Tigers must work with what they've got from here on out

After last week's forfeit, the sprint football team (0-3) is looking to pull itself up by its bootstraps in time to play the second half of its season. Princeton lost its first two matches to Cornell and Penn and was forced to forfeit last week's game against Army. Still, the Tigers believe the undermanned team will be ready to face Cornell in Ithaca, N.Y., on Friday.

Despite its short roster, the team has not changed its recruitment strategy.

"[We're doing] the same thing we've been continuously doing all year — getting friends interested, letting people know about the program," senior captain and injured quarterback Alex Kandabarow said, noting that no players have joined the team since the forfeit to Army last Friday.

"Recruiting is a major part of our off-season, preseason and early season," added junior Drew Dixon, who will be taking over as quarterback against Cornell. "But at this point in the season our team is our team — that's who we're going to practice with, and that's who we're going to win with."

At this point, the Tigers think the best help will come from those who already know the playbook. "We're speaking to ex-players at the moment and trying to get them re-involved," senior captain and wide receiver Lon Johnson said, "but the fact that the season has progressed so far has made it hard to do that."

Dixon will have big shoes to fill; Kandabarow was instrumental in the Tigers' previous games. He was responsible for three of Princeton's four touchdowns in the season opener against Cornell. After putting the Tigers' first six points on the board with a nine-yard quarterback sneak, he kept the ball again for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Later in the fourth quarter, he connected with Johnson for a 75-yard touchdown pass. Kandabarow threw Princeton's lone touchdown against Penn the following week, connecting with Johnson for a 64-yard play. Though he will not be returning at quarterback, Kandabarow has been helping with the team's midseason transition as a coach.

Before Kandabarow's injury, Dixon acted as wide receiver and running back, with 19 rushing yards and 26 receiving yards in the first two games of the season. At quarterback, he will change Kandabarow's game plan to include a more even distribution between rushing and passing plays.

"Having Drew at quarterback gives us a new perspective," junior captain and offensive and defensive lineman Rich Hagner said. "It takes pressure off our receivers; before, we passed almost 90 percent of the time. We'll find out if it works on Friday."

Of course, the team is well accustomed to switching up the playbook, and after suffering two lopsided defeats — going down 49-26 against Cornell and 60-7 against Penn — the reshuffling may be just what the team needs.

"Football is a game of preparation," Dixon said. "A good team adjusts their game plan every week, even if their roster never changes. These past couple weeks we've simply made a few more changes than normal, but we aren't trashing the playbook and scribbling plays in the sand."

Kandabarow is not the only sidelined Tiger. The team will also be missing senior offensive and defensive lineman Elias Hicks, who had two solo tackles and one sack against Penn and three solo tackles against Cornell.

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"It's football — people get hurt, but people also get hurt doing just about anything," Dixon said. "Thankfully, injured sprint football players are treated by a wonderful training staff who will get our athletes back on the field as soon as it's safe."

Still, with only three games left in the season the Tigers will need to make a quick recovery. After facing Cornell on Friday they will play Navy in Maryland before finishing the season in Princeton in a rematch against rival Penn on Nov. 2.

"We're looking forward to the rest of our season and plan on missing no more games," Johnson said. "Our team started strong and should be back at that level this week."

Despite the team's losing streak, its aim remains the same.

"We are going to play to win every game and prepare to win [at] every practice," Dixon said.