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(02/28/94 10:00am)
He set the tone for the weekend during the first possession Friday against Yale. The Quakers worked in their offense, and senior captain Barry Pierce missed a bank -- he came down with the offensive board. Penn had another opportunity. Junior center Eric Moore put up a shot and missed, but there he was again with the offensive boards. Although the Quakers did not score on that first possession, the tone for the weekend was already etched in stone. After the Elis took an early 2-0 lead, the Quakers pushed the ball up the court. Moore let a shot fly from behind the three-point arc and missed. This time, Shawn Trice grabbed the offensive board and put it back himself. "He's been rebounding the ball very well," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "I'm very happy for him. He's been playing very well. He's stepping up and showing what kind of player he can be." Trice may not be as heralded as the three prime-time perimeter Quakers, Pierce and junior guards Matt Maloney and Jerome Allen, but he is quickly gaining fame. Against Dartmouth last weekend, he ripped down a team season-high 17 rebounds. And this weekend, he grabbed 20 boards while also pouring in 27 points, both team highs. Although he may not have received public acclaim for his efforts in the past, Trice may finally be gaining similar fame to these other Quakers, for he became the first Penn player to gain a nickname on ESPN Friday night as Shawn "Not once, not twice, but" Trice. But regardless of any accruing popularity, the junior forward still credits the more famous Quakers for his success. "Jerome, Matt and Barry -- [the defenses] are picking up on them," he said. "That's giving me a lot of room to work and an opportunity to score." But this is not the whole story. Trice created his own scoring opportunities time and time again by crashing the offensive boards. In fact, Trice scored 13 points on putbacks when his fellow Quakers missed shots. And most of the other baskets came when Trice muscled in a basket or nailed jumpers over the outstretched arms of his defenders. The Elis stayed close in the beginning of the contest, but then Trice singlehandedly extended the Penn lead from eight to 13 in less than a minute. Trice drew a foul on Bernie Colson and made both free throws. Trice muscled a shot in the paint. Then Trice was fouled on a fastbreak. "After last week [when we beat Harvard by only one point], we came back and practiced really hard," he said. "We're not going to have any more let downs for the rest of our games." And Trice made sure there would not be any letdowns. Even during the streaks when the Quakers were shooting poorly this weekend, he was there. Against the Bears, he amassed more offensive rebounds then the other 14 Quakers did combined. "If the guys don't get a body on me, I think I can get to the boards," Trice said following the Yale game Friday night. "They didn't put a body on me, so it opened up the middle and I crashed the boards." And Trice gave the Quakers another scoring opportunity.
(02/21/94 10:00am)
BOSTON -- At 5-foot-10, he doesn't look like an intimidating athlete, and especially not a basketball player. No one throughout the Ivy League mentions his name in the same breath as Jerome Allen or Matt Maloney. While those two both were on the all-Ivy first team last season, he didn't even receive honorable mention honors. And if the ball weren't always in Harvard guard Tarik Campbell's hands, no one would even notice him on the court. But when the Crimson hosted the Penn men's basketball team Saturday, everyone in the Briggs Athletic Center had their eyes trained on the smallest man on the court. "He was very quick," Penn sophomore forward Tim Krug said of Campbell. "He was able to get past Matt [Maloney] and Jerome [Allen] a lot of times, and that is just not easy to do. I give him a lot of credit, he played well." Throughout the contest, which was a rematch of Penn's 17-point blowout in the Palestra in the beginning of the year, Campbell consistently took it upon himself to keep the Crimson in the game. In the first half, when it appeared as if the Quakers were pulling away with a 7-2 run, it was Campbell who brought the Crimson back into striking range. First he stripped Krug of the ball in the backcourt and put it in the basket on a reverse layup. On the very next possession, he penetrated the lane and banked the ball high off the glass over the outstretched arms of senior 6-8 center Andy Baratta to get Harvard back within three. And Campbell's offensive heroics continued after the intermission. Once again, when it appeared as if the Quakers were poised to finally put the Crimson away, Campbell, all 5-10 of him, crashed the offensive boards. When Harvard's tallest player, junior center Kevin Fricka, missed his shot, the shortest player tipped the ball in the basket. On the very next possession, Campbell missed a scoop shot. But he got his own rebound and scored another basket to quickly cut the Penn lead back down to three. This trend of ending Quaker runs and keeping the Crimson close occurred again and again as the senior captain provided Harvard with clutch shots throughout the contest. So it was no surprise in the final seconds it was Campbell who had the ball. Every fan, every player and every coach will always remember the final play of the game. After the Quakers put the ball in their go-to man's hands and Allen was stopped, the Crimson tried the same philosophy. Campbell brought the ball down the court as the clock wound down to single digits. He used a pick to squirt into the lane, which he seemed to be able to do almost at will throughout the contest. As Maloney got caught by the pick, the lanky Krug tried to stay with the quickest man on the court. And although Campbell was giving away 11 inches in height and seemingly another foot in arm length, he took the last shot of the game with his team down by only one. "He's really quick," Penn senior forward Barry Pierce said. "He doesn't shoot well, but he likes to get in the lane and throw up herky-jerky shots." And that was exactly what Campbell did as time wound down, even though he was faced with a much taller Krug in his face. "I just tried to keep him in front of me as best I could," Krug said. "I know how quick he is. He got in the lane, but I just kept myself between him and the basket." But as the two players collided, Krug blocked the shot and the siren echoed throughout the third-oldest gym in Division I. And for the first time in the 40-minute contest, Campbell's size worked against him.
(02/16/94 10:00am)
For every Penn fan who is not totally pleased with the men's basketball schedule, here is the scoop for next year: Penn will play 14 Ivy games, as the Quakers do every year. Beyond those league games, the Quakers will take on all Big 5 opponents -- Villanova and Temple at the Spectrum, La Salle at the Palestra and St. Joseph's at Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse. Also, the Quakers will travel to both Lafayette and Lehigh, while hosting Ohio State and Fairleigh Dickinson to complete a home-and-home package that began earlier this year. Beyond these games which were previously scheduled, the Quakers have signed to play in the pre-season NIT tournament with the finals at Madison Square Garden. Also, Penn is looking to find another Christmas tournament to enter. This year, the Quakers won the US West Cellular Air Time Tournament in Seattle, Wash. Last year, Penn lost in the finals of the Lobo Invitational in Albuquerque, N.M. But the biggest name on next season's schedule could be Michigan. "I haven't heard back from them," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "We would like to play them. They're going to get back to us either at the end of this week or next week." · It appears after this weekend's action in New England, junior guard Jerome Allen is finally healthy again. Allen paced the Quakers on both ends of the floor against both Yale and Brown. In all, he scored a team-high 47 points, grabbed nine rebounds, stole the ball eight times and dished out six assists. "He had a great weekend," Dunphy said. "I would imagine he's 100 percent at this point." · The Quakers have now reached the midway point in the Ivy season, and interesting trends have developed. The most obvious, and most notable, is Penn is continuing right where it left off last season -- undefeated in Ivy action. After downing both Yale and Brown this weekend, the Quakers have improved their league leading record to a perfect 7-0, riding a 22-game winning streak in the Ivies, which just happens to be only eight wins behind the Penn record for most consecutive league wins. However, unlike last season when the Quakers won four Ivy contests by less than 10 points, Penn has won every Ivy contest by a double-digit margin this year. "It's nice to get the younger kids into the game," Dunphy said. "We're always trying to get those guys into the game as quickly as possible." The Penn bench sees more action this season than it has in a long time because the Quakers are outscoring their opponents by an average of 12.4 points per game, the largest differential at Penn since 1972. These routine blowouts have allowed Dunphy to use his backups more often. "We want to see them play," senior captain Barry Pierce said. "We try to play as hard as we can. Obviously, if they are playing, it means that we're winning big, so it's good to see these guys play." But even though the Quakers are finding blowouts in the Ivies commonplace, they still are not completely satisfied with their efforts. "We have lapses. I think every team goes through that," Pierce said. "But I think our lapses are such that we can get a team down, and then if they cut it to 20, we can call a timeout and then build it back to 30 again. So it's no big deal." · One of the many impressive Quaker streaks came to an end this weekend. After the 79-59 victory over the Bears Friday night, Penn had kept its opponents under 60 points for five straight games. However, against Yale the following night, the Elis amassed 66 point. "In order to win games, you have to play defense," Pierce said. "If we're going to win our next seven games, that's what it's going to take. Our defense will have to be even better than it was last week. It was OK. It was nothing spectacular. We need to do better." Dunphy is not worried about any defensive statistics just concerning points allowed. "We're not worried about points," Dunphy said. "We're worried about possessions and how we're doing each time. Most times, we have the game in hand. For instance, against Yale, they scored a lot of points late. The points, they don't matter." Or at least as long as they don't add up to be more than the Quakers' total. · Matt Maloney is leading the Quakers from the charity stripe. The junior guard is connecting on more than 90 percent of his shots, on pace to be the second best free-throw shooter for any season in Penn history. Chris Elzey during the 1984-85 season hit 94 percent of his free throws. Also, junior guard Scott Kegler is hitting 48 percent of his three-point attempts. At this pace, he will put his name in the Quaker record books at fourth place, just ahead of Maloney's 44.4 percent from last season.
