Author: Moderator

The Yale Bulldogs host the Brown Bears on Saturday at the Bowl. Kickoff is slated for 12 PM ET and the game will air on ESPN+.

The Bears enter the contest with a 3-4 overall record and a 2-2 record in conference play. Brown sent shockwaves through the Ivy League with a 31-28 victory over Harvard in Week 2 and defeated Cornell 23-21 in a close contest weeks later. Penn jumped out to an early 21-7 lead last week against Brown and held off a late comeback from the Bears to win 38-28.

Senior QB Jake Willcox (6’2”, 215 lbs.) leads the Bears offense and was a 2^nd Team All-Ivy selection a year ago after leading the Ivy League in passing yards. Willcox has completed 62.5% of his passes this season with 9 touchdowns and 8 interceptions. The Bears are able to score in a hurry to claw back into contests as Willcox seems to heat up in the second halves. Willcox is a decent scrambler when the pocket collapses and has rushed for 242 yards and a touchdown. Freshman RB Matt Childs (6’0”, 200 lbs.) is the top ball carrier for the Bears with 4.3 yards per carry and 2 touchdowns on the season. Childs is also very dangerous as a receiver out of the backfield with 20 catches for 289 yards and 2 touchdowns. Senior RB Stockton Owen (6’1”, 215 lbs.) splits carries with Childs and was an Honorable Mention All-Ivy performer in 2023. Junior WR Solomon Miller (5’11”, 185 lbs.) is an explosive athlete who can stretch opposing coverages. Miller leads Brown in both receptions and receiving yards with 23 catches for 320 yards. Senior WR Mark Mahoney (6’5”, 240 lbs.) has the speed of a wideout and the size of a tight end. Mahoney leads the Bears in touchdown receptions with 4 and caught 2 touchdown passes against Harvard. Junior WR Chason Barber (6’5”, 215 lbs.) is Tiki Barber’s son and gives the Bears another large target to exploit smaller defensive backs. The Bears’ offensive line averages 294.0 lbs. across the board and is led by senior Jack Connolly (6’4”, 315 lbs.), a 1^st Team All-Ivy Leaguer a year ago. Offensive line play has been up and down for the Bears as Brown averages 3.6 yards per carry and has allowed 14 sacks. Coach James Perry has a very aggressive offensive philosophy and is seldom shy of fourth down attempts even at midfield. The Bears have converted on 61.9% of their fourth down attempts this season but have not been as efficient on third down attempts with just a 44.1% conversion rate. Success on defense this week will rely on limiting the mental errors as Brown’s varied attack will stress all levels of the defense and Perry will not be afraid to dig deep into his playbook for trick plays.

Brown’s defense hasn’t matched the offense’s performance surrendering an average of 401.1 yards per game. Senior DB Tim Malo (6’1”, 200 lbs.) has been the top defender for the Bears with 51 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 2 interceptions. Senior DB Isaiah Reed (6’0”, 185 lbs.) was a 1^st Team All-Ivy selection in 2023 and is a potential NFL prospect, although injuries have limited him to just 4 games this season. Brown has a solid corps of linebackers in Sam Smith (6’0”, 230 lbs.), Caleb Moorhead (6’4”, 245 lbs.) and John Perdue (6’0”, 240 lbs.). Moorhead earned an Honorable Mention All-Ivy nod in 2023 and has made a living in the backfield with 8 tackles for loss. Senior DL Kyle Philbin (6’4”, 295 lbs.) was another Honorable Mention All-Ivy performer in 2023 and has 18 tackles with a sack on the season. Senior Quincy Eutsay (6’2”, 240 lbs.) and junior Owen Clarke (6’3”, 245 lbs.) are tied for the team lead in sacks with 2 apiece. Penn was able to lean heavily on the rushing attack with 4.1 yards per carry while keeping the Bears’ secondary off-balance with 247 passing yards and 2 passing touchdowns. Yale will need long, sustained drives that result in touchdowns to keep pace with the Bears in this matchup. The offensive line needs to bounce back with a stellar performance to spring Pitsenberger and Peterson loose in the ground game. Jordan will have opportunities against Brown’s secondary, but the offensive staff cannot rely on low probability deep shots to keep the chains moving.

