Brown Preview

The Bulldogs host the Brown Bears on Saturday at the Bowl.  You can watch the game on ESPN+ at 1 PM ET.

Brown enters the contest at 1-6 (0-4 Ivy) after a six point loss to Penn last weekend in Providence.  The Bears average 201 passing yards per game and a meager 87 yards rushing per game.  Sophomore QB Michael McGovern has completed 121 of 237 attempts for 1409 yards, 5 touchdowns and 6 interceptions.  Junior WR Jakob Prall is McGovern’s favorite target and is averaging over 17 yards per reception.  Prall’s fellow wideouts Jaelon Blandburg and LJ Harriott are dangerous receiving threats as well.  Anton Casey is a big tight end who runs crisp routes, although he did not play last week versus Penn.  Freshman RB Allen Smith leads the Bears with 175 rushing yards, but he may be hurt as well.  Junior RB Andrew Bolton started at running back last week rushing for just 18 yards.  Brown was forced to utilize wide receivers Scott Boylan and LJ Harriott to support the rushing attack against the Quakers.  Brown’s offensive line has been inconsistent in both run blocking and pass blocking.  When Brown’s offense is firing on all cylinders, they can move the ball down the field quickly, but too often they have been unable to sustain drives due to poor blocking, inaccurate passes and dropped receptions.

Senior LB Daniel Aidman leads the Brown Bears in tackles with 62.  Junior defensive lineman Michael Hoecht is arguably the most talented player on the roster and he’s had an impressive season with 53 tackles, 5 tackles for losses and 2.5 sacks.  Opposing offenses have had success running the ball on the Bears with an average of 267 rushing yards per game.  Penn’s Karekin Brooks ran for 246 yards in the recent contest.  Brown’s defense has fared better in the passing game allowing 205 yards per game.  That stat could be misleading though as teams with large leads over Brown were running the ball to burn the clock late in contests.  The secondary has allowed 15 passing touchdowns and intercepted just 5 passes on the season.

On special teams, Brown’s punter Ryan Kopec has averaged 39.4 yards per punt, while kicker Dylan Brady is 6 of 9 on field goal attempts.

Brown’s coaches seem to be on the hot seat due to the poor performance of the squad, so expect them to pull out all the stops this week in an attempt to best the Elis.