(02/08/94 10:00am)
Rollie Massimino When he left Villanova, his once-loving fans cheered him farewell. The fans were not applauding his 19-year career with the Wildcats. On the contrary, they were pleased to see the one-time builder of giant killers leave town after a few barren years without postseason play. The fans at his new home, Las Vegas, were also skeptical. They were accustomed to seeing Jerry Tarkanian stroll the sidelines and lead the Runnin' Rebels to national glory. But regardless of the what any fan thinks of Rollie Massimino, no one can ever claim he has had anything less than a stellar coaching career, even if his popularity has waned as time passes. Massimino's storied collegiate coaching career began on the sidelines at Stony Brook in the winter of 1969. In his two-year stint there, he turned the struggling program into champions. Stony Brook climbed to the top of its conference with a 19-6 record in his first season, and earned a birth in the NCAA Small College National Tournament. From New York, Massimino traveled to Philadelphia. His entrance into the City of Brotherly Love is proof positive having good friends can help one's career. "Chuck Daly and I had developed a tremendous friendship prior to coming to Penn," Massimino said of the the former Quaker and current New Jersey Nets coach. "I had called to congratulate Chuck on [being named the Penn basketball coach], and before I knew it I was in Newark Airport on my way." In his two years working under Daly, the Quakers compiled a 46-10 record on the road to a pair of Ivy League and Big 5 titles. After this first taste of Philadelphia, Massimino discovered he loved the city and local communities, so he was thrilled to take the head coaching job at Villanova. It finally appeared Massimino had found a rank that could quench his thirst for national respect. Massimino resurrected the Wildcat program during his 19-year tenure as he led 16 teams into postseason tournament play. "Those are pretty good highlights as far as I'm concerned," Massimino said of his Villanova days. "I think probably the biggest highlight was after we won the National Championship in 1985, the following year we won 24 games. It was a major highlight after losing all of those kids [to graduation]." But no matter how successful his teams were at Villanova, Massimino will always be remembered in Philadelphia as the man many blamed for ending City Series play in its traditional format. "Rollie's the reason the teams don't play each other," La Salle coach Speedy Morris said. "If Rollie wanted to play four Big 5 teams, we'd all be playing. Rollie wasn't honest about it and his decision." However, Massimino refuses to be the scapegoat for Philadelphia hoops fans who dearly miss the Big 5 classic doubleheader format at the Palestra. "I had nothing to do with it," Massimino said in defense of his tarnished image. "I'm not an Athletic Director. I'm just a basketball coach. Because I was there for so many years, maybe people perceived me as being more, but I don't make those kinds of decisions. "I think Speedy Morris ought to take care of his shop and I'll take care of my shop. [His statements] are very ludicrous in my eyes." Although Massimino is now at UNLV, and no longer decides the policies of the Big 5 schools, his words are still questioned by Philadelphia basketball fans. These fans point to the way Massimino remembers other events throughout his career as evidence for their claims of his inconsistencies. Take for example the day his move from Villanova to the Runnin' Rebels was announced. Although Philadelphians remember a packed Jake Nevin Fieldhouse full of over 3,200 joyous Wildcat fans chanting, "Na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na, hey, hey, hey goodbye," Massimino recalls 'Cat fans appreciating his 19 years of service and dedication. "I don't believe the fans at Villanova ever turned on me," Massimino recalled. "When a small handful of people do something, it doesn't represent the masses whatsoever." The questions surrounding Massimino's credibility continue today as he tries to return Las Vegas from the ashes to National Championship stature. Even though former UNLV star and current Minnesota Timberwolves rookie sensation Isaiah Rider was prohibited from playing in the first round of the NIT Tournament last year due to questions about who was actually the author of an academic paper he submitted, Massimino denies any academic problems have ever existed in the City of Sin. "No, I don't think so. Questionable academic policies -- I'm not sure that's true," he said. "When I was at Villanova, the academic policies were very stringent and very good. But quite frankly, it's a little bit more difficult to get into here than into most colleges in the country, believe it or not." The questions surrounding his playing philosophy still hang over Massimino's head to this day. Throughout his days in Philadelphia, his teams were known for their defensive pressure and slow-paced offense. However, in just his first year at Las Vegas, the Runnin' Rebels ranked third in the nation in offensive production. "West coast style basketball is a little different," Massimino said. "But we've done the exact same thing [at UNLV] as we did at Villanova. But we just did some things offensively in terms of running that had to be changed." It is these types of answers that lead Philadelphians to not trust Massimino. However, maybe he is telling the truth, and because he had been at Villanova so long, no one was able to separate the two. Whatever the reason, the Big 5 is now essentially gone, and one of its most historic coaches now tries to win another National Championship in the City of Sin rather than the City of Brotherly Love.
(02/07/94 10:00am)
Every Ivy League basketball player knows how brutal and draining Ivy weekends are. But Jerome Allen found out this past week how much worse Wednesdays can be than either Friday or Saturday. It was last Wednesday when the junior guard strained a muscle in his right shoulder while lifting weights. By Friday night, when Columbia came rolling into West Philly sitting atop the Ivies at 4-0, a half game ahead of the Quakers, Allen was still in pain. Every fan in attendance could see there was a difference in his play. Allen left the game less than three minutes into the contest. And although he returned soon thereafter, his play suffered throughout the game. Columbia's C.J. Thompkins, starting for the first time in his still budding career, dribbled around Allen with the greatest of ease. Fortunately for the Quakers, senior captain Barry Pierce and junior guard Matt Maloney stepped up their play and led Penn into first place. But the following night the pain grew worse. The game notes said Allen would probably not play at all, and definitely not start. Not to worry, because Quaker utility man Scott Kegler once again stepped up his play. Although he is not one of the stars on the Penn squad, Kegler is quickly gaining the attention of Quaker hoops fans. Remember that contest in the Spectrum a couple weeks ago against La Salle? Pierce didn't start, so the always ready Kegler took his place. Kegler got the Quaker offense going in that game by scoring nine of Penn's first 14 points. So guess who Fran Dunphy turned to Saturday night when Allen was unable to start? That's right --EKegler. And once again, Kegler did not disappoint. The junior guard checked in with one of his best performances of his career. In the process, he scored eight points, dished out five assists without one turnover and got his hands on one steal. "Scott Kegler gave a really steady effort on both ends of the floor," Dunphy said. "When he comes in and gives us this kind of performance and plays solidly, he makes us an even deeper team." But Kegler did more than just make the Quakers a deeper team, he made them a better team this weekend. He gave Penn a spark whenever the team needed one. With just under seven minutes remaining in the first half, Cornell came down the court on a three-on-one fast break. Kegler, the lone Penn defender, played the Big Red offense perfectly and drew a charge on Frank Ableson. Immediately after the play, the Quakers exploded on a 9-2 run to open their lead to 13 points. But the Big Red made a comeback and tied the game 35-35 in the second half. Then Kegler responded. He stepped back behind the three-point arc, received the ball from Maloney, and let it fly -- swish! This bomb started the pivotal 18-6 Quaker run that finally put the Big Red out of the game. Although Cornell used two timeouts during the course of this run, nothing could stop what Kegler had ignited. So what have the Quakers learned this weekend? It's simple: although Allen is the heart and soul of this Penn squad, the Quakers can more than hold their own against other Ivy League foes without the services of their future pro. "One person does not make a team," Dunphy said. "I think Jerome would be the first guy to tell you that. He is a very important part of our team, but I would like to think that anybody that would not be in there, for whatever reason, would be missed, but not to the point where we wouldn't be able to survive." This all may be true, and proven in dramatic fashion this past weekend, but I'd sure like to see Allen suiting up and playing his usual minutes tonight against Buffalo. Joshua Friedman is a College junior from Beverly Hills, Calif., and Sports Editor of The Daily Pennsylvanian.
(01/19/94 10:00am)
The decision to hire or fire a coach is never easy. Each choice must be given a great deal of thought and consideration. However, in the search to find a permanent replacement to men's soccer coach Steve Baumann, who resigned August 18, there should not have been much difficulty. Unfortunately for the Athletic Department, it took an extended period to decide who should be at the helm for the Quakers in the years to come. So in the meantime, George O'Neill was hired as an interim replacement for Baumann prior to this past season. The day O'Neill was hired as the interim coach, specific goals should have been verbalized. The Athletic Department should have made it clear exactly what it expected from O'Neill with regards to success on the field and in the classroom. Then, when the final game of last season ended, O'Neill should have been hired or released on the spot that very day. O'Neill and the 90 other applicants should not have been left in limbo for an unnecessary amount of time. However, this goal was far from reached. During that period of uncertainty, the search committee proceeded as if each member wore a blindfold throughout the process. The original deadline for choosing the new coach was December 1, but the Athletic Department claimed it needed even more time because of the size of the applicant pool, even though the team signed a petition showing its unanimous support of O'Neill. This delay was the first of many to come. But if Baumann resigned in mid-August, why wasn't the search committee able to find a permanent replacement until more than five months later? (Actually, the Athletic Department still has yet to sign O'Neill to a contract, even though both have acknowledged negotiations are ongoing.) But my greatest complaint about the process is the Athletic Department has been entirely unfair to the players to whom the department should owe its allegiance. The search committee mortgaged the collegiate soccer career of everyone who is in the soccer program just to come to the conclusion it ought to have made months ago -- O'Neill is the right man for the job. As the search committee let self-imposed deadlines pass, it handicapped Penn's hopes to lure any of the nation's prize recruits. Now the Quakers are forced to face the fact next year's team will most likely be weaker than this year's. Penn will lose its seniors as they graduate this May, but will have little to replace them in the freshman class. The sophomores and juniors will most likely never get the opportunity to play on a team better than last season's -- next year's squad should be worse, and the following season's will be without current juniors and seniors, with just one freshman class to replace both. This fact is even more disturbing when you realize the Quakers were just starting to shine. Oh sure, it may not have shown in the win column, but the team did play with more intensity and desire. These attributes can be directly related to O'Neill's presence on the sideline. And it is for this reason he should have been immediately hired in a permanent capacity after his interim campaign. As bad as this situation seems, at least the Athletic Department did finally come to the right decision by hiring O'Neill. So in the long run, the men's soccer program will benefit tremendously by this decision, albeit months overdue. Josh Friedman is a College junior from Beverly Hills, Calif., and Sports Editor-elect of The Daily Pennsylvanian.
