Joe Aldrich will handle the placekicking duties. Defense: The departure of Werthman at linebacker leaves a gigantic hole in the middle of the Lions' defense. He had 449 career tackles, including 158 in 1992. Werthman also had three interceptions for 91 yards as a senior. Many new faces will be seen in Columbia's linebacker corps as senior Rick Brenders is the only returning player at this important position. Brenders was second behind Werthman with 82 tackles last season. The secondary seems pretty solid with three starters returning, including Mark Calveric. Senior free safety Joe Hill (3 interceptions) and senior cornerback Tim Hawkes (80 tackles) will try to shape up the Lions' weak pass coverage. All-Ivy first teamer Sean Nichols will shine on the defensive line in 1993. Nichols led the team with seven sacks and 14 tackles for a loss. Returning senior starter Adam Yeloushan will give needed experience to the line at defensive tackle. '92 Scoring average: 15.8 '92 Opposition scoring: 30.3 Returning starters: 16 Returning all-Ivy players: 1 Series: Penn leads 46-13-2 · Overview: Bear head coach Mickey Kwiatkowski came to Brown after a successful nine-year run at Hofstra, highlighted by a 35-9 record over his last four years with the Flying Dutchmen. Since then, however, Kwiatkowski's fortunes have soured significantly, as he has averaged just one win per year in his three seasons in Providence. Last year was truly a low point for Kwiatkowski, as his Bears managed a singularly unimpressive zero wins. Ouch. Brown's worst loss, in fact, came at the hands of the Quakers, as Penn handed the Bears a 38-0 home-field embarrassment. Offense: The big strength of Brown's attack this year will be the offensive line, and big is the operative word. Four starters return, and the quartet averages 275 pounds per man. Senior co-captain Walton Smith, an all-Ivy second teamer, leads the way at guard, and only the center position is up for grabs. As with the center slot, the status of the quarterback position is likely to be up in the air. Junior Trevor Yankoff is the only returning quarterback to have taken a snap for the Bears, but last season's freshman MVP, Gordie Myers, seems to be the leading candidate for the job. Myers played just six quarters for Brown's freshman squad, but in that time he passed for two touchdowns and ran for three others, as well as rushing for 214 yards while averaging 9.7 yards per carry. Both running back and receiver spots are deep but relatively inexperienced for the Bears, as leading rusher Brett Brown and leading receiver Nate Taylor are gone. In the backfield, juniors Dan Foreman and Kevin Sharkey totalled just 22 carries for 121 yards in 1992, and fullback Marquis Jesse will be the only freshman in the league at a starting position tomorrow. Receivers Brennan Nakane and Charlie Buckley, also juniors, are preseason all-Ivy selections. Defense: Kwiatkowski hopes that new defensive coordinator Jim Fleming, who comes to Brown from Boise State, will awaken the long-comatose Bear defense. Last season Brown finished last in the Ivy League in rushing yards, total yards and points allowed. The Bears' strong point defensively is in the secondary, where all four starters return from a unit that was brilliant compared to the rest of the Brown defense. Fleet-footed juniors Karl Lozanne and Eugene Smith anchor the Bears' defensive backfield. Brown lost three starters between the defensive line and linebacking corps, though, and both squads struggled last season. Senior co-captain Todd Hunter will spearhead the newly aggressive Brown linebackers and junior defensive end Shawn Birken should provide another bright spot on the traditionally gloomy side of the Bears' game. '92 Scoring average: 16.1 '92 Opposition scoring: 20.9 Returning starters: 7 Returning all-Ivy players: 1 Series: Yale leads 40-19-1 · Overview: Under 28-year head coach Carm Cozza, the Elis have finished below .500 just eight times. Six of those times, Yale has bounced back to post a winning mark the next season. This year that may be too much to ask of the Elis, who finished 4-6 in 1992. Yale returns just seven starters from a team that lost to Penn by a 13-10 count and tied Columbia for sixth in the league last year. Offense: In 1992 then-junior tailback Keith Price provided the spark for the Elis, rushing for 1,141 yards and also lead Yale with 16 receptions for 151 yards. Price was named to the all-Ivy second team, and the Elis had counted on his return and his leadership on the offensive side of the ball. But Price recently underwent surgery for a knee injury incurred in a preseason scrimmage against Union and is out for the season. That leaves senior David Dixon as Yale's most experienced running back, a frightening prospect for the Elis considering Dixon's 1992 totals of 23 carries for 71 yards. The situation on the outside, meanwhile, is only slightly better. Senior Dave Iwan and junior Dave Feuerstein, Yale's top returning receivers, totalled 17 catches for 300 yards between them last season. Considering Cozza's run-oriented I-Bone attack, those numbers are unlikely to improve significantly. At quarterback, senior Steve Mills and junior Chris Hetherington will vie for playing time. Mills started for much of 1992, while Hetherington proved to be the more talented athlete. Hetherington rushed for 200 yards on 60 carries, and was second to Price in both categories. Defense: The Eli line was hit hard by the loss of all three starters to graduation, including two all-Ivy performers. Fortunately, three Yale seniors have seen significant action, led by tackle John Lykouretzos, who tied for the team lead in sacks last season with three. Linebacker will probably be the Elis' strong suit. The two returning starters, junior Carl Ricci and