Former Penn football quarterback Alek Torgersen saw his first NFL action on August 10, stepping in under center for the Atlanta Falcons in a preseason Thursday night game against the Miami Dolphins.

Rising junior and defending first team All-Ivy cornerback Mason Williams led the Ancient Eight with six interceptions in a breakout sophomore season, but the rising star is taking his talents to the ACC.

Lights! Camera! Penn football? After it’s second straight shared Ivy League championship in 2016, Penn football will once again be in the spotlight in 2017 with nine of the team’s games scheduled to be televised. 

But while there aren’t many questions regarding who will take the field when the 2017 season rolls around, it’s no secret that one uncertainty still hangs over the squad, one that by and large may determine whether Penn can turn its three-peat dreams into a reality — who’s going to be calling the shots on offense?

Penn football, women’s soccer, and field hockey all recently released their fall 2017 schedules. The Quakers are looking forward to a competitive and successful season across the athletics department. 

After one year at Penn, quarterback Michael Collins has announced his transfer to FBS Texas Christian University. As the heir apparent to Torgersen, Collins was expected to take the reins behind center in the program’s quest for a third straight Ivy Championship. Instead, he heads to Fort Worth to join an already crowded quarterback room.

While finals were ending and seniors were preparing for their last goodbyes at graduation, the Penn football team began a new era by announcing the incoming class of 2021.

Many expected Torgersen to be drafted, at least in the last round on Saturday, but the senior quarterback had to watch on as all 253 picks were revealed without his name in them. He was ranked by ESPN as the 10th best quarterback prospect — 10 quarterbacks were drafted, including those ranked one through nine, and number 11. 

That touchdown pass was more than a key play in a regular season game. It was the moment Penn football was put back on the map. It was the moment Alek Torgersen burst onto the scene. And most of all, it was the first glimpse at a potential NFL quarterback.

As the 2016-17 school year nears its close, there have been some incredible Penn Athletics feats to reflect upon. But with so many Penn teams having such thorough success this year, there’s one natural question to ask — which one was best? DP Sports set out to find out.

The sun was shining down on Franklin Field on Sunday afternoon for Penn football’s annual intersquad spring game. Unlike most traditional Division I spring games, the Quakers don’t keep score, but rather simulate realistic in-game situations with full contact and referees.

When one envisions a two-sport athlete, images of superhuman athleticism coupled with instant collegiate stardom may come to mind. But some two-sport competitors start like most other college athletes — being recruited for one sport.

330 players were invited to one of the final chances to prove their worth to scouts before the NFL Draft in April. Of those, 15 quarterbacks were invited — a small number, but Torgersen was ranked by Sports Illustrated as the 10th best QB available for the NFL Draft, and more recently even moved up to eighth on the list.

Terrell Owens is hands down one of the greatest wide receivers in NFL history. Yet, for the second straight year he has failed to be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The fact that less than the 80 percent of the 48-person selection committee voted to induct him yet again is a joke.

This Sunday, Tom Brady will start his seventh Super Bowl, and it makes me so hopeful about Penn football. Yes, you read that sentence right. Penn football and the Super Bowl? How are those even remotely related beyond that fact that they're part of the same sport? The answer lies in our quarterback, and NFL draft hopeful, Alek Torgersen.

If there were ever a football version of on-campus recruiting, the East-West Shrine game would come pretty close.

Penn football’s Alek Torgersen has been ranked as the No. 10 quarterback prospect in this year’s NFL Draft by Sports Illustrated.