Tigers primed to pounce

And just when you thought it couldn't get any better — the atmosphere simply couldn't be soaked with any more drama, and the campus couldn't be filled with any more of the frenzied, passionate excitement that defines college football — it does. A whole lot better.

Overcome preseason doubts? Check. Defeat Harvard, the team unanimously picked to win the Ivy League? Check. Pull off Sportscenter's top play on fourth down to claim victory over rival Penn in an overtime thriller? Check. All of the checkpoints have been huge to date, no doubt. But the biggest, most monumental test will take place tomorrow, as the football team takes on Yale at the historic Yale Bowl in New Haven, Conn., at 12:30 p.m.

Princeton (7-1 overall, 4-1 Ivy League) still has the ability to control its own destiny in the Ivy League by defeating the Bulldogs (7-1, 5-0) on Saturday, but it won't be an easy task by any means, as much for present reasons as past ones.

How fitting, though, that the biggest test of the season comes in the form of a Yale team that prevented the Tigers from claiming a share of the Ivy League title last year in an anguishing 21-14 come-from-behind Eli victory? Princeton jumped out to a quick 14-0 lead in that game, only to watch the Bulldogs work their way from that deficit to a seven-point lead that would still stand at the end of the match.

The saying goes that before a team can succeed, it has to experience heartbreak. Last year's tragedy could very well lead to this year's triumph.

"Well, you hope that anytime you're in a championship game, and now you're returning to what is another championship game, you learn from the experience," head coach Roger Hughes said of last year's game. "You understand the intensity, the emotion, the level of play that you need to have in order to win the game."

While the Tigers will certainly try to utilize their valuable experience, it would be a stretch to say that Princeton will be looking to compensate for any of last year's shortcomings. Revenge probably weighs more heavily on the minds of Tiger fans than in the heads of the Tiger players themselves. Asked if there is any extra motivation because of last year's tear-jerking loss, Hughes replied with a pointed "No."

"We know our goal is to win the Ivy League, and this is one of the teams we have to beat over the next two weeks to do it," Hughes said plainly of the matchup and the recent history it has carried.

Princeton doesn't have just last year to make up for, though — the Tigers carry with them a four-game losing streak against Yale. No one in the Orange and Black has recorded a touchdown in the past 120 minutes of play at the Yale Bowl.

Sounds scary, right? The history doesn't bode well.

But this Princeton team is different. You've heard the term "team of destiny" thrown around this year, and this team seems to be growing into that identity more and more with each play.

The Tigers have been breaking history right and left over the past 13 games. Nine-game losing streaks against Harvard and Penn bit the dust, as did a seven-game streak against Lehigh. Indeed, Princeton picked up its second win in a row against a hungry, prepared Harvard team that was picked to win it all at the beginning of the year. That loss stands as the Crimson's only blemish this season.

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The Tigers also pulled off an absolutely miraculous play last week against the Quakers when junior running back Rob Toresco tossed a lateral to senior quarterback Jeff Terrell after being stopped at the line of scrimmage, on fourth down no less.

The Bulldogs, however, have their own dynamic runningback-quarterback duo. Running back Mike McLeod has proven to be a formidable force in the backfield, rushing for an average of 137 yards per game. Yale supplements its running game with a capable passing game. Quarterback Matt Polhemus averages 152.1 yards per game through the air with a 53.8 completion percentage. Polhemus' feet, furthermore, make him a truly dangerous threat; Polhemus has scrambled for 37.6 yards per game.

The Bulldogs's defense has allowed roughly 20 points per game, whereas the offense scores 24 points per game. Ultimately, Yale's game plan revolves around establishing a lead and using McLeod as a battering ram to wear down defenses, while at the same time making opponents defend against the air attack. Princeton will certainly not be looking to give the Bulldogs an early lead.

"The key is, you never like your opponent to get out to a big lead, because it changes what you can do on both sides of the ball, both offensively and defensively," Hughes said. "I don't think you can shut down Mike McLeod, but hopefully you can slow him down, and that's the key to the game."

The Tigers have their own dual threat in Terrell, who has scrambled for critical first downs countless times this season. Terrell has 13 TDs this season and has established himself as a dangerously accurate passer as well. A wealth of options on the flanks and in the backfield offers him plenty of places to go with the ball.

Junior wide receiver Brendan Circle appears to be the goto guy of late, with an average of 72.6 receiving yards per game and five touchdowns on the season. But a multitude of other players have come up with critical plays at critical junctures in games, including senior wide receiver Brian Brigham, Toresco, sophomore wide receiver Adam Berry and sophomore running back R.C. Lagomarsino, to name a few. A total of eight different players have at least one reception for a touchdown, which shows the team's ability to spread the ball around in a true team effort.

The defense, which has been staunch all season long, has allowed only 16 points per game. The defense has not allowed many teams' running games to be effective — just look at Harvard phenom Clifton Dawson's poor performance against the Tigers as an example — as teams have only averaged 3.5 yards per rush on the ground.

The numbers and analysis certainly carry weight, but in all seriousness, this game will be based on more than just that. History, momentum, talent and maybe even a little bit of destiny will collide this Saturday.