Penn Notes

The Bulldogs fell to the Quakers 13-20 on Saturday in Philadelphia. Yale dropped to 2-1 in the Ivy League with Penn and Princeton remaining atop the league at 3-0.

The offense struggled to find sustained success against a tough Penn defense. Grooms had a poor outing in the passing game with just 11 completions for 125 yards, no touchdowns, and an interception. Several crucial passes were inaccurate and he seemed to hold onto the ball for too long in collapsing pockets. Pass blocking issues and lackluster play calling did not aid Grooms in the contest. Penn’s defensive line was able to generate consistent pass pressure as well as deflect a number of passes. The offensive line did find some success in the running game paving the way for 167 rushing yards or 5.2 yards per carry. Pitsenberger rushed 8 times for 89 yards and scored the sole touchdown for the Bulldogs. It was a quiet day in the receiving corps outside of two long passing plays to Tipton and Pantelis. Yale has still not found a reliable way to get their receivers the ball downfield in medium to long yardage situations. Penn was able to neutralize the wide receiver screens forcing Grooms into uncomfortable passing scenarios. The coaching staff did not adjust the gameplan as time went on sticking to predictable plays that stalled out drives. On the other side of the field, Penn was pulling out all their trick plays to swing momentum in their favor.

The Bulldogs were able to shut down the Quakers’ rushing attack limiting them to just 46 yards on the day. The passing game was a different story with Penn throwing for 351 yards on 30 completions. Corners were giving up far too much space to receivers off the line leading to easy catches all day for Penn. Safety support on passes was nearly non-existent with Quakers often streaking open downfield. The trick plays were backbreakers and every Ivy League opponent on the rest of the schedule is sure to attempt one. Nickerson, Patterson and McDonough all made terrific plays along the defensive line but the loss of Oso has really hindered the consistency of the pass rush. Freshman Da’Quan Gonzales saw extended time at corner. It’s never a good sign to see the top four tacklers being defensive backs with Ellis, Owens, Oldacre and Guyton combining for 31 tackles. The secondary will need to improve in a dramatic fashion to contain some of the high-flying offenses such as Princeton’s.

Bosman had a great performance with 2 key field goals including a 46-yarder. On 4 punts, Bosman averaged 39.2 yards and placed one inside the red zone. Abraham was very impressive on punt and kickoff coverage squads.

Next up: Columbia!