ITHACA, N.Y. - To the names Irvin, Olson and Garton, add McNally. The Penn quarterback position seems to have an injury hex on it, but Brendan McNally stepped into the role on Saturday and avoided disaster. McNally spelled the injured sophomore starter Keiffer Garton in the first quarter of Penn's 23-6 victory over Cornell and hardly missed a beat, even if he did resemble a tailback more than a signal caller.

The time has come when I've begun to think about my post-collegiate future. I'm not talking about a career. Instead, I'm wondering about what to do with all the extra knowledge we've acquired over the last four years. In my case at least, as an Urban Studies major, I'm writing a thesis because I have to.

The season's first three games have provided three fundamental takeaways: UNC without Hansbrough is still UNC, Drexel coach Bruiser Flint should have his own reality show and the Red and Blue still haven't found that one, central voice to lead their young squad.

Playing a fantasy sports game online is one thing, but creating one, attracting one million users and then selling it, is another. And that's what Wharton junior Boris Silver did when he combined his passions for sports and the Internet to create Total Sports Fan, a Facebook application that lets users feature their favorite sports and teams on their profile.

This past Friday and Saturday, The Daily Pennsylvanian held elections for its next leaders. After holding interviews and deliberations for nearly 20 hours, we chose the members of the DP's 125th Board of Editors and Managers. The new Board will officially commence on the occasion of our annual banquet, which will be held January 24, 2009.

I never much considered the way the health of my University was tied to the well-being of the financial markets. It is perhaps a naive state of mind, considering the presence of dear Wharton on our campus, but I always imagined that universities held a special position above the fray of economic cycles.

On Wednesday, the Asian Pacific Student coalition, an umbrella organization for 20 Asian-Pacific student organizations, elected Wharton junior Raymond Flores as its new chairman. Flores, who is originally from the Philippines, currently serves as the vice president of Cultural Programming for the Penn Philippine Association and is a member of the bid team to bring the East Coast Asian American Students Union Conference to Penn.

See the scene at last night's Big Man on Campus event.

There's no time to rest for Penn women's swimming. Despite a bevy of injuries, a season-opening loss to Columbia last Sunday and only a six-day break between meets, the Quakers have to gear up for a tri-meet with Princeton and Cornell this weekend. And regardless of the short amount of recovery time, practices this week have remained grueling.

How's this for a busy opening weekend? The wrestling team starts its 2008-09 campaign with dual matches against Princeton and No. 9 Michigan tomorrow at the Palestra, and then on Sunday, it hosts nine other teams in the all-day Keystone Classic. "It's going to be a grind," coach Rob Eiter said.

If the Penn football team somehow makes it out of the weekend with a share of the Ivy league title, it wouldn't be the most bizarre happening of the past few seasons. As the Quakers face Cornell on the road tomorrow, their only chance at the Ivy crown comes in the form of a four-way tie, which would be a League first.

The trek down Locust Walk just got a little brighter. Over the past two weeks, Penn has been installing its annual light displays along the trees lining Locust Walk, a winter tradition that dates back to 1995. Prior to that, sporadic holiday displays were put up around the center of campus.

With tomorrow's home opener against Monmouth looming, Penn men's basketball coach Glen Miller is keeping it close to the vest. Will the starting lineup feature seniors Brennan Votel and Kevin Egee, who are coming off strong performances? No comment. What's the status of the injured Justin Reilly, Aron Cohen, Tommy McMahon, Andreas Schreiber, Mike Howlett and Darren Smith? No comment.

Everyone knows that when there's a train wreck, it's impossible to turn away. And when local news anchors reporting on these disasters become the train wrecks themselves, it's even harder. The gods of guilty pleasure are surely smiling down on us, allowing this calamity to play out right before our very own television-strained eyes.

Tonight, Penn students will be strutting their stuff on campus, modeling the artistic creations of over 10 student designers. Smaller than its spring edition, the annual Dzine2Show fall fashion show is a sample of the dedication and success of the University's premier fashion organization, which was founded in 2003.

It was too good to be true. With over 5 million votes registered, Drexel University had overwhelmed the Victoria's Secret online poll to become the first school to be added to the Pink Collegiate Collection. The nearest competition - Texas Tech and George Mason University -trailed behind Drexel by at least two million votes.

Thanksgiving on Penn's campus is one of the quietest times of year. There are no office hours or classes and few unlocked doors. Wandering down Locust Walk becomes a solitary experience. The peace and quiet here belie the communal gatherings happening indoors - in kitchens over glasses of cider and wine, around crowded dining room tables, and - yes - in front of the television.