(12/16/93 10:00am)
Although most of the Penn community may be enjoying a peaceful Winter Break in the upcoming weeks, the men's basketball team has other plans on its agenda. The Quakers intend on continuing their quest for national respectability. Penn's schedule is set up like the perfect Christmas dinner – the appetizer in the form of Haverford warms the palates of the Quakers before they have the main course in the form of Washington and Georgia. After the meal, Penn returns home to the Palestra for dessert – the Ivy League season is ushered in with games against Harvard and Dartmouth. "After seeing the Penn scores from the beginning of the year, I'm not sure if we're going to show up for our game," Big Green coach Dave Faucher said of his scheduled contest at the Palestra (January 8, 7 p.m., WXPN 88.5-FM). "I'm serious. They beat USC by 15 on the road and now USC is tearing everybody up. They lost by only three to Ohio State. They beat a good St. Joe's team." But before Dartmouth can forfeit its chance to knock off the defending undefeated Ivy League champions, the Quakers (3-1) will play three contests. Penn's first opponent is its home season-opener against Division III Haverford (Saturday, 4 p.m., WOGL 1210-AM). The Red Wave will enter the hallowed halls of the Palestra just to give Penn a break during finals. "We wouldn't be able to play them except that they are a Division III team," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said about Haverford. "Haverford expressed an interest in playing against us at the Palestra. The game is a good situation for us at this juncture." Although the Red Wave (3-5) do not appear to be the greatest challenge for the Quakers, the U.S. West Cellular Air Time Tournament will present Penn with numerous obstacles. The first challenge will be host Washington, which hails from the Pacific-10 conference. The Huskies have achieved tremendous levels of success on the football gridiron, however they have not matched these performances on the basketball court to date. In fact, Washington (0-3) is coming off a 13-14 season and is under the reigns of a new head coach, Bob Bender, who is still looking for his inaugural win. If the Quakers are able to get by the very athletic, albeit not very tall Huskies (they start four players 6-3 or shorter) on December 28 (11 p.m., WXPN), Penn will most likely face the tournament's favorite, Georgia, for the first-time ever on the following day. Most likely, two Quakers will reach career milestones during this tournament. Senior captain needs only 60 points to reach 1,000 turns of the scoreboard for his career. Also, junior guard Matt Maloney needs to make just five more three-pointers to set the Penn career record. The Bulldogs (4-1 before facing Georgia Tech last night), who returned all five of their starters this year, have been literally destroying their competition so far this season, winning by an average of 34 points per game. Georgia's offensive attack is led by sophomore guard Shandon Anderson, who is scorching the opposition to the tone of 18.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.8 assists per contest. Anderson, the younger brother of San Antonio Spurs guard Willie Anderson, may be able to dish out so many assists because he is surrounded by so many quality players. The Bulldogs' starting center and a second-team all-SEC selection last season, junior Charles Claxton, is a big target at 7-0, 265 pounds. Claxton (9.3 points per game) is having little problem putting the ball in the basket so far this season. To go with his scoring touch, Claxton also leads Georgia on the glass with seven rebounds per game. Claxton may provide the undersized Quaker frontcourt with some problems. However, the Penn big men have been able to contain most of the opposing centers so far. The Quakers may have some help by late December when senior center Andy Baratta should be healthy enough to re-enter the Quaker forward-center rotation. "[The tournament] is in another part of the country and there's excellent competition there," Dunphy said. "Washington has good athletes and they're 12 deep with scholarship kids. Georgia, according to many of the preseason prognosticators, is a very athletic team as well." But the Penn "vacation" does not end with this Christmas tournament. In fact, after just a few days of rest, Penn will return to the Palestra to host Lehigh (Jan. 3, 8 p.m., WXPN). The Engineers finished one of the most anemic seasons in the school's history last year as they finished 4-23. However, Lehigh was and still is a young team which has returned four of its five starters this season, including Patriot League all-Rookie member Rashawne Glenn and junior captain Jason Fichter. But this is not the contest that Penn is worried most about. After the tournament in Seattle, the Quakers will be most anxiously awaiting the opportunity to defend their Ivy League title when Harvard and Dartmouth both visit the Palestra. "They'll be ready like crazy to play us," Dunphy said. "The league games are always tough. We, especially after going 14-0 [in the Ivies] last season, will be a marked target." The first team the Quakers face will be Harvard (4-2) on January 7 (7 p.m., WOGL). The Crimson are led offensively by sophomore forward Darren Rankin (16.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per game). Rankin has received considerable support from the newcomers to the team, most notably freshman forward Kyle Snowden, who is averaging over nine points while also grabbing over seven rebounds per contest. After the Harvard contest, the Quakers will play their final contest of the break against Dartmouth. The Big Green, led by senior guard Gregg Frame, know that this contest will present some challenges for them, most notably historically. The Big Green have not beaten Penn at the Palestra in 10 years. Furthermore, Dartmouth already lost to Fairleigh Dickinson at home by 12 points this season. However, the Quakers beat the Knights on the road by a margin of 15 points. "I expect a really tough game," Faucher said. "We will have to play so well just to stay close to Penn. I've never been involved in a win at the Palestra, and this is the best Penn team I've ever faced. There's no question that Penn is the class of the league." But the Quakers have higher goals than just winning the Ivy League. They don't want to open their Christmas presents and just find underwear –Ethey want national respectability. And that only comes from winning.
(12/06/93 10:00am)
HACKENSACK, N.J. – Although the pro scouts may have come out to see junior guard Jerome Allen, they saw much more. Eric Moore. Penn's junior center – although he does not receive the same level of national attention as the famed Quaker backcourt – was the flame which ignited the Penn men's basketball team to a 62-47 victory over Fairleigh Dickinson on Saturday. "He played terrific," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said of Moore. "I was very pleased with Eric's performance. I thought his [performance] was a key in terms of getting us started." After playing his previous two games against teams that towered over his "un-centerlike" 6-6 frame, Moore (12 points, 6 rebounds, 1 block) finally found a team which was more his height. In fact, the Knights did not start anyone taller than 6-7. But the size differential which Moore has encountered to date, and will continue to face throughout the season, does not seem to faze the 210-pound starting center. Against Southern California, Moore went toe-to-toe against the highly touted 6-11 freshman Avondre Jones and limited him to only two rebounds and three points. Then last Monday at Ohio State, Moore faced off against a big-man tandem of 6-11 Nate Wilbourne and 6-9 Lawrence Funderburke. The two had been averaging 25 points and almost 60-percent shooting in the game before they met the Quaker center. But the Buckeye big men were unable to effectively handle Moore – even though they had a tremendous height advantage – they combined for only 11 points on 4 of 12 shooting. "I don't find height as hard as strength is [to play against]," Moore said. "Ohio State was taller, but a couple of guys on [Fairleigh Dickinson] were more physical." But evidently, Moore does not find physical players too much of a challenge to play against either. After all, Moore paced the Quakers with 10 first-half points, nearly a third of the team's 32-point effort before intermission. Moore scored almost all of Penn's early points. He was the first Quaker to score as he worked to get through the defense to lay the ball in the basket. But Penn still was trailing early in the contest until Moore tied the game at eight with a three-point bomb, a shot his well-known backcourt mates are more inclined to make. After that long-range jumper, the Quakers never trailed again. "I felt good coming out," Moore said. "I felt pumped up. I was really fired up for the game. I got more shots this game, so it got me in the flow quicker." Although Moore's offensive production slowed to a near stand-still in the second half, the Quakers did not need it as senior forward Barry Pierce and junior guard Matt Maloney found their touches from the outside to build upon the lead Moore almost single-handedly gave them. However, with his offense disappearing, Moore then took control on the other side of the floor. He led Penn with his intimidating defensive prowess and his defensive rebounding. After the break, Moore kept the Knights off the offensive glass as he racked up five defensive rebounds to lead the Quakers. "Our defense was very good," Dunphy said. "Our rebounding was excellent. [Moore] rebounded the ball very well all game long." But these outstanding performances by Moore are quickly becoming the norm rather than the aberration. After all, he has already chipped in two double-digit scoring performances in just the first three games of the season. Maybe Saturday's performance was a sign of what is still to come. As the opposition continues to key in on the Quaker backcourt, someone will have to step up his performance in the frontcourt. So far, Eric Moore has been that man. "Everybody keys on their guards, naturally," Fairleigh Dickinson coach Tom Green said. "We allowed [Moore] to roam a little too much and he scored some points." Maybe he scored some points with the pro scouts as well. Maybe the pro scouts realized that there is more to the Quakers than a guard named Allen. In fact, maybe they realized that size does not always make a center. Although 6-6 is usually considered even too small to play as a professional forward, it is just the right size for a Penn center named Moore.
