After the clock stopped running and the crowd had thinned, when the children had rushed the field to burn what energy they had left before their parents took them home, all that remained of the Team That Could Have Been was a group of men in orange and black, standing solemnly at attention as they mustered what little spirit they had left to sing the school alma mater: “Our hearts will give while we shall live; three cheers for Old Nassau.”
At the tail end of a season that has been marred by injuries at just about every position and at every level of the depth chart, it was perhaps asking too much of Princeton (1-7 overall, 0-5 Ivy League) to stay competitive with No. 18 Penn (7-1, 5-0). Though the Tigers gave all that they could, they appeared weary and emotionally drained as they absorbed blow after blow from a strong Quaker side.
In typical fashion, Princeton got off to a quick start, putting together a 31-yard drive that put the Tigers in field-goal position. Junior kicker Patrick Jacob, who brought an 85 percent field-goal conversion rate into Saturday’s game, attempted the 46-yard kick but missed wide left in what would turn out to be Princeton’s only scoring opportunity of the quarter.
Penn responded quickly and ferociously with six methodical plays that got the Quakers to the Tigers’ 7-yard line. With almost 10 minutes still on the clock, quarterback Billy Ragone connected with wide receiver Matt Tuten, who beat his man to secure the touchdown and a 7-0 lead.
Princeton’s second drive was short and fleeting. In three plays and just over one minute, the Tigers found themselves 3 yards back and at fourth-and-13 at their own 29-yard line. Penn running back Bradford Blackmon caught sophomore punter Joe Cloud’s boot at the Quakers’ 32-yard line and returned 7 yards to the 39; one minute and 12 seconds later, Ragone and his squad were celebrating another score that put them up 14-0, this one thanks to a 10-yard rush by wide receiver Aaron Bailey.
Another short Princeton series, only 53 seconds long, gave the ball back to Penn at the Tigers’ 45-yard line. The Quakers then ran through Princeton’s defense as running back Jeff Jack notched 24 rushing yards in four plays to put Penn back within striking distance. A few seconds later, Ragone, scrambling to find a receiver as his pocket broke down, ran the ball into the end zone himself to make the margin 21-0.
“Our defense is a defense that requires us to be technically sound,” junior defensive back Blake Clemons said. “If we have people in the right places all the time, then we’re fine. Obviously, we need to work on being technically sound and being in the right places.”
The Tigers’ offense continued to struggle as Princeton tried to claw its way into the game. Two incomplete passes and a rush for no gain by senior quarterback Andrew Dixon forced the Tigers to punt from their own 27-yard line.
The Quakers, who returned Princeton’s punt to their own 41-yard line, took advantage of their good field position as the first quarter wound down. In five plays and just under two minutes, Penn gained 59 yards and their fourth touchdown of the game.
As the second quarter opened, Penn once again found its way deep into Princeton territory. After driving to the Tigers’ 23-yard line, kicker Andrew Samson nailed a 40-yard field goal to make the score 31-0.
Princeton showed some signs of life after Samson’s kick. With Dixon and freshman quarterback Connor Kelley both taking snaps, the Tigers constructed a 12-play, 36-yard drive to give Jacob another shot at a field goal. This time, from 41 yards out, Jacob split the uprights and put Princeton on the board.
The two teams traded possession for the next few minutes until an interception by Clemons gave the Tigers the ball at Penn’s 10-yard line. This time, Dixon made sure to play error-free football and connected with senior wide receiver Andrew Kerr for Princeton’s last score of the game and the last significant play of the first half.
The last 30 minutes of the game were dominated by Penn from start to finish. Bailey, wide receiver David Wurst, and fullback Greg Schuster each notched touchdowns for the Quakers as the Pennsylvania team pulled away to its 52-10 victory.
“I’ve had a tendency to get on [the team] after some losses, but you know they’re hurting [right now],” head coach Bob Surace ’90 said. “But it’s Yale week next week. They know that. We’re going to have to make corrections real quickly, because Yale is doing much better [than we are] right now.”
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