senior John Saunders, placed first and second on the team in tackles in 1992 with 103 and 95, respectively. The secondary is an unknown entity. Junior Dan Mellish, who registered 56 tackles and intercepted a pass last year, is the only returning starter. Seniors John Patterson and Randy Burford, though, may give the squad a much-needed lift, though, as both missed all or part of 1992. '92 Scoring average: 26.4 '92 Opposition scoring: 16.5 Returning starters: 12 Returning all-Ivy players: 4 Series: Princeton leads, 59-24-1 · Overview: Last season's Tigers headed into their season-ending showdown with Dartmouth alone atop the Ivy League standings. A 34-20 defeat on their home field, though, left Princeton in a disappointing tie for the title. That loss may provide them with added incentive for 1993, and the return of several outstanding players at key positions gives the Tigers cause for optimism. Offense: One word -- backfield. Senior fullback Peter Bailey earned Honorable Mention all-Ivy status last season, rushing for 295 yards and two touchdowns while placing second on the Tigers with 16 receptions for 133 yards. If those numbers sound a bit low for an all-Ivy performer, keep in mind that Bailey was blocking for senior Keith Elias, and all Elias did was lead all of Division I-AA in rushing. Tiger co-captain Elias set Princeton records with 1,575 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns last season, as well as racking up 299 yards on the ground against Lafayette. Those stats came despite missing almost an entire game due to an ankle injury, and for his efforts Elias was named a first-team all-American. Entering 1992, senior quarterback Joel Foote had never taken a varsity snap. He won the job, though, and should benefit from his newfound job security. Foote performed well last season, completing over 56 percent of his passes while throwing for just one interception as opposed to five touchdowns. Both the offensive line and receivers are major areas of concern for 1993. Among those eight positions, just two starters return. Those two players, seniors Chris Cyterski and Scott Miller, form the left side of the Tiger line. Defense: The line looks to be Princeton's defensive key, especially on the inside. Senior tackles Reggie Harris and Jim Renna were named to the all-Ivy first team and honorable mention rolls, respectively, and tallied 16 sacks between them. Joining them on the outside will be senior Matt McInerney, who added another seven sacks. That impressive trio is likely to be further improved by the return of senior end Brian Kazan. Much was expected of Kazan going into the 1992 season, but he missed the entire year with a knee injury. Both the linebackers and defensive backfield may be trouble spots for the Tigers, as just three starters return between the two. In the secondary, junior cornerback Jonathan Reid and senior free safety Brian Mangene are coming off impressive 1992 campaigns. '92 Scoring average: 16.7 '92 Opposition scoring: 24.0 Returning starters: 9 Returning all-Ivy players: 2 Series: Harvard leads 38-23-2 · Overview: Coach Joe Restic enters his final season with the Crimson after 22 years in Cambridge. While Restic would no doubt like to go out with a bang, that will be difficult considering he returns just nine starters from a team that managed just three wins a year ago. Offense: Senior quarterback Mike Giardi, an all-Ivy second-teamer, remains stuck behind Dartmouth's Jay Fiedler in his quest for recognition. Giardi passed for 1,271 yards last season while rushing for eight touchdowns. Giardi's impressive running skills, though, were virtually cancelled out by an extremely inexperienced offensive line. That shouldn't be Harvard's problem this year, though, as four starting linemen return, led by a second team all-Ivy tackle, senior Jason Slavik. Unfortunately, the Crimson can boast of returning neither a starting back or receiver. Both positions appear to be extremely weak, as does the kicking game. Senior Mark Hall nailed just four of 12 field goal attempts in 1992. Defense: On the other side of the line of scrimmage, the picture is not much brighter. In the secondary, senior cornerback James Ellis provides a rare bright spot. Ellis registered 58 tackles and two interceptions last year. The only other returning starter for the defense is senior captain Brian Ramer, who totalled 59 tackles and four sacks in 1992. Ramer is likely to be joined on the linebacking crew by senior Joe McClellan. On the line, senior Dehdan Miller and junior Ed Kinney both saw time in the starting lineup last season. McClellan tallied 31 tackles while Kinney made four sacks, and both are likely to start at the defensive end positions. '92 Scoring average: 26.3 '92 Opposition scoring: 18.3 Returning starters: 11 Returning all-Ivy players: 2 Series: Penn leads, 55-39-5 · Overview: Cornell has won more Ivy League games over the past seven years than any other team. Last season, the Big Red lost their opener to Princeton, then proceeded to go on a seven-win tear highlighted by a 26-16 victory over Dartmouth, the Big Green's only Ivy loss. Any championship aspirations that a seven-game winning streak may have fostered, though, were wiped out by season-ending losses to Columbia and Penn. Two returning stars key Cornell's hopes for 1993. Offense: Senior quarterback Bill Lazor lights the way for the Big Red attack. Honorable mention all-Ivy League last season, Lazor threw for 2,206 yards and 15 touchdowns with just four interceptions while setting 17 school records. This year, though, Lazor will have to make do without the 1992 team MVP, running back Scott Oliaro, and the second-leading receiver in Cornell history, Mike Jamin. In the backfield, senior Pete Fitzpatrick will attempt to take Oliaro's