Senior K Christopher Maron (5’10”, 180 lbs.) is 7 of 12 on field goal attempts with a long of 44 yards this season. Senior P Austin Alley (5’10”, 180 lbs.) has played well with a punting average of 39.7 yards and 10 punts placed inside the redzone. Both punt and kickoff coverage teams will need to have a strong showing as giving the Bears great field advantage will be a recipe for disaster.

Go Bulldogs! Beat the Bears!

Yale reached a recent program low with a 10-13 loss in New York City against Columbia on Friday night on national television. The Bulldogs are tied for last place in the Ivy League despite favorable matchups against backup quarterbacks for the Big Green and Lions.

Jordan was off target in the passing game for most of the night and was not aided by the awful play calling. Jordan finished with just 151 passing yards as overthrows and poor pass blocking doomed the Elis in the contest. Pitsenberger and Peterson combined for 100 rushing yards but were often swarmed by tacklers at the line of scrimmage. Peterson tripped up with open grass ahead of him on what could have been the longest rushing play of the evening. The offensive line failed to get to the second level in the running game and allowed Columbias linebackers to freely wreak havoc. Facing a 3-man defensive front from Columbia, it’s simply inexcusable to not have hands on the linebackers on all running plays. St. Aubyn had a backbreaking holding call on the final drive and the line failed to pick up a blitz on 3rd down with the game on the line. Columbia only recorded one sack on Jordan, yet he was never fully comfortable in the pocket. Yale’s lone touchdown came on a 24-yard pass to Denney in the second quarter and the Bulldogs were only able to add 3 points in the second half as drives quickly stalled out. Pantelis led the receiving corps with 6 catches for 52 yards but dropped a first down after a big hit. Shipp couldn’t hold onto a long diving grab and finished with just 2 catches for 20 yards. Felton was a bright spot with 5 catches for 39 yards. Overall, it was a giant step backwards in performance from the offensive line, quarterback and coaching staff that led to this defeat.

Despite the low score, the defensive performance was also a letdown. Columbia was able to run and pass at will with second stringers at various positions. Gonzalez, Guyton, Tarver and Webster were torched often in coverage, and Guyton gave up the winning score on a long throw to Columbia’s Canty. The defensive line was pushed around in the running game and the linebackers were easily neutralized by the Lions as they averaged 4.8 yards per carry. Columbia’s quarterback rushed for 82 yards as the Bulldogs have yet to find a way to slow quarterbacks in the running game. Yang returned from an injury but failed to make much of an impact as he wound up being pancaked by a tight end on a long quarterback run to seal the game. McDonough was one of the lone bright spots with 6 tackles and a sack. The Bulldogs were fortunate that Gonzalez forced a fumble early on that stopped a Columbia drive at Yale’s 11-yard line.

Conforti missed a 42-yard field goal that came back to bite the Bulldogs and has really struggled on field goals longer than 40 yards all season. Punt coverage was lackluster and gave Columbia great field advantage on two occasions. Unfortunately, the highlight of the game was Florio’s 58-yard punt.

The Bulldogs travel to the Big Apple this week for another Friday night contest at Columbia. Kickoff is slated for 7 PM ET and the game will air on ESPNU.

Columbia enters the contest with a 4-2 record (2-1 Ivy League) with close losses to Georgetown and Dartmouth. Dartmouth defeated Columbia by a score of 24-21 last week in New York but the Lions prevailed versus the Tigers and Quakers earlier in October.

Junior QB Cole Freeman (6’0”, 205 lbs.) will make his second start of the season after sophomore QB Chase Goodwin (6’2”, 215 lbs.) suffered a knee injury last week. Freeman has played in all six contests this season for the Lions and has completed 55.1% of his passes for 447 yards, 6 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. Freeman is a dual threat transfer from Northwestern who leads the Lions with 2 rushing touchdowns. Senior RB Joey Giorgi (5’10”, 205 lbs.) has played very well this season averaging an astounding 6.1 yards per carry. Senior RB Malcolm Terry II (5’9”, 210 lbs.) is a former Navy transfer who gives Columbia a solid second option out of the backfield. Senior WR Bryson Canty (6’2”, 205 lbs.) was a 1^st Team All-Ivy selection in 2022 and has dominated opponents with 28 catches for 387 yards and 6 touchdowns. Junior WR Edan Stagg (6’1”, 180 lbs.) is also heavily targeted with 24 catches for 277 yards and a touchdown. Our linebackers and safeties will need to keep an eye on sophomore TE Braden Dougherty (6’5”, 245 lbs.) who has scored twice on receptions. Columbia’s offensive line averages 308.0 lbs. across the board and has been very efficient in run blocking with the Lions averaging 4.8 yards per carry as a team. Pass blocking is one area of weakness for Columbia as the Lions have given up 13 sacks on the season. Dartmouth was able to slow Columbia’s rushing attack to just 2.4 yards per carry and force Columbia into obvious passing situations which allowed the Big Green to rack up 4 sacks. Yale will need another great performance out of the front seven to stymy Giorgi, Freeman and Terry in the rushing game while limiting the mental errors in the secondary against a deep unit of receivers.