(12/02/93 10:00am)
Unbelievable. There is no other way to describe the Penn men's basketball team's stellar performance so far this season. Unbelievable. There is no other way to describe how bright the Quakers' future now looks. After witnessing the dismantling of a talent-rich Southern California team and what should have been a victory in the hostile St. John Arena of Ohio State, I must confess that I was dumbfounded. Even I, the eternal optimist (let's be serious, I root for the Los Angeles Clippers – 'nough said), did not, could not, have predicted that Penn would be this good, this early in the season. Of course I knew the Quakers ended last season with 13-consecutive regular-season wins, but come on, those were only against Ivy League teams. But then I saw Penn in action for the first time this season in the Los Angeles Sports Arena. The Trojans supposedly possessed a dominating frontcourt. The Trojans supposedly were loaded with one of the best recruiting classes in the country. I'm not sure if all of the press was wrong about Southern California, or if the Quakers were just that good. The potent Trojan frontcourt was disarmed by the Penn two-three zone. One of the nation's top-recruits, 6-11 center Avondre Jones, was stopped cold as he did not connect on even one basket during the contest. Although Southern California all-American hopeful Lorenzo Orr did score 20 points, most of those came in the second half, after the Quakers already had put the game to rest. The point here is that the Penn frontcourt, once considered the team's most glaring weakness, was able to more than hold its own against talented big men. The Quakers proved that they can play with any size frontcourt in the nation. This trend continued on Monday evening as Penn played against Ohio State. The Buckeyes also were suppose to possess an offensively potent frontcourt led by 6-9 junior forward Lawrence Funderburke. However, the Quakers did a good job of mixing up two-three zones and man-to-man defenses to limit Funderburke, and his frontcourt teammates, to only 26 points while shooting an uncharacteristically low 42 percent from the field. The Penn frontcourt never received any attention last season, accept when it was blamed for Quaker losses. But this season, all of the Penn faithful will become much more familiar with Eric Moore, Shawn Trice and Tim Krug. These three, and an occasional appearence by sophomore Bill Guthrie, will give the Palestra something to cheer about. Oh sure, everyone still will see the Quakers' awesome backcourt score seemingly at will, but the team's biggest improvement coming into this season is its ability to stifle the opposition's frontcourt while also scoring points themselves. Last season, the big-man rotation of Moore, Andy Baratta, Krug and Trice contributed almost a negligible amount of points to the Penn cause. But to date, these statistics seem to be changing even though Penn has faced two of the nation's premiere frontcourts. I can already hear the Palestra crowd chanting "Kruuuuuug!" Get ready Penn faithful, because starting in just a matter of days the Quakers will be heading to an arena near you. Then you too can scream every time Jerome Allen launches a three-pointer, and also every time Moore keeps the opposing center from scoring or getting an offensive board. Pay close attention to the game and you'll see where the game is really won. It will be won in the trenches, where the frontcourts meet to do battle. It will be won when Moore and Trice consistently get in perfect position to box out the opposing big men. It will be won on the boards, where the Quakers did a job on Southern California when they outrebounded them 36-28 even though the Trojans towered over Penn. The majority of the Quaker points still will come from the big three (Allen, Matt Maloney and Barry Pierce), but the guts, maybe not the glory, will come from the big-man rotation. Look out, because although the frontcourt was once Penn's achilles heel, it now will be a key contributor on the Quakers' road to March Madness. Joshua Friedman is a College junior from Beverly Hills, Calif., and a sports writer for the Daily Pennsylvanian.
(11/30/93 10:00am)
Quakers can't keep lead at Ohio State COLUMBUS, Ohio – The game was supposed to be a battle of the Penn men's basketball team's famed backcourt against the power and size of the Ohio State frontcourt. However, last night at the Buckeyes' St. John Arena, 13,276 screaming fans observed why the game is not played on paper. In a back and forth, see-saw battle, it finally came down to the three-point shooting of the Buckeyes versus the outside offensive ability of the Quakers. But in the end, Penn fell short – a three-pointer short – as it fell 83-80. "I thought overall, we played pretty well," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "I was satisfied with our intensity and effort. We had our chances." Penn led the Buckeyes throughout much of the contest, and held on to a slim one-point lead with less than two and a half minutes remaining in the game. But during this final stretch, the Ohio State guards took over with the help of the three men in black and white stripes. Buckeye sophomore guard Derek Anderson (a team-high 23 points) connected on an acrobatic turnaround three-pointer with about two minutes left to give the Buckeyes a two-point lead. The Quakers hung tough and even regained the lead, but then Ohio State senior co-captain Jamie Skelton (18 points) followed his teammate's lead and hit a 24-foot rainbow from the left baseline. After Penn junior guard Jerome Allen (27 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists) made two free throws to tie the game at 80, Ohio State stormed back. With just about a minute left, Buckeye sophomore guard Greg Simpson – last year's Big Ten Freshman of the Year – penetrated through the tough Penn defense and dished off to junior forward Antonio Watson in the paint. Although Watson was unable to put the ball in the basket initially, he was right there to tip it back in to give Ohio State the lead for good. "We were trying to go inside," Ohio State coach Randy Ayers said. "We told Greg to dribble the ball inside. Greg got down on the baseline and found [Watson]. That was the big play." However, even though Penn trailed by two, there was still almost one minute remaining. Senior captain Barry Pierce (21 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists) inbounded the ball to Allen, who was being guarded tightly by Skelton. Allen handed the ball to junior guard Matt Maloney. However, Maloney was called for travelling on the hand-off. On the following play, junior forward Eric Moore was called for a questionable intentional foul as Simpson drove the basket for an apparent dunk. Although Simpson missed both of his free throw attempts, Ohio State was awarded the ball due to the intentional foul call. The Quakers were forced to foul Buckeye senior forward Lawrence Funderburke on the ensuing inbounding attempt, and after Funderburke made one of his free throws, the score stood at its final resting point. "Fran Dunphy certainly knows what it is going to be like when you play on the road in a Big Ten arena," Ayers said of the foul disparity throughout the game. (Penn was whistled for 22 fouls to only 12 for the home Buckeyes.) Although the game ended with the Quakers coming up three points short, Penn did lead for the overwhelming majority of the contest. The Quakers were up by 10, 44-34, at halftime behind the stellar shooting of Allen and the solid defense of the Penn frontcourt, which limited the Buckeye big men to only 16 first-half points. "They took [Allen] too lightly," Pierce said. "That's somebody you don't take lightly – because he'll burn you." The Quakers took a six-point lead in the first seven minutes of the game and then fought hard to keep Ohio State from coming back. The Penn offensive outburst began after Ohio State junior forward Rickey Dudley made one of his two free-throw attempts to tie the score at nine. After that shot, the Quakers went on a 9-3 run to go up by six. Again, with only three minutes remaining before the intermission, Penn went on another run, this time outscoring the Buckeyes 5-0. Throughout the half, the Quakers turned to Allen whenever they found themselves in trouble. Penn's all-Ivy guard was seemingly unconscious from the field. In the first 20 minutes alone, he scored 20 points (including four clutch three-point bombs in only six attempts) while also leading Penn on the boards and in assists, with four and two respectively. But in the second half, the Quakers needed someone else to help carry the load – as Skelton did a fine job after the halftime intermission of denying Allen the ball. Although Pierce picked up his play, Allen's usually reliable backcourt partner, Maloney, was having one of the worst days of his Penn career (4 for 19 from the field). The Quakers' top marksman missed even the most open of shots last night, including a 10-foot jumper from the middle of the paint with just over a minute remaining that would have given Penn an 82-80 lead. "I was rushing my shots too much," Maloney said. "I should have settled down more." As the crowd picked up the volume in the second half, the Buckeyes picked up the intensity and chipped away at the Quaker lead. When the game finally got close, it was the Buckeye marksmen who came away with the prize. "We'll be sad tonight," Pierce said. "It was hard enough fighting so long getting to where we were, getting some national consideration. In a span of an hour and a half that can all be flushed down the toilet."