place. In 1992, Fitzpatrick was second on the Big Red with 70 rushes for 303 yards including a 105-yard performance in his only start. At the wide receiver spot, meanwhile, returning starter Ron Mateo caught 17 passes for 225 yards and four touchdowns a year ago. Mateo was also given an honorable mention in the Ivy Sophomore of the Year competition. The offensive line is in decent shape despite the loss of all-Ivy center Troy Thompson. Senior guard Rich George started every game last season, and senior Pat Paquette and junior Mike McKean both started games at tackle. Defense: Cornell returns the interior of a defense that ranked 16th nationally in opposition scoring. Middle linebacker Chris Zingo may be the best Ivy Leaguer west of New Hampshire. In 1992 Zingo topped his own school record with 179 tackles and added eight sacks to boot. He was rewarded with a unanimous election to the all-Ivy first team and a second-team spot on the all-East team. Zingo should break the Big Red career record for tackles (349) in the season opener at Princeton. Joining Zingo at the linebacker position is junior John Vitullo. Vitullo did it all for Cornell defensively in 1992, recording 84 tackles, a sack and an interception. At strong safety, senior Ryan Blattenberger tallied 55 tackles last season. Senior cornerback Terry Golden and junior safety Garrett Gardi will help Blattenberger in the defensive backfield. On the line, meanwhile, senior Dick Emmet and junior David Woods both saw time in the starting lineup last year.
(09/16/93 9:00am)
Last season, six Quaker wide receivers totalled just 58 catches for 650 yards. Tight end Cache Miller, by contrast, led Penn with 375 yards on 36 receptions. Unfortunately for the Quakers, Miller is gone now, and that disparity seems likely to disappear as well. Several factors point to a more successful year to come for Quaker wideouts. Upperclassmen enjoy the benefits of a full year in the system taught by coach Al Bagnoli and offensive coordinator Chuck Priore. This increased comfort level should allow the receivers to react to situations rather than being preoccupied with trying to remember where they should be during a given play. "Last year we had to put so much in in three weeks," Priore said. "You don't learn Calculus in three weeks and you don't learn physics in three weeks, but these kids were basically learning a semester's worth of stuff in three weeks. As the season went on we got better, but we never got as good as we needed to be. Coming into this year I think the kids feel more comfortable." The returning wide receivers are led by fifth-year senior Chris Brassell, who caught 16 passes for 224 yards in 1992. Brassell will be joined in the starting lineup by sophomore Miles Macik. Macik showed impressive potential as last year's Football Club Freshman Award winner for offense. He led the last freshman squad ever with 20 receptions for 373 yards. "[Macik] has the ability to be an impact player at this level," wide receivers coach Joe Tricario said. "He's got great size, great athletic ability, good speed and a fair amount of agility for a kid his size." Just behind Brassell and Macik on the depth chart are seniors Bill Cobb and Jared Delancey. Cobb was fourth on the team in both catches and yards last season, while Delancey saw significant playing time as well. Those four are joined by freshman Mark Fabish, who "will be a factor this year" according to Tricario. "[Fabish] has really been playing well," Brassell said. "He's come on strong even as a freshman, and he has a very good knowledge of the game. Even though he's lacking in experience, he's picking up the system really well." The depth added by Macik and Fabish will go hand-in-hand with a more wide-open passing game. In 1992, the ground-oriented offense spearheaded by running back Sundiata Rush was accompanied by a mostly conservative passing attack. Without Rush's grinding style leading the way, though, the Penn offense is likely to be more aggressive, both in play-calling and in the formations used. "We're still a play-action team," Tricario said. "But we've done some different things in the drop-back game. We're looking to throw the ball down the field a little bit more and open things up. We feel we've got at least three wide receivers who are good, and we're going to put them on the field." If the Quaker passing game is to get stronger, than so must senior quarterback Jim McGeehan's arm. And stronger it is, at least according to Brassell, who worked out with McGeehan throughout the summer. "It was obvious as the summer progressed that [McGeehan] was definitely getting stronger," Brassell said. "I'm much more confident in him getting us the ball, so now it's just a matter of us getting open." All this is not to say that the tight end position will necessarily suffer. Miller, an all-Ivy first teamer, will clearly be missed, but senior Ben Holman and sophomore Matt Tonelli are ready to take his spot, if not fill his shoes. "Holman is coming back with some experience," Priore said. "That allows us to do some different things with him because he's been on the field. He's a consistent player, he can catch the ball and he's a good run blocker. "[Tonelli]'s a real good athlete who can also catch the ball," Priore continued. "You put those two together and that's a nice combination. A lot of programs don't have two kids of that caliber." For the Quaker receiving corps, then, the key word is confidence. Depth and talent, combined with a stronger quarterback and a new emphasis on the passing game all point to a solid season ahead. "[The] confidence is well-founded," Tricario said. "Jimmy's got a good understanding of the offense, the receivers know the packages...and to this point I think they've got reason to be encouraged."