Columbia’s defense is led by senior LB Anthony Roussos (5’11”, 225 lbs.) who was a 1^st Team All-Ivy performer in 2023 and is second on the team in tackles with 43. Senior LB Rocco Milia (6’2”, 225 lbs.) leads the team with 44 tackles and has been equally impressive in pass coverage with 3 pass breakups. Columbia’s defensive line is a notch below Dartmouth’s defensive line in terms of talent but does a tremendous job of keeping blockers off of the linebackers. The defensive line is led by senior DL Patrick Passalacqua (6’2”, 295 lbs.) who has 22 tackles and a forced fumble on the season. Senior DL Justin Townsend (6’1”, 255 lbs.) notched 13.5 sacks a year ago but has not been seen in recent weeks due to an injury. The Lions’ secondary limited Dartmouth’s aerial assault to just 70 yards a week ago. Columbia’s defensive backfield features 3 returning starters from 2023 and has intercepted opposing quarterbacks on 7 occasions. Senior DB Hayden McDonald (5’9”, 180 lbs.) has had a stellar season thus far with 41 tackles and 3 interceptions. Senior DB Carter McFadden (5’11”, 180 lbs.) was an honorable mention All-Ivy selection last year and has 3 interceptions with 7 pass breakups. Senior DB Aaron Brebnor (6’1”, 195 lbs.) has seen action since his freshman season and has 22 tackles, 2 tackles for loss and an interception. Getting blockers on Columbia’s talented linebackers will be crucial in this contest to establish the running game. Jordan will need to shy away from heaving balls into tight coverage against the experienced defensive backs who have an aptitude for intercepting passes.

Sophomore K Hugo Merry (6’2”, 190 lbs.) has made 8 of 10 field goal attempts with a long of 43 yards. Senior P William Hughes (6’0”, 175 lbs.) was a unanimous 1^st Team All-Ivy selection in 2023 and is averaging an impressive 41.3 yards per punt. McFadden is a dangerous punt returner who always seems to be one tackle away from breaking a punt return loose for a touchdown.

Go Bulldogs! Beat the Lions!

The Bulldogs put together their most complete game of the season with a 31-10 victory over Penn at Franklin Field. Yale moves to 4-2 on the season with a tough Friday night matchup at Columbia this week.

Grant Jordan got back into rhythm completing 80.0% of his passes for 289 yards, 4 touchdowns and one interception. Pantelis had some of the most impressive receptions in Yale’s history on his way to 123 receiving yards and a touchdown. Shipp and Nenad were both banged up at times but fought through injuries with 7 catches for 70 yards and 4 catches for 36 yards respectively. Nenad displayed surprising power on his touchdown reception as he bowled his way through defenders at the goal line for a score. Santiago and Felton added another 54 receiving yards combined while Belk, Mermans and Foster filled in admirably for the injured Yates at tight end. The offensive line had another great outing as they paved the way for 5.9 yards per carry and did not allow a sack against a tough front from Penn. Lewis had a false start and missed a few blocks, but overall, the linemen continue to build momentum as the season progresses. Pitsenberger led the squad in rushing with 83 yards and broke tackles with ease. Peterson ripped off 80 rushing yards on just 10 carries while Jordan had impactful rushes for 25 yards. Yale averaged 7.6 yards per play and was able to dominate the time of possession as the Bulldogs held the ball for over 34 minutes. There’s still room for improvement on 3^rd downs where Yale struggled with just 5 conversions on 12 attempts. With 497 yards of total offense though, the staff and players deserve tremendous praise for an excellent week of preparation.

