226 yards and four touchdowns.
Last year, Penn running back Tim Ortman torched the sprint football team with those numbers, leading the Quakers to a 49-12 rout in Weaver Stadium to close out the season.
Ortman's gone — lost to graduation — but Penn still poses several problems for the Tigers going into tonight's home opener.
"They have a real tough defensive line," head coach Keith Wadsworth said. "Our offensive line is going to have its hands full. They don't get a lot of notice, but they take pride in the fact that they haven't given up a sack."
To make matters worse, the skill in Penn's defense extends well beyond its line. In their season opener, the Quakers (1-0) held Cornell to just 57 total yards on offense on their way to a 20-0 win, racking up seven sacks. Linebacker John Clarke recorded nine tackles, including three for a loss.
In addition to a tough defense, several Penn offensive players had strong games against the Big Red. Running back Mark Gannon and quarterback John Kernan both tallied over 100 yards on the ground and in the air, respectively.
Kernan, however, also threw three interceptions, which could be important given the experience of the Tiger secondary.
While Penn was impressive in its win against Cornell, Princeton (0-1) also had some measure of offensive success against the Big Red. The Tigers have been working overtime this week to address the mistakes that were made in the heartbreaking 16-13 loss.
"We've changed special teams packages and added a lot of double tight end [formations on offense]," senior captain and tight end Mike Piazza said. "Our special teams kind of backfired in the last game."
"We've been working on our passing game and our option game," Wadsworth said.
It was a failed option play that let the Big Red come back in a game that had been dominated by the Tigers.
The major question regarding tonight's game will be which Princeton offense shows up — the one from the first half of the Cornell game or the one from the second half?
"We're going to have to bring our 'A' game," Piazza said. Piazza scored the final touchdown for the Tigers in last year's loss to Penn.
In the first half last week, Princeton dominated the game on the offensive side. Several injuries, however, led to a mistake-riddled second half. Junior running back Ryan Goudge, who suffered a light concussion against Cornell, will miss the Penn game with a deep thigh bruise.
Without Goudge, the Tigers will look to sophomore Christian Gomez to start at halfback in tonight's game. Princeton is prepared, however, to run a "running back by committee" style of offense in tonight's game. Even Piazza, the starting tight end, could see time if the need arises.
"We've been working with a number of people in the backfield, trying to improve our depth," Wadsworth said.
Ki-shawn
The Tigers hope to use their ground game to free up last week's Collegiate Sprint Football League Offensive Player of the Week Ki Moon. Moon was hindered by a shoulder injury in last week's game, but will start against Penn.
If the running attack never materializes, Moon's downfield speed could be even more crucial.
"He's just a big play kind of guy," Piazza said. Moon had five receptions, including one touchdown in the loss to Cornell.
On the defensive side, the Tigers will have to find a way to neutralize a different 100-yard runner coming out of the Penn backfield. Instead of just Ortman, Princeton will have to deal with the threat of a more balanced offense.
"They're a pretty complete team," Piazza said. "We're trying to be better prepared."
"We definitely have a great shot at beating Penn," Wadsworth said.
To avoid a repeat of last season's final game, and exorcise the ghost of Ortman's dominating performance, Princeton will have to put together an entire game of solid play — not just one half.
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