COLUMN: The Mark of a Golden Pen

Maybe he thanked the Ivy League gods. Or more importantly, he may have been thanking his players, who found the way to win. Whether it was because of Jim Finn's 41 carries that Priore called, or the defense's heart, Penn now has control of its league fate, and has no one to chase but itself. Little could Priore have known that Penn's win was so important. Only soon after the final whistle blew would the Penn coaching staff find out that what had gone on throughout the league that day was of strange and stunning proportions. The results of the game in Hanover may have been the only match of the afternoon that provided the expected result -- a Quakers victory. In Cambridge, the Ivy champion incumbents were being blanked by the once lowly Columbia Lions, 24-0. Just a couple of driving hours south, Yale disposed of All-America wide receiver Sean Morey and Brown, 30-28, on a 27-yard touchdown pass as time expired. And Princeton opened the season and the history of their new football stadium with a not-so-enthralling 6-0 defeat of Cornell. To say it was a strange week would be an understatement. Columbia, Yale and Princeton don't have the strength and depth to contend. For Penn, the results could not have been better. Priore may believe in looking to the sky for answers. But he may change his tune at the notion that the Quakers are in an auspicious position of controlling their own destiny. By most accounts, the toughest game is out of the way. Strange games have become the norm for the Penn-Dartmouth season-opener. Just look to last year's contest, when Dave Regula, the Big Green kicker, was responsible for 17 points himself, including a touchdown on a fumble return. So Penn coach Al Bagnoli has learned to expect the unexpected in the opener, no matter how large the disparity in talent. Saturday came dangerously close to falling into a similar category of losses that Penn should have won. But Bagnoli's troops found a way to win this one. In a game that was once again statistically dominated by Penn, it is a wonder that the point differential was a mere field goal. "I think it was a typical Penn-Dartmouth, last possession game," Bagnoli said. The Quakers amassed 317 yards of total offense, compared to a mere 105 by Dartmouth. Though the winning margin should have been an additional two or even three touchdowns, the win is all that matters. Harvard and Brown seem unfamiliar with that concept. After a 7-0 conference season, and all of their skill position players returning, the Crimson were the favorites going into the season. After only 37 yards rushing on 17 carries, people may wonder if Chris Menick, last year's leading Ivy rusher, was a one-year aberration created by a now turned over offensive line. Likewise, quarterback Rich Linden put together only 60 yards passing (10-for-17) with two interceptions. What happened to the Sports Illustrated poster boy? After week one, Yale's Joe Walland is on pace to be the league's leading passer. And Elis freshman Rashaad Bartholomew Jr. looks like the man to challenge Jim Finn for the rushing title after a 140-yard performance against the Bears. It's unlikely any of the week one performances will be used to gauge the individuals. A week from now, these individual performances will be replaced by other single game quirks, good and bad. But the won-loss records their performances produced will count for much more, and Harvard and Brown will be chasing the win column all season. And now, while it seems early to look too far ahead to the rest of the season, this bunch of Quakers is in an unfamiliar position -- control. After losing the first game against Dartmouth last season, every game was a must-win battle. This year, Penn has the upper hand, just by winning in week one. With an Ivy win, they now control their own fate in the standings. Well, the Quakers and whoever Chuck Priore talks to up there.

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