Football: Seniors await homecoming rivarly

The football team will play its last home game of the season against Yale this Saturday. As Senior Day, as well as the annual homecoming game of the Big-Three rivalry, this game is one that the team’s veterans have been looking forward to for a long time.

“It’s a really emotional and special day — it’s the last home game, and it’s homecoming against Yale, one of the most historic rivalries in college sports,” senior defensive lineman Mike Catapano said. “In what may be my last football game ever at Powers Field, nothing could be better than going out with a win over Yale and ending this season with a really good taste in the seniors’ mouths.”

The Tigers (1-7 overall, 1-4 Ivy League) will also have the opportunity to add a bright spot to a disappointing season, which has included four straight losses to Ivy League opponents and five straight overall. The team’s most recent match was a 37-9 defeat at Penn on Saturday.

“After halftime, you have to focus on keeping the energy up and not dropping off at all moving into the third quarter, and obviously that was something that hurt us against Penn,” Catapano said. “What you saw in the third quarter were some moments that we lost focus, and that’s when the big plays occur that have been really preventing us from winning against these good opponents.”

“Our approach and work ethic are not the problem. We have very good practices, and everyone attacks practice everyday,” freshman tailback Chuck Dibilio said. “We have to go out and execute to win this game. If we do that we will be fine.”

Yale (4-4, 3-2) is led by senior quarterback Patrick Witt, who has been fairly effective as a passer this season. The visitors also have a strong ground game, led by running backs Alex Thomas and Mordecai Cargill.

The game was a close one last year, with the Bulldogs beating the Tigers 14-13. The win was Yale’s third in the last four meetings, save for Princeton’s 24-14 homecoming victory in 2009.

“We need to make more big plays,” Catapano said. “Creating turnovers against Yale’s offense will be critical to this one just like it always is. We need relentless energy all 60 minutes of the game so that there is no point where Yale can hit us for big plays.”

In order to win this game, the Tigers will have to rely on Dibilio, who has played amazingly for the Tigers this season. With two games to play, Dibilio already holds the all-time Ivy League record for most rushing yards by a true freshman, with 824 yards to date.

“I was very excited — I mean, considering how long the Ivy League has been in existence and how many great players played in it made it mean even more to me,” Dibilio said of the accomplishment. “It was something I never would have imagined accomplishing and, therefore, made it all the greater when it actually happened.”

Dibilio also broke the record for most Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors for a true freshman, earning his fifth on Monday after running for 130 yards at Penn.

The Tigers will get to play in front of high-profile cameras on Saturday, with YES Network televising the game from Princeton Stadium. The players had very positive reactions to this news.

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“Having more media coverage makes it really fun,” Catapano said. “My friends and family at home will be tuning in to watch us play our last home game for the season.”

“It is always cool to play on TV,” Dibilio added. “It allows Princeton football to be the main focus for a few hours, which is also cool.”

The seniors, who will be playing their last game in Princeton Stadium, will be honored before the opening kickoff.

“We all work so hard for eight months to play football for two months, and you really think about games like this one as motivation when you are training for the season,” Catapano said. “It’s great to have your hard work and dedication honored on a day like this, and it has been a privilege to even say that I played one down of football for this university. We all will be playing with chips on our shoulders to make this day really memorable.”

The game begins an hour earlier than typical afternoon starts, kicking off at noon on Powers Field.