Football Analysis: Dixon steps up to fill void, provides offensive output

Entering its homecoming game against Harvard, the football team had plenty of questions on the offensive end. Princeton struggled mightily to move the ball after junior quarterback Tommy Wornham left last week’s game with an upper-body injury, which would keep him out of Saturday’s contest as well. But senior Andrew Dixon led the Tigers to 28 points, their highest total in regulation since 2008.

Dixon completed just seven of 18 passes in his debut against Brown, missing open receivers and struggling to find a rhythm. But a week of practice did wonders, as he looked like a completely different player against Harvard on Saturday. The senior completed nine of his first 11 passes, failing to connect only on a deep pass and a dropped one.

“It’s much easier to prepare a quarterback with a full week of practice,” head coach Bob Surace ’90 said. “The game plan is kind of set for the starter, so you need to tweak things to fit another guy. This week we did things we thought might give us a better opportunity with the stuff [Dixon] throws well.”

Princeton’s game-tying drive in the second quarter was keyed almost entirely by Dixon’s arm. He threw a fade to junior receiver Isaac Serwanga that drew a pass interference penalty, and went deep to the opposite sideline on the next play, connecting with senior receiver Trey Peacock for a 32-yard gain. On third-and-goal from the 7-yard line, Dixon threw a lob to senior wide receiver Andrew Kerr in the corner, perfectly placed to avoid two defenders as Kerr tapped a toe in bounds.

For the game, Dixon completed 20 of 29 passes. He threw two interceptions, but neither was a poor throw. The first, a 12-yard wheel to senior running back Jordan Culbreath, appeared to be a good read until Harvard linebacker Alex Norman, who admitted afterwards that he was caught out of position, made a leaping one-handed catch. The second pick was another nice play by Norman, who jumped to intercept a desperate deep heave near the end of the game.

Dixon wasn’t the only quarterback to see a larger share of game action with Wornham on the sidelines. Freshman Connor Kelley, a threat to run who did so a couple times against Brown, took more than one-third of the snaps on Saturday. Kelley finished with a team-high 13 carries — most of them designed rushes — and completed four of seven pass attempts.

“Connor’s such a good athlete; he runs hard, and he’s progressing in making pass reads,” Surace said. “The offense is sophisticated enough that we can keep him in small packages, with different twists. He dominated JV games early in the year and has moved up the depth chart, and we’ll continue to add to his workload.”

Saturday’s game, however, argued in favor of giving Dixon a larger share of the snaps, as the Tigers gained more than twice as many yards per play with the senior in command. Princeton notched 277 yards on 42 plays with Dixon under center, while 28 snaps to Kelley resulted in just 88 yards — fewer than half as many yards per play.

At times, Princeton tried a novel approach to coping with Wornham’s injury: breaking the barriers of the depth chart and letting other positions throw the ball. Senior tight end Harry Flaherty and Culbreath each threw passes on trick plays, finding Kerr and Peacock, respectively, for long touchdowns.

Peacock was a major threat again this week, after managing only 40 yards and four receptions against Brown. Harvard often left the star wideout in single coverage and paid the price: Peacock grabbed 11 catches for 139 yards. He now ranks second nationally in the Football Championship Subdivision with 113 receiving yards per game.

But the Tigers’ offensive success went for naught, because Harvard carved up the home team’s defense. The visitors gained 583 yards and scored 45 points, both season highs allowed by Princeton.

The Crimson relied mostly on the league’s best rushing attack. Running backs Gino Gordon and Treavor Scales combined for 338 yards on just 36 carries, constantly juking defenders and breaking tackles in the open field. Gordon is the fastest halfback the Tigers have faced this season, and it showed on Saturday. He broke off four different runs of more than 20 yards, including a 52-yard dash on his first carry. With Scales in the backfield to keep Gordon fresh — and scampering for a 46-yard touchdown of his own — the Princeton defense was overmatched.

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The Tigers’ pass defense has been overmatched quite often this season, but it played well in the first half against Andrew Hatch. The Harvard quarterback, playing his first game since suffering a concussion in the second week of the season, completed just nine of 21 passes and threw two interceptions. Senior cornerback Weston Palmer had the first interception and another breakup on the same series, while sophomore safety Mandela Sheaffer broke up a deep pass in the end zone.

The secondary received some help from Princeton’s defensive line, namely sophomore Matt Landry. Landry tipped three passes near the end of the half, leading to one interception and nearly another.

“We knew that they run those intermediate crossing routes, and the D-line could see that and get their hands up,” Palmer said. “We knew we were going to get some tipped balls, and we got some interceptions.”

Harvard's Collier Winters — making his first appearance of the season, also due to injury — took over at quarterback in the second half, finding more success than his predecessor. Winters completed eight of 12 passes, throwing two touchdowns and an interception that deflected off his receiver’s hands.

As they prepare for a trip to Cornell next week — a game that could decide who finishes in the Ivy League cellar —the Tigers can be a little more confident in their offense with Dixon at the helm. The league’s worst defense, however, remains a major concern.