(11/30/93 10:00am)
Second-half surge keys big win LOS ANGELES – The Penn men's basketball team showed no signs of fear of the obstacles it faced on Saturday. The Quakers travelled almost 3,000 miles, but they did not exhibit any nagging effects of jet-lag. They were going against a nationally-acclaimed basketball program from one of college's elite conferences, but that did not stop them. Even the hostile crowd in the Los Angeles Sports Arena could not throw the Quakers off their course. On Saturday, Penn was on a mission for national respectability, and it may have finally earned it with a 77-62 pummeling of Southern California (0-1), the worst Trojan loss at home in three years. "I don't think this group gets intimidated about much," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "That's not how they think. They came to Los Angeles thinking they could win. It's just their mentality." Penn dominated Southern Cal for almost the entire game. The Quakers took their first lead only 33 seconds into the contest and held onto it for all but a one-minute span in the middle of the first half. After Penn took a 41-35 lead into the intermission, the Quakers came out of the locker room ready to prove who the better team really was. The Quakers, led by junior guards Jerome Allen (16 points, 7 rebounds) and Matt Maloney (19 points), went on a 18-5 run to start the second half. "Matt and Jerome just went off," Penn senior captain Barry Pierce (14 points, 7 rebounds) said of the run. "They're good at that because they can just score a bunch of points quickly. When we got up big, it just took the air out of their balloon." The Penn offensive onslaught began when junior center Eric Moore (11 points) sunk a post-up shot over Trojan sophomore guard Burt Harris, as well as drawing the foul. Although Moore was unable to convert the three-point play as he missed his free throw, the Quakers came up with the loose ball off the rebound and Allen pulled up and hit an open three-pointer. After another Allen basket and a Pierce hoop, USC freshman guard Claude Green hit a three-point basket. However, within seconds of Green's shot falling through the net, Maloney connected on a long three-pointer of his own. The Quakers added two more baskets by Moore and Allen to go up by 17, 57-40. The route was capped off by Allen, who stole a Harris pass intended for Green and took it the distance for an easy two points to give Penn a 59-40 lead. "The second half, I just wanted to increase my production," said Allen, who scored 14 of his 16 points in the final 20 minutes of the game. "Being one of the veteran ball players on the squad, I felt as though I had to step up." But after a Trojan timeout, USC attempted to get back into the game behind their team leader, junior forward Lorenzo Orr (20 points, 7 rebounds). The Trojans went on a 9-0 run in about a three-minute span, but the Penn lead still stood at 10 points, 59-49. After this Southern Cal comeback attempt put a temporary scare into the Quakers, Penn held on throughout the second half, never letting the Trojans get within single digits and cruising to the easy victory. "[Penn] really took advantage of our mistakes," said Harris, who finished with a career-high 13 points. "They hit their shots down the stretch when they had to, even the tough ones. That's when they really showed their experience." Penn slowed the offense down at the same time as it went into a two-three zone defense in the second half. This alignment controlled the bigger Trojan frontcourt. Even one of the nation's top recruits, USC freshman Avondre Jones – who towers over the Penn frontcourt at 6-11 – was neutralized by the Quaker zone. Jones, who reportedly received over 900 letters from collegiate coaches nationwide in a two-week period before he committed to the Trojans, did not make one shot in the contest. In fact, Jones, and the rest of the USC offense, never really got on track throughout the game as the Trojans were only able to connect on 41 percent of their shots. "This was a game that I suspect that experience and confidence played an immense role," Southern Cal coach George Raveling said. "Penn tested us in every facet of the game. They tested our mental patience, our work habits and our shot selection. This was an admissions test to get into an Ivy League school, and we flunked it." The Quakers were able to accomplish this impressive defensive stand even without the services of senior Andy Baratta, who tore his anterior cruciate ligament during practice two weeks ago and is out for at least a month. To overcome Baratta's absence, Penn filled his spot in the four-man frontcourt rotation with sophomore Bill Guthrie and freshman Nat Graham. "[The loss of Baratta] hurts our rotation," Dunphy said. "We went with some younger kids in the fourth spot. We're going to need four big guys. Even more than that, Andy's an emotional leader for us." But even without Baratta, the Quakers sent a message to anyone listening that they are a team not to be overlooked. Even as time was running out, Pierce still flew through the air to block a shot with authority and send the ball back into the stands with less than half a minute to play. The senior captain then stripped the ball from Orr and slammed it through the basket as time was running out. The Quakers were determined not to let the numerous obstacles that they faced on Saturday effect them. So even without the services of Baratta, even travelling across the country and even playing against a powerhouse from the Pacific-10 conference, Penn was still able to send a message loud and clear to the college basketball community. "We've played bigger games than this," Pierce said. "We're not intimidated because we know how good we are."
(11/22/93 10:00am)
Cornell senior quarterback Bill Lazor is sacked by Penn junior defensive end Michael Turner. Lazor is sacked by Penn senior defensive end Dave Betten. Lazor is sacked by?fill in the blank with the Quaker defensive lineman of your choice. Lazor learned the hard way on Saturday that you can't throw the ball when you are lying flat on your back. But that was not the only reason the Quakers were able to come from behind to beat the Big Red. The real explanation was that the Penn defensive front seven completely dominated the Cornell offensive machine in the second half. "It comes to a point when we just say, 'No more,' " Penn junior free safety Nick Morris said of the second half shutout. "I really can't explain it." For the second consecutive week, the Quaker "D" pitched a shutout for the final 30 minutes of the game. This time, the undersized front seven outran, outhustled and outplayed the vaunted Cornell offense. In the third quarter, Penn did not allow the Big Red to do anything at all. Cornell's statistics for this 15-minute period speak for themselves. The Big Red had zero net offensive yards (not an inch gained during their five possessions). Also, Lazor was sacked twice and completed only one of his five pass attempts – but it was caught by a player wearing the wrong uniform – Morris. "We came into halftime and said, 'We've got to pick it up,' " Betten said. "We were playing all right up until the half, but we had to play a lot better in the second half. I think it is the confidence that we've created in ourselves in the past few weeks in making a lot of big plays – great plays." Betten is referring to that Morris interception in the middle of the third quarter that single-handedly turned the game around. Just as last week when the Quakers seemed to wake up after Turner caused a key Harvard fumble, so did Penn again on Saturday when Morris picked off a Lazor lob. The pass was intended for Big Red junior wide receiver Erik Bjerke, but the ball never got there. Unfortunately for Cornell, the ball was underthrown by a few yards, landing right in Morris's lap. This play sparked a Penn offense that had been dormant up until that point. "Nick made a hell of a play on that ball," Penn senior quarterback Jim McGeehan said about the interception. "He stepped up and made the biggest play of the year." But the play did not start in the defensive backfield. It did not even start when Lazor took the snap. It really began early in the game, on Cornell's second drive of the day. After a play action fake, Penn senior linebacker Andy Berlin pressured and hit Lazor just as he let go of the ball. That hit, and every hit Lazor received after it, reminded the Big Red's signal-caller that it hurts to play quarterback. It hurts to hold onto the pigskin as long as you can. And it was this pressure from the defensive line that was the difference in the game. "[The defensive pressure] was unbelievable," Morris said. "If we were covering guys, we didn't have to cover them for more than two or three seconds. It makes it a lot easier on [the defensive backs]." "[The defensive pressure] was very important," Penn coach Al Bagnoli said. "Anytime you can put pressure on the quarterback, I think it rattles people. Lazor's a terrific quarterback, but if you keep putting pressure on him it's really hard to get in sync." The Penn defensive line had been attacking the opposing quarterbacks all season, racking up 34 sacks in the first nine games. So the Big Red had to be ready for the aggressive Quaker defensive line. But nothing could have prepared them, or Lazor, for the beating they would take from the Quaker defense. For the game, the front seven racked up nine sacks. And on each one, Lazor was driven into Franklin Field's hard artificial turf. The Cornell offensive line, which outweighs the Penn defensive line by an average of almost 25 pounds a man, might have expected that it could just throw the smaller Quakers around. After all, the Big Red only allowed Lazor to be sacked once when these same two teams met last year in Ithaca. But this year was different. These are the 10-0 Quakers. "Their line was really big, but they have bad lateral movement," Betten said of the Cornell offensive line. "We were able to use our quickness to get around them." In the final quarter of the game, the Big Red had only two possessions. On their first attempt to regain the lead after the Quakers had tied the game at 14, Lazor threw two incomplete passes and was sacked once by Turner before Cornell was forced to punt. This marked the sixth-consecutive time the Big Red went three plays and out in the second half. With about five and a half minutes remaining, the Big Red had the ball with one last attempt to win the contest. They faced a daunting task, as they had not registered one first down up to that point in the second half – and now Cornell had to march 76 yards to win the game. On a crucial third-and-10 from the Penn 29, senior tailback Pete Fitzpatrick caught a Lazor pass before being dragged down from behind by Morris two yards short of the first-down mark. Fitzpatrick's eight-yard gain set up a fourth-and-two situation. Lazor handed the ball to freshman tailback Chad Levitt. Levitt took the ball and followed his two leading blockers out of the backfield and headed straight ahead where he was met by Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week Betten and a host of Penn defenders. Levitt was a yard short, and the Quaker defense came up with not only another game-saving play, but a championship-saving play as well. "[Cornell] wanted it so bad," Betten said. "I got hit a couple of times pretty hard on that play. The tackle came out and hit me really hard. Luckily I just dished him off. I was looking for other people's reactions because I didn't know where [Levitt] fell. When I saw our linebackers jumping around, I stayed there and just clung onto his legs as hard as I could." The Quaker defense came up with a big play on every down in the second half. Cornell amassed an unbelievable minus-one yards on the ground in the final 30 minutes of play. Maybe the Big Red should have passed on that final play. But maybe Lazor then would have been sacked by?fill in the blank with the Quaker defensive lineman of choice.
