After averaging a league-low 12.9 points per game in 2009, the football team is ready to pick up the pace. A new coaching staff brings with it a fresh, high-octane offensive system that the Tigers hope will lead to an improvement on last year’s 4-6 record.
“The most different thing from last year is the pace we’re playing at,” junior quarterback Tommy Wornham said. “[The new coaches] have been preaching fast and physical, and it really is a no-huddle operation that is very fast.”
The Tigers opened last year with a 1-5 record and averaged fewer than 10 points per game in that span, including a shutout loss to Columbia in their Ivy League opener. But Princeton closed the 2009 campaign with its two highest-scoring games of the year: a 24-17 home victory over Yale and a 23-11 win at Dartmouth.
Both offensive outbursts were fueled by the rushing attack, which averaged more than five yards per carry in each contest. Running back Kenny Gunter ’10, who totaled 292 yards in the two victories, exhausted his eligibility last spring, leaving some questions in this year’s rushing attack.
The most obvious choice to fill that void is senior Jordan Culbreath, who presents the most tantalizing storyline in the Ivy League this year. Culbreath was unanmously named first team All-Ivy in 2008 after running for 1,206 yards and closed the season with a 276-yard performance at Dartmouth, the second-best single-game mark in Princeton history. He opened the 2009 season in the Princeton backfield but left the second game against Lehigh and was diagnosed with aplastic anemia, a life-threatening disease.
Many wondered last fall if Culbreath would ever be able to resume his day-to-day life, but he surprised everybody by becoming healthy enough to play football again. He was granted a medical hardship waiver by the Ivy League, restoring his eligibility for the 2010 season, and was medically cleared to return to the team last month.
“In the beginning of camp it was hard, because I was back mentally, but physically, I still had to catch up a little bit,” Culbreath said. “But now that we’re a couple days away from the first game, I’m feeling really good.”
“To play another year with Jordan really is a dream come true,” senior fullback and co-captain Matt Zimmerman said. “It means so much to me personally, because Jordan is a great friend of mine. To be able to share the field with him again is very special to me.”
Princeton has other options in the backfield. Behind Culbreath on the depth chart is Akil Sharp, who is expected to make big strides in his sophomore season, while senior Meko McCray, the team’s third-leading rusher, also returns. Zimmerman, who ranked second on the team last year with 5.2 yards per carry and led all backs with 23 receptions, will be the starting fullback.
The Tigers also have strong legs in junior quarterback Tommy Wornham, who led the team with 372 rushing yards last season. Wornham scampered for three touchdowns in 2009, including a 68-yard score against Lehigh.
More questions abound on the offensive line — which allowed the second-fewest sacks in Ivy League play last season and paved the way for the fifth-best rushing attack — because the squad loses four of its five starters. The lone holdover, senior right guard Andrew Mills, will be joined by a pair of former defensive linemen: Junior right tackle Kevin DeMaio and junior center Mike Muha were moved across the line of scrimmage in the offseason.
“The offensive line has made tremendous strides this offseason under new offensive line coach Eddy Morrissey,” Zimmerman said. “They’ve done a tremendous job of learning our offensive scheme and getting better day in and day out. I’m really excited to see them out there against Lehigh, and I think they’ll do a great job.”
“They’ve been facing a really tough defensive line all through camp — our defensive line — and they’ve really gotten better each day,” Culbreath said. “I think facing our line is really going to help them out during the season.”
Princeton’s passing attack was very conservative last season. With the sophomore Wornham at the helm all year, the Tigers made few mistakes in the air: They ranked third in Ivy League play with a 57 percent completion rate and threw only six interceptions, tied for the least in the conference. But they threw for just 149.7 yards per game in that span and ranked last with only four passing touchdowns.
With experience at the skill positions, the Tigers will be more aggressive in the air in 2010. Wornham returns for a second season under center, and players responsible for more than 90 percent of last year’s receptions will be back in black and orange this year. Seniors Trey Peacock and Andrew Kerr combined for nearly 100 yards per game as Wornham’s top targets last season and will again be starting on opposite ends.
“[The receivers] are looking really good,” Wornham said. “We got a lot of work over the summer: All of us were back here throwing a couple times a week. I feel very comfortable with my timing with all of those guys.”
And the Tigers have the right man behind the machine to open up the passing attack. New offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach James Perry set most of the Ivy League career passing records in three seasons at Brown (1997–1999), throwing for 9,294 yards and 74 touchdowns. As the Bears’ quarterbacks coach last season, Perry helped first-year starter Kyle Newhall lead the league and rank 12th nationally with 270.9 passing yards per game.
“The game is starting to slow down for me,” Wornham said. “Coach Perry has helped slow the game down for me: He’s given me certain reads, so I’m not looking all over the field on one play. It’s a lot easier to read the defense that way. Working with him is awesome, and what he says works wonders on the field.”
The Tigers suffer the graduation of kicker Ben Bologna, who was perfect on extra point attempts in 2009 and missed only one field goal attempt in conference play. Junior Patrick Jacob, who enters the season with no varsity experience, will take over at that position.
“There was definitely an adjustment period [for the new pace], but we had spring practice, so we knew what to expect coming into fall camp,” Zimmerman said. “Everyone came into camp in great condition, so the transition wasn’t as difficult as it could have been.”
Ivy League defenses will have to be on their toes this season, because with eight months of training in the fast-paced system, depth in many places, and experience at the skill positions, the Tigers are ready to speed things up.
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