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Around the Ivies: Football

The Ancient Eight kicked off their seasons last weekend, and, though they had a late start, some of the Ivy League teams have already made a big impact. Below, we try to make sense of the Ivy League’s season openers:

Penn (1-0): The Quakers only won by six on opening day, but they were in command of Lafayette throughout. The Leopards threatened with two touchdowns in the final quarter, but the game only got close because Penn built up such a comfortable lead thanks to star quarterback Billy Ragone, who was picked off in his first attempt of 2013 but quickly rallied, going 21-28 for 218 yards and two touchdowns before leaving the game after the third quarter. The defending Ivy champions looked equally good defensively, recording six sacks and picking off two passes.

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Harvard (1-0): Fans of the other seven Ivies may have been dismayed by how quickly junior quarterback Conner Hempel filled the hole left by Colton Chappel. In his first career start, Hempel threw for 345 yards and four touchdowns as the Crimson led the University of San Diego throughout and left California with a decisive 42-20 victory. Harvard proved it had not missed a beat in its passing game, with four receivers gaining more than 50 yards, and got 64 yards on just six carries from tailback Paul Stanton, one of several candidates to replace former standout Treavor Scales.

Cornell (1-0): After going down 10-0 early, Cornell outscored Bucknell 45-3 in the final three quarters for an authoritative win in rainy Ithaca on Saturday. The Big Red's running game didn't look too threatening —the team accumulated just 49 rushing yards —but quarterback Jeff Matthews put the offense on his back, throwing for three touchdowns, and kicker John Wells put the team on his foot, making six PATs and three field goals despite the conditions. The formidable defense was led by the aptly named Lee Marvel, who had 10 tackles.

Brown (1-0): The Bears delivered a powerful blow to Georgetown this weekend, defeating them 45-7 thanks in part to the return of tailback John Spooney, who returned to football from the track team this season and accounted for 126 yards and three touchdowns on Saturday. Defensive end Michael Yules, a preseason All-Ivy pick, had two sacks against the 1-3 Hoyas, whom Princeton will face at Georgetown this weekend. Wide receiver and return specialist Alexander Jette won Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors in his first week of college football, averaging 20.5 yards per punt return.

Dartmouth (1-0): Quarterback Dalyn Williams threw for 228 yards and ran for 123 more and a touchdown while running back Dominick Pierre ran for 95 yards and three TDs as the Big Green showcased its multidimensional offense in a 30-23 victory at Butler. The scoring was enough to overcome a less-than-fantastic day for Dartmouth's pass defense, which let up almost 400 yards and a record number of completions to the 2-2 Bulldogs.

Princeton (0-1): No. 17 Lehigh was arguably the toughest opponent faced by an Ivy League team last weekend, but that may not be much consolation to the Tigers after their one-point loss. A surprisingly effective Princeton offense dominated the first half before a combination of mistakes by the defensive backfield and an extraordinary display from Lehigh's quarterback felled the Tigers in the final quarter. Junior quarterbacks Connor Michelsen and Quinn Epperly both led drives that greatly encouraged Princeton fans, but the pass defense was much less encouraging, especially given how many potent passers there currently are in the Ancient Eight.

Yale (1-0): Though 0-4 Colgate wasn't the toughest opening-day opponent, the Bulldogs handled the Raiders surprisingly well given a 2012 campaign they'd like to forget. In his first game as a Yalie, Henry Furman provided his team with something they lacked last season —a quarterback —throwing for a respectable 129 yards and running for 60 yards and three touchdowns, while running back Tyler Varga, who took some snaps last year for lack of a better option, did what he did best, rushing for 236 yards and a TD. The Bulldogs now have half as many wins as they did all last season, when they lost eight games.

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Columbia (0-1): The Lions are the only Ivy team with little to celebrate after the first weekend of action, having lost 52-7 to crosstown rival No. 16 Fordham. Columbia let up 606 yards while gaining a total of 258. Marcorus Garret, the running back who was one of few bright spots in the Lions' 3-7 2012 campaign, ran for 89 yards, and wide receiver Ryan Flannery went over the century mark, but just about everything else looks like it needs a lot of work.

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