(11/18/93 10:00am)
When you ask anyone about Penn football senior offensive lineman Frank Caccuro, no one talks about nor even mentions his ability to play the game. That would be redundant. All anyone would have to do is watch him play. His skills are abundantly clear, especially since the Quaker offensive line has allowed only nine sacks and still opened up enough holes for Penn to average almost 200 yards rushing a game in the first nine contests of the season. But what really impresses his coaches and teammates is his ability to lead. Caccuro, who plays one of the most forgotten positions in all of sports, who had not played a varsity game at the collegiate level before this season began, was still voted offensive captain in this, his final campaign of his Quaker career. "The first thing you have to mention is his leadership ability," Penn senior quarterback Jim McGeehan said of Caccuro. "He's stepped up and taken the role [of captain], and he's done an excellent job. He's always supportive. He's always getting the offense going. His leadership and seniority show on the field. It shows and the players look up to him." "He's a very intense kid," Penn offensive coordinator Chuck Priore said. "Frank's very vocal and really gets excited to play the game of football. He gets excited to practice. That example is really important. He's a really good leader." But Caccuro, being only an offensive lineman, a position that only receives attention for mistakes – whether it be failing to open holes for the running back or failing to protect the quarterback from a blitzing defense, is still extremely modest. Even after he helped blow the Princeton defense off the line in the game that probably decided the Ivy League championship, he still would rather spread the credit rather than receive his justly deserved recognition. "Against Princeton, he played his best game of his career," Priore said. "He really did a nice job out there." In fact, the offensive line threw the Tiger defense around enough to allow Penn junior tailback Terrance Stokes to rush for a school-record 272 yards. But Caccuro, and the offensive line, while they may not receive public praise, do hear the praises from their teammates over and over again. And to Caccuro, that's all that really matters. "When Stokes does well, when McGeehan does well, we know that it starts with us," Caccuro said of the offensive linemen. "If we don't do the blocking for either the passing attack or the rushing attack, we're not going to get the yards. We appreciate just getting a congratulations from the guys. They appreciate what we are doing." This gratitude that Caccuro now receives from his teammates almost never came. After years of injuries, Caccuro has taken one of the more difficult and lengthy trips of anyone to finally arrive at where he is today. He may be the offensive captain today, but it was less than a year ago that he was just watching the games from the sidelines. Beginning in Caccuro's junior year in 1991, he fell victim to the ill effects of injuries. Before that campaign even began, he had already broken his hand and his thumb. Then, in his senior season last year, Caccuro tore his knee and was out for four weeks. When he was finally ready to return to the team, he broke his thumb again. "I guess to put it in perspective – he had never really played here even though he had been here for three years," Priore said. "He was a projected starter two of those years, but he was injured. We didn't know he was going to turn out this good." During the 1992 season, he was given a medical red-shirt year and allowed to return for a fifth season if he so desired. The choice was not necessarily an easy one, but now that the Quakers are undefeated with only one game remaining, he obviously is pleased with his decision to return for one final campaign. "I know this is the way he wanted it to be," said fellow fifth-year senior and co-captain Dave Betten of the Quakers' perfect record to date this season. "I know he wouldn't have come back unless he thought we had a chance to [win the Ivy title] this year." And even this season he has been riddled by injuries, as Caccuro currently is sporting a small cast and lots of tape on his right hand. It is there to protect his broken thumb again, which happened the day before the all-important Princeton showdown. However, none of these injuries have ever effected Caccuro's intensity or his ability to get the rest of the team ready for every game. Even when the defense is on the field, and he is on the sidelines, he can always be seen encouraging his teammates when it is necessary or consoling them when the need arises. "I'm a screamer," Caccuro said of his method of leading. "I try to get on everyone's back when we're down. I do a lot of screaming on the sideline when we come off the field after a three-and-out series. It's just the way I play." The way Caccuro plays stands on its own merits. There is no need to say anymore – his performance speaks for itself.
(11/11/93 10:00am)
Football is just a game. This concept may seem perfectly acceptable and even self-evident coming from the average American. But to hear these words come out of the mouth of a man who has dedicated his life to the game is astonishing. It may be even more than astonishing. It's unbelievable. Yet, Harvard coach Joe Restic, who has spent the last 38 years teaching this game, uttered those very words. And as he leads the Crimson against Penn this Saturday, he will be at the helm for his final appearance at Harvard Stadium in Cambridge. "I'll leave with a clear conscience," Restic said. "I'll feel that I've served as well as I could have and that has nothing to do with wins and losses." Restic is able to say this because he cares. Of course he cares about winning, but more importantly, he cares about his players. Even entering his final few games as the coach of Harvard he has his priorities in the right order. Sure he has had success, compiling a 117-95-6 record during his 23-year reign over the Crimson. But that has never been his top priority. "Serve the people who enter the program," Restic said of his priorities in coaching. "Put them in the best position. Give them the best program you can. That doesn't mean you're going to win every year." This philosophy has continued to be a mainstay of Restic teams for his entire stint as Harvard's leader. Even in the recent lean years, he's always stayed loyal to his players. "He has an active concern for the players," Harvard senior quarterback Mike Giardi said of Restic. "With me especially, he has always been concerned with how things have gone on that particular day and how classes have gone. He has always been a friend." It is this level of dedication to his athletes that has consistently driven Restic-led squads to success. From his early days as Brown's offensive coordinator – where he helped lead the Bears to three-consecutive winning seasons – to his head coaching position of the Hamilton Tiger Cats of the Canadian Football League, he has always managed to win. In his three-year stint as the Tiger Cats' head coach, he reached the Grey Cup once, Canada's equivalent of the Super Bowl. "Never lose sight of the winning part," Restic said. "You must play to win. The thing that's tougher than losing is not knowing how to win." Even though Restic obviously wants to win, as he has done throughout his entire career, he knows that there is an integrity to the game that should not be broken. He has been around long enough to see dozens of coaches lose their jobs because of recruiting violations and pay-offs. "I see things happening to this great game," Restic explained. "If we don't protect the integrity of this game, then it's all gone. If money and television become the controlling forces, then it will self-destruct. "You sell out to the world. There's all that money and exposure, and schools want to become part of that. It's like a treadmill – once you get on, it's tough to get off." This vision of the rest of the collegiate football community may explain why Restic coaches the way he does. He opens his offensive strategies up to interpretation from both his coaches and his players, because he does not want to get stuck on that treadmill. He always wants to be able to see the big picture, and never get forced into doing things just to make more money for Harvard. "He's very open to his players and to his coaches," Giardi said. "He presents his point of view and then he looks for feedback from his players and from his coaches. He really values the players' opinions a lot." Not only does he value his players' opinions, but Restic also values their friendship. He knows what it is like being a student-athlete with all of the pressures in the world on their shoulders. For this reason, Restic never lets his players forget that he's been there too. "He always tells us little stories about things that happened to him when he was playing," Giardi said. "In the Dartmouth game, I got knocked out of the game with a concussion. That following Monday, he told me about when he got knocked out playing against Army. He got up and sat down on the wrong bench. He never realized it until he looked around and saw the other players wearing different color jerseys. He always has a little story here and there to remind you that he was a player too. He's fun that way." That is exactly what Restic is all about – keeping the game fun while at the same time giving it his best effort, even if that means getting knocked unconscious in the process. This way might not be the best for every coach, but it sure seems to be working for Restic. And as he is about to hang up his coaching headset for good, that is enough for him. "The love of the game," Restic said. "If you're gonna do it, you have to love it."
(11/11/93 10:00am)
Who does Penn junior Nick Morris think he is? According to the Penn Football press guide, he is just a 6-2, 213-pound quarterback from Mercer Island High School in Washington. But anyone who has seen him play this season knows this is not the whole story. "Going into the season, we thought that because of his athletic ability we wanted to get him onto the field for as many plays as we could in meaningful situations," said Penn coach Al Bagnoli of Morris. "That's what prompted us to put him as a nickel-back in key third-down situations. That's what prompted us to put him at quarterback in a short-yardage capacity to try to get the first down. And that's what prompted us to put him at wide receiver on third downs." Oh, now you remember where you have seen that No. 7 Penn jersey at the last game. It was the one that picked off Brown sophomore quarterback Gordie Myers twice and made one solo tackle. No, it was the one that played quarterback for part of the fourth quarter and rushed for 27 yards while also completing a 36-yard pass. Or maybe it was the one that caught starting quarterback Jimmy McGeehan's pass in the second quarter, although it was eventually negated by an illegal-motion penalty. In fact, Morris was wearing all of those jerseys in Penn's 34-9 trouncing of Brown on Saturday. Morris is a throwback to the earlier days of football when men played both sides of the ball and rarely left the field at all. "I just think getting on the field is fun," Morris said. "I like the defensive mentality – you get to hit somebody instead of being hit." Morris gained this desire to hit while still in high school where, although he played both sides of the ball, he played mostly "designated blitzer." "I played strong safety, but I primarily blitzed every play," Morris said. "It was just a fun position to play." · Going into the stretch run of the season is not the best time to be affected by the injury bug. However injuries do not have a football schedule in front of them. So without any further ado, here are the latest blows to the Quakers. As of yesterday's practice, the most severe injury came to sophomore free safety Sheldon Philip-Guide, who broke his left forearm against the Bears and will miss the remainder of the season. Philip-Guide's likely replacement will be a rotation consisting of junior Corbin Rheault and Morris. Also, junior tight end Brian Higgins has been added to the mounting Penn injury list. Although it is not certain how serious his ankle injury is, he is already listed as doubtful for Saturday's contest at Yale. Higgins will be replaced by increasing the playing time of both sophomore Matt Tonelli and senior Ben Holman. · After destroying the Bears last Saturday, Bagnoli (who compiled a 93-22-0 record at Union) now has amassed 99 career victories. This means the man who has almost immediately turned around the Quaker football program is on track to win his 100th football game in front of his hometown crowd in New Haven on Saturday. Of course this is a big game for the coach, right? "I don't want to distract anything from the kids or from the game," Bagnoli said humbly. "Eventually I will get [the 100th win]. It just shows that you've been coaching for a long time, basically." But, provided the Quakers win at least one more game this season, Bagnoli will reach this milestone in only 12 seasons. In fact, his .818 career record winning percentage (99-22) heading into the Yale game on Saturday ranks him fourth among all active coaches – in both Division I-A and I-AA. · It is now time for this week's M & M update. To start off, sophomore wide receiver Miles Macik became the first to make a mark in the Penn record books this season. He broke the Penn single-season record for touchdown catches against Brown when he caught his eighth and ninth TD grabs on the year. On the other half of the connection, McGeehan, has continued his air assault on the Penn record books. He is currently fourth in career passing with 3,192 yards. He only needs 271 yards in his final four games to take over first place from Malcolm Glover '90. Not only is McGeehan having a great career, but he is also having an amazing season. McGeehan has thrown for a total of 1,435 yards this season and only needs to average 122.75 yards during the remaining four games to become Penn's leading passer in a single season. Marty Vaughn '75 is the current record-holder, as he threw for 1,926 yards in the 1973 season.