Despite the absence of Gulley, Yang and Shaffer, the Bulldogs limited Penn to under 200 yards of total offense. Hosley was kept in check in the ground game as he posted just 3.7 yards per carry. After Pantelis’ special teams blunder gave Penn the ball in great field position, Kamara changed the entire trajectory of the contest with a strip sack of Sayin that injured the talented signal caller. Kamara led the defense in tackles with 7 to go along with a sack, a forced fumble and an interception. Having Kamara, Daniyan and Tarver on the field at the same time did wonders for the defensive scheme. Biggs had his best performance of the season with 5 solo tackles and Ayo-Durojaiye played more at the inside linebacker position than we’ve seen previously. Phoenix Grant played well at linebacker and combined with Egodogbare for a touchdown saving tackle on a goal line stand. Egodogbare was a dominant force at the defensive tackle position with 6 solo tackles and a tackle for loss. Yale’s pass rush was finally able to make an impact with Tyler posting 1.5 sacks, McDonough notching a sack, and Jourdain adding another half a sack. Yale rotated defensive linemen often to keep the front seven fresh and saw great performances out of Jackson-Bass, Tate and Cave. Aside from a few mental mistakes, coverage was solid as Penn completed just 40.0% of passes. Richardson was held to only one catch for 11 yards after torching the Bulldogs a year ago. The quarterback rushes are still a concern moving forward as Penn’s backup Liam O’Brien rushed for 4.7 yards per carry and a touchdown.

Conforti was perfect on PATs and made his only field goal attempt on a 22-yard try in the 4^th quarter. Florio averaged 37.0 yards per punt, placed one punt inside the redzone, and had a nice tackle. Outside of Pantelis’ error on the punt return, execution was much improved on special teams.

The Bulldogs travel to Philadelphia to square off against the Penn Quakers in a nationally televised Friday night game. Kickoff is slated for 7 PM ET and the game will air on ESPNU.

Penn enters the contest with a 2-3 record after dropping close games to Dartmouth (17-20) and Columbia (17-23).

Penn’s offense has yet to hit its stride despite overwhelming talent at the skill positions. Senior QB Aidan Sayin (6’2”, 210 lbs.) shredded the Bulldogs for 364 passing yards a season ago but has not been as accurate this season with just a 60.6% completion rate with 6 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. Sophomore RB Malachi Hosley (5’10”, 205 lbs.) was a 1^st Team All-Ivy performer in his freshman season and has the talent to start at most FBS programs. Hosley is averaging 5.9 yards per carry and has reached the endzone 5 times in 5 games. Sophomore RB Jamal Bing, Jr. (5’9”, 190 lbs.) has also excelled this season rushing for 4.9 yards per carry and a touchdown. The Quakers’ receiving corps could be the one of the most talented units across the FCS. Junior WR Jared Richardson (6’2”, 215 lbs.) could not be covered by Yale in 2023 and leads Penn in receiving yards with 331 yards on 22 catches. Senior WR Julien Stokes (5’7”, 180 lbs.) was a 1^st Team All-Ivy receiver in 2022 and leads the Quakers in receptions with 25. Junior WR Bisi Owens (6’4”, 215 lbs.) is yet another dangerous receiver who has racked up 201 receiving yards and a touchdown. Senior WR Josh Casilli (6’0”, 190 lbs.) is a team captain who had a 32-yard reception at Yale a year ago. Senior TE Bryce Myers (6’3”, 230 lbs.) was an honorable mention All-Ivy player in 2023 and is the most active tight end in the passing game that we’ve seen this season. Penn’s offensive line averages 303.0 lbs. across the board and always seems to pose a problem for Yale. Columbia was able to stuff Penn’s running game by winning battles up front, so the Bulldogs’ defensive linemen and linebackers will need to have their best game of the season to mimic this blueprint. Penn’s receiving corps is too deep to simply double cover a player such as Richardson. Generating pressure on Sayin and not letting any receivers get behind the secondary will be keys to a successful outcome.