(11/09/93 10:00am)
Ivy Champs! Ivy Champs! There is no greater chant to hear a Penn crowd scream at the top of its lungs. And the sight of the goal posts coming down into a sea of Quaker fanatics rivals only the crowd I witnessed flood the Palestra floor last season after yet another Princeton spanking. Nontheless, I came into this Quaker-Tiger matchup intending to write a column on why this game would not decide the Ivy Title, regardless of the outcome. However, whether it was the overwhelming pride I felt after Penn walked all over Princeton, the beer I drank this weekend or the sight of the goal posts sinking in the Schuylkill river, I have clearly changed my mind. In fact, the Quakers will not only win the Ivy championship for the first time since 1988, but they will also cap off an undefeated season in two weeks with yet another thrashing. This time the victim will be Cornell. I truly believed before this Saturday that Penn still had a challenge in front of it before a new Ivy champion was crowned –Ebut no longer. I know the facts. I know that the Quakers have not won at Harvard since 1972. I know that they have not beaten both Yale and the Crimson on the road in the same season since 1956. To add to these daunting historical obstacles, I also know that Cornell has turned into an awesome scoring machine. But let's be serious. This Penn squad is simply unstoppable. The offense is the best this school has seen this century. No team in almost a hundred years has scored 30 or more points in seven consecutive games. And on Saturday, the Quakers accomplished this feat against the third-best scoring defense in Division I-AA. Penn simply has too many weapons to be stopped by any Ivy League schools. Maybe Florida State or Notre Dame could contain Terrance Stokes, but if Princeton couldn't keep him under 250 yards, how can anyone expect Harvard to? The Crimson could barely slow down the mighty Brown offensive machine this past weekend. Harvard did hold the Bears to under 50 points – oh this Saturday should be fun for the Quaker fanatics. The Quakers are mentally and physically ready to dismantle an unimpressive Crimson squad which just lost 43-29 to the aforementioned Brown juggernaut on Saturday (yes, this is the same Bear team which the Quakers toyed with in a 34-9 laugher). Then the following Saturday Penn hosts Cornell, who has already lost two Ivy games, one to the those Tigers from across the river. But the Big Red simply will not cut it in two weeks here at Franklin Field. How in the world is Cornell suppose to get up for the game when the Quakers will come into it undefeated in the Ivies and the Big Red will already be mathematically eliminated from any title hopes? On the other hand, how will Penn contain their excitement and energy facing the prospect of going undefeated for the first time since 1986? The combination of the Quakers' scoring powerhouse of an offense and its smothering defense (the same one that held Division I-AA's most prolific rusher on Saturday to over 120 yards below his season average) has helped Penn average almost three times as many points as its opponents. Honestly, Harvard and Cornell are just not the caliber of team that it would take to stop the Quakers. They are just run of the mill Ivy teams while Penn plays at some other higher level. There is no indication this trend will stop any time this season either. I can't believe that it was only two years ago that Gary Steele led Penn to a pathetic 2-8 record. Thank goodness Al Bagnoli breathed life back into this drowning program. Thanks for the memories Bags. All Penn fans owe you a lot for turning this program around so soon. And we'll all miss you when the NFL comes knocking down your door after this perfect 10-0 season. Joshua Friedman is a College junior from Beverly Hills, Calif., and a sportswriter for the Daily Pennsylvanian.
(10/21/93 9:00am)
NEW YORK – Throughout time, wars and battles have progressed dramatically. Towards the beginning of this century, World War I was fought in the trenches. The next time around, however, the world saw the creation of blitzkrieg tactics. This trend continued even until recent years when the war in the Middle East featured a high-tech United States arsenal of weapons. But on Saturday, the war returned to the trenches. The Quakers, although undersized on the defensive line, dominated Columbia from start to finish en route to their 36-7 destruction of the Lions. Penn proved once again that size is not always the most important asset for defensive linemen to possess. In fact, even though the Quaker line gave away an average of almost 25 pounds per player to the Lion offensive line, Columbia was still only able to get past the Penn 40-yard line twice – and score only once. "[Penn] beat us up front," Columbia coach Ray Tellier said following the game. "The only successful play we made in the run game was the option. Really nothing else got more than a yard or two. Especially when it was second and long and third and long, we had a hard time handling the pass rush." The Penn defensive line played at its best in the first half when it entirely shut down the Lion offense. The Quakers held Columbia to only seven rushing yards on 20 attempts. Obviously, with such little support from the running game, the Lions were forced to turn to the air attack. But unfortunately for Columbia, the air strike did not do the job either. As Tellier mentioned, the Penn pass rush's unrelenting attack held Lion senior quarterback Chad Andrzejewski to only 46 yards on 4 of 11 passing in the first half – if his last-second, 50-yard Hail Mary pass is not included. "We had some good pressure in the first half," Penn senior defensive end Dave Betten said. "That forced them to go to the quick game. They started to run more quick passes." Although the Lions' single scoring drive to begin the second half may have caught the Quakers resting on their laurels, it was not long before Penn ended Columbia's overly-optimistic comeback hopes. The Quaker defensive line reapplied the pressure and kept Andrzejewski running for his life. Penn's defensive blitz was led by Betten, who recorded two sacks, batted down one pass, forced and recovered a fumble, and had two tackles for losses. Betten, who was named Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts, received help from junior defensive end Michael Turner, who also had a sack and three tackles behind the line of scrimmage. Betten and company helped limit Andrzejewski to only 174 yards passing on the day, while completing only 40-percent of his attempts and forcing him to throw two interceptions and to scramble six times. "We practiced all week against what [Penn] showed us today," Andrzejewski said after the game. "They had good pressure from their defensive line and their linebackers were really solid in the middle." Part of the problem with this methodology may have been that Andrzejewski was practicing against the Columbia defensive players imitating the Quakers. But it's hard to copy a defense that has allowed the fewest points of any team in Ivy League games. Even though another great showing by the Quaker defense is becoming almost routine to the Penn faithful, it continues to be overshadowed by both senior quarterback Jim McGeehan and sophomore wide receiver Miles Macik as they continue their onslaught on the Penn record books. However, the defense is just as vital to the team's success. When the much-awaited showdown with Princeton takes place at Franklin Field on November 6, it will be the defensive line which will have to shut down Tiger senior tailback Keith Elias. Luckily for Penn, the Quakers rank 11th nationally in Division I-AA in both rushing and scoring defense. This ranking is simply a continuation of last season's success in which Penn finished sixth in overall defense. A ground defense may not have worked for the Iraqis in 1991, but it sure seems to be working for the Quakers. Actually, Penn's undersized but overpowering defensive line is producing the same lopsided scores as the Middle East war. But this time, the team on the ground is winning in dramatic fashion.
(10/11/93 9:00am)
HAMILTON, N.Y. – The often denounced and often lambasted Penn senior quarterback, Jim McGeehan, has heard the critics for years. For the past two seasons, McGeehan has listened to his critics as they told him he was too short. They told him he did not have a strong enough arm to play the position. The critics always came out in force whenever the Quakers lost a game. But on Saturday, in the rain and mud of Colgate's Andy Kerr Stadium, McGeehan may have finally silenced the critics for good. McGeehan exercised pinpoint precision as he dissected the Colgate defense to lead Penn to a 30-12 victory. He faced a defense prime to stop the Quaker ground attack, obviously doubting McGeehan's passing ability. However, to the Red Raiders' amazement, McGeehan had his best game of his career as he completed 22 of 32 passes for 298 yards and three touchdowns. Those 298 yards in the air ranks as the fifth-highest single-game passing total in Penn history. "[Colgate] was playing an eight-man line," Penn coach Al Bagnoli said. "When you're playing an eight-man line, you're almost daring us to throw the ball. We were just doing what they were giving us." McGeehan performed an almost perfect first half as he completed 18 of 24 pass attempts for 225 yards. However impressive these statistics are, just imagine what they could have been had a few of those incomplete passes not been dropped. McGeehan's pinpoint accuracy in this half alone was enough to single-handedly win the game as the Quakers rattled off 17 unanswered points, good for a 17-6 lead at halftime. "[Penn] was running a lot of quick hitches," Colgate senior linebacker Tony Barrett said. "When we got sucked up by the short passes, they'd throw it behind us. Or if we dropped back, they'd throw it in front of us. It was tough to defend." Taking advantage of the defensive backs is exactly what all good quarterbacks should do. On Saturday, McGeehan answered all of his critics' doubts by doing just that – taking what the defense gave him. And by the time the final gun had sounded, McGeehan had thrown for the most yards in a game by any Quaker since 1974, when Marty Vaughn threw for 326 yards against Dartmouth. This lofty feat is even more amazing since McGeehan rarely threw the ball in the second half – only attempting eight passes in the final 30 minutes. Excellent performances by McGeehan are quickly becoming the norm rather than a rarity for the rapidly maturing senior quarterback. McGeehan has thrown for over 200 yards in each of the last three games and has completed over 50 percent of his attempts in every game this season. In fact, McGeehan is on pace to become Penn's all-time leading passer and is also on pace to break the Penn record for most yards thrown in a season. Like most great quarterbacks, McGeehan was most impressive in clutch situations, especially on third downs. In the first half alone, McGeehan converted on six of nine third-down opportunities. In Penn's first drive, which resulted in an Andy Glockner field goal, McGeehan hit junior tailback Terrance Stokes over the middle for 12 yards on a key third and 11 play. Later in the first quarter, McGeehan set up the Quakers' first touchdown when he found his favorite target, sophomore receiver Miles Macik, for 29 yards on another third and long situation. "Jimmy does a good job of reading defenses and getting the ball to whoever is open," Macik said. McGeehan also rarely made a mistake. In fact, McGeehan threw only one interception in the game while he completed almost 69 percent of his passing attempts. Furthermore, on the interception the ball first bounced off Penn sophomore tight end Matt Tonelli's chest before it landed in the hands of the Colgate defense. Even more impressive, in McGeehan's 134 pass attempts this season, that was only his second one which was picked off. "It was not just the play of myself, it was the play of my receivers," McGeehan said. "I didn't get sacked once, and when you give any quarterback that kind of time, he's going to be able to do things." Ah, the final quality of a star quarterback –Emodesty. It just may be time to stop criticizing Penn's senior quarterback and instead hail the man who is on path to take the Quakers to their first Ivy League Championship since 1988.
(10/11/93 9:00am)
HAMILTON, N.Y. – The often denounced and often lambasted Penn senior quarterback, Jim McGeehan, has heard the critics for years. For the past two seasons, McGeehan has listened to his critics as they told him he was too short. They told him he did not have a strong enough arm to play the position. The critics always came out in force whenever the Quakers lost a game. But on Saturday, in the rain and mud of Colgate's Andy Kerr Stadium, McGeehan may have finally silenced the critics for good. McGeehan exercised pinpoint precision as he dissected the Colgate defense to lead Penn to a 30-12 victory. He faced a defense prime to stop the Quaker ground attack, obviously doubting McGeehan's passing ability. However, to the Red Raiders' amazement, McGeehan had his best game of his career as he completed 22 of 32 passes for 298 yards and three touchdowns. Those 298 yards in the air ranks as the fifth-highest single-game passing total in Penn history. "[Colgate] was playing an eight-man line," Penn coach Al Bagnoli said. "When you're playing an eight-man line, you're almost daring us to throw the ball. We were just doing what they were giving us." McGeehan performed an almost perfect first half as he completed 18 of 24 pass attempts for 225 yards. However impressive these statistics are, just imagine what they could have been had a few of those incomplete passes not been dropped. McGeehan's pinpoint accuracy in this half alone was enough to single-handedly win the game as the Quakers rattled off 17 unanswered points, good for a 17-6 lead at halftime. "[Penn] was running a lot of quick hitches," Colgate senior linebacker Tony Barrett said. "When we got sucked up by the short passes, they'd throw it behind us. Or if we dropped back, they'd throw it in front of us. It was tough to defend." Taking advantage of the defensive backs is exactly what all good quarterbacks should do. On Saturday, McGeehan answered all of his critics' doubts by doing just that – taking what the defense gave him. And by the time the final gun had sounded, McGeehan had thrown for the most yards in a game by any Quaker since 1974, when Marty Vaughn threw for 326 yards against Dartmouth. This lofty feat is even more amazing since McGeehan rarely threw the ball in the second half – only attempting eight passes in the final 30 minutes. Excellent performances by McGeehan are quickly becoming the norm rather than a rarity for the rapidly maturing senior quarterback. McGeehan has thrown for over 200 yards in each of the last three games and has completed over 50 percent of his attempts in every game this season. In fact, McGeehan is on pace to become Penn's all-time leading passer and is also on pace to break the Penn record for most yards thrown in a season. Like most great quarterbacks, McGeehan was most impressive in clutch situations, especially on third downs. In the first half alone, McGeehan converted on six of nine third-down opportunities. In Penn's first drive, which resulted in an Andy Glockner field goal, McGeehan hit junior tailback Terrance Stokes over the middle for 12 yards on a key third and 11 play. Later in the first quarter, McGeehan set up the Quakers' first touchdown when he found his favorite target, sophomore receiver Miles Macik, for 29 yards on another third and long situation. "Jimmy does a good job of reading defenses and getting the ball to whoever is open," Macik said. McGeehan also rarely made a mistake. In fact, McGeehan threw only one interception in the game while he completed almost 69 percent of his passing attempts. Furthermore, on the interception the ball first bounced off Penn sophomore tight end Matt Tonelli's chest before it landed in the hands of the Colgate defense. Even more impressive, in McGeehan's 134 pass attempts this season, that was only his second one which was picked off. "It was not just the play of myself, it was the play of my receivers," McGeehan said. "I didn't get sacked once, and when you give any quarterback that kind of time, he's going to be able to do things." Ah, the final quality of a star quarterback –Emodesty. It just may be time to stop criticizing Penn's senior quarterback and instead hail the man who is on path to take the Quakers to their first Ivy League Championship since 1988.
(09/30/93 9:00am)
Could anyone imagine Mike Ditka coaching anyone other than the Bears? Even more so, could anyone imagine Ditka coaching Fordham? Probably not. In fact, definitely not. But if it were not for some good breaks here and some bad breaks there, Fordham's head football coach Larry Glueck might have had Ditka's job and Ditka might have had Glueck's job. "My rookie year [playing for the Chicago Bears], we had a great defense," Glueck recalled about the 1963 Bears. "I played with Mike Ditka, who everybody knows, Richie Petitbon, the head coach of the Redskins, and Doug Adkins, who is also in the Hall of Fame." The bad break for Glueck, however, came when he tore his knee up. This may have been the single-most important event that relegated Glueck to the Patriot League while Ditka and Petitbon have gone on to coach in the National Football League. · Glueck's playing career blossomed as he helped lead Villanova to the 1962 Sun Bowl and the 1963 Liberty Bowl. Glueck remembers the Wildcats' 16-7 victory over Wichita State in '62 with great joy. However, his senior-year loss to Oregon State in the Liberty Bowl does not conjure up the same memories. "The Liberty Bowl was quite a challenge because Terry Baker was the Heisman Trophy winner and the quarterback at Oregon State," Glueck said. "He unfortunately ran 99 yards on a quarterback run. I happened to be the last guy that had a chance to tackle him. So, needless to say, whenever I go to any reunions with my teammates, they always bring that play up." Although Glueck failed to make the saving tackle, his football career was still on the way up. In the summer of '63, he was selected to play in the annual Chicago College All-Star Game. This game consisted of the premier graduating collegians in the nation challenging the defending NFL Champions. In 1963, the Vince Lombardi-led Green Bay Packers were the defending NFL champions. When Glueck saw the game films from the previous year and saw the Pack destroy the all-stars 42-20, he was more than a little bit unsettled. "I was excited to play some of the top players of the game at the time," Glueck remembered. "I happened to be a defensive back, so my job was to cover Max McGee and Boyd Dowler, who were for that time pretty outstanding receivers. "I was a little nervous. Then I watched the film from the previous year where [the Packers] destroyed the college all-star team 42-20. I was watching all the long passes that went over the defensive backs' heads. Then I was extremely nervous." Not to worry, however. The collegians came through with a terrific game to beat the legendary Packers 20-17. After this thrilling cap to a superb college career, Glueck was drafted by the Chicago Bears, where he played on the 1963 NFL Championship team with the likes of Ditka, Petitbon, Adkins and Hall of Famer Stan Jones. After his brief three-year stint for the Bears, Glueck returned home to begin his coaching career. Glueck returned to his alma mater of Villanova to earn his masters degree and coach the freshman football team. From there, he moved on to the Ivy League. His first varsity assistant coaching job came from Bob Odell at Penn. After this four-year relationship, Glueck moved on to another Ivy program – Harvard. Glueck spent 13 years as an assistant coach under Joe Restic for the Crimson, beginning in 1973. He spent his first six years coaching his former position – defensive backs. However, the job began to grow dull, so he moved to the other side of the ball to coach the offensive backfield. "Sometimes you get a little stale when you only coach one area or one side of the ball," Glueck explained. "I was looking for a new challenge. I thought it was a good move for me professionally. I was excited by the challenge and it gave me the perspective that I felt I needed on both sides of the ball." This new understanding helped to prepare Glueck for the new challenge that awaited him when he became the head coach at Fordham in 1986. "I was the basketball coach up at Harvard for eight years," Fordham Athletic Director Frank McLaughlin recalled. "Larry was an assistant coach for the football team, so we knew each other. When the coaching job [at Fordham] opened, we went through a search. We interviewed a number of people and as we narrowed the field down, I kept comparing the other guys to Larry. I just felt comfortable with him." Glueck's ability to build a football program from the ground up was evident almost immediately. In his first season at the helm for the Rams, he led the squad to a 4-5-1 record. Although his initial campaign was not extremely successful, the following season things began to turn around. Glueck led Fordham to the Liberty Conference Championship and the NCAA Division III East semi-final with a 10-2 record. Glueck's 1988 team repeated the success with a 9-2 record, good enough to take the conference title and make it to the playoffs once again. After successfully turning the Fordham program around, Glueck embarked on a new challenge – moving the Rams from Division III to Division I-AA. "I felt very good that we had changed the whole program around and suddenly the Patriot League invited us in," Glueck said. "We have basically struggled since then. That's been frustrating, but certainly from a challenge stand-point, I have the biggest challenge in the world." Glueck may be understating Fordham's lack of success in Division I-AA when he says that his squads have "struggled." In fact, the Rams have amassed a less than stellar 6-35 record since the move to the Patriot League in 1989. Although the future of the Fordham football program looks bleak now, Glueck is in this for the long haul. "I'm determined that we're going to try to get this thing done," Glueck said. "I think we're making progress, we just haven't seen it up on the scoreboard. We've lost some tough games. I see the light at the end of the tunnel, we just have to get to the end of the tunnel. Hopefully it's going to be soon." One thing is for sure. Glueck still has a head-coaching job while Ditka is now watching games from the media booth. Although this may not make up for the different paths their careers took, Glueck seems happy where he is. "I don't have any regrets," Glueck said. "Everybody goes down a different path in terms of their coaching experience. I've always coached at academic schools. I think that's where I belong."