Penn’s stingy defense is led by a trio of standout linebackers. Junior LB Kadari Machen (6’0”, 205 lbs.) leads the Quakers in tackles with 41. Senior LB Jack Fairman (6’1”, 225 lbs.) was a William V. Campbell Trophy semifinalist in 2023 and is second on the team in tackles with 38. Junior LB John Lista (6’1”, 215 lbs.) has 33 tackles on the season and was difficult for the Bulldogs to contain in 2023. Senior S Shiloh Means (5’11”, 205 lbs.) was a 1^st Team All-Ivy defender and leads the team with 5 pass breakups. Senior S Julian Talley (5’9”, 180 lbs.) has played well as he leads the secondary in tackles with 32 and is also tied for the team lead in sacks with 2. Penn’s cornerbacks are not as accomplished as their safeties which should give Yale favorable matchups in the passing game. Senior DL Sam Carlson (6’4”, 270 lbs.) has been the most productive defensive linemen for the Quakers with 18 tackles, 3 tackles for loss and a forced fumble. Junior DL Carter Janki (6’5”, 285 lbs.) has performed well with 15 tackles and 1.5 sacks. Penn’s defensive line is on par with Dartmouth’s in terms of talent, although the Quakers seem to have a deeper rotation. The Quakers’ front seven have stuffed the Bulldogs over the past two seasons, so Yale’s greatest challenge offensively will be finding ways to spring Pitsenberger and Peterson loose. Jordan will also need to get back into the rhythm in the passing game to keep Penn from stacking the box.

Junior K Sam Smith (5’10”, 185 lbs.) is 6 of 8 on field goal attempts with a long of 43 yards. Senior P Albert Jang (6’2”, 200 lbs.) has been exceptional with a punting average of 43.0 yards with 3 punts greater than 50 yards. Stokes is a very dangerous kick returner averaging 30.6 yards per return.

Go Bulldogs! Beat the Quakers!  

The Bulldogs concluded their non-conference play with a 38-23 victory over Lehigh at home. Yale moves to 3-2 on the season with an unblemished non-conference record, but the pressure is now on for a 5-0 run to finish the season.

The offensive line was the star of the contest as the linemen paved the way for 6.5 yards per carry and three rushing touchdowns. Peterson finally found some open space in the running game and was able to rush for 98 yards on just 12 carries. Peterson’s 57-yard touchdown late in the third quarter was a dagger to Lehigh. Pitsenberger added 68 yards and a touchdown while Denney was solid as well with 46 yards. Jordan was not sacked and was very elusive when scrambling and rushing. The passing game never hit its stride with Jordan throwing an ugly interception early on and forcing too many passes deep into coverage. Shipp, Felton, Nenad and Pantelis all performed with the limited opportunities given. Yates was unfortunately injured and Luke Foster filled in at tight end. The offensive line combination of St. Aubyn, Sullivan, Smith, Charron, and Bennett seems to be giving Yale more push up front than we saw earlier in the season. Sophomore Quinton Lewis has also rotated in often at guard giving the Bulldogs an experienced core for the future. If Yale can sharpen up the play calling and execution in the passing game while continuing to improve in run blocking, it will be tough for Ivy defenses to slow the Bulldogs down.

Shaffer and Yang did not participate due to injuries and Gulley appeared to be injured after a harsh landing into the turf. Lehigh gashed the depleted run defense with 6.8 yards per carry and three rushing touchdowns. The front seven failed to get off blocks and fill gaps leaving the safeties to make touchdown saving tackles if possible. The defense kept Yale in control by producing 4 turnovers. Kamara stripped a running back after a long dash and Da’Quan Gonzales returned a poorly placed pass for a touchdown. Tarver could be the highest performing defender through the first five games and picked off two passes to go along with 8 tackles. Guyton struggled early on with a pass interference penalty and wasn’t seen later in the contest with Thompson and Gonzales manning the corner spots. Gonzales was burned for a possible touchdown but luckily the pass was dropped by Lehigh. Egodogbare and Jackson-Bass were difficult for Lehigh to contain at times. The linebackers continue to be a problematic position producing just 4 solo tackles out of the starting trio on Saturday. The defense will need to have its best week of practice this week as Penn features the best quarterback, running back, and wide receiver that Yale has faced all season.

Conforti nailed a 40-yard field goal on his only attempt and was 5 of 5 on PATs. Florio had a 38.8-yard punting average with one punt placed inside the redzone. The kickoff team remains an area of concern as Lehigh’s top returner averaged 27.2 yards per kick return.