GAME ANALYSIS: Quakers offense still needs some spice

The inconsistent Quakers only managed 13 points on offense because of a predictable attack. Penn's defense held Bucknell to 21 yards on 26 rush attempts. That's an average of just over 29 inches. Penn held the ball for 39:55, almost double the Bisons' total of 20:05. But despite statistical domination on Saturday, the Quakers only beat Bucknell by 10 points. Instead of putting the game out of reach in the first half, the Quakers let the Bisons stay within striking distance. The game was still in jeopardy until an interception deep in Penn territory with just over two minutes to play. The reason? A predictable, inconsistent offense. "The whole offensive flow today was a little bit erratic," Penn coach Al Bagnoli said. "We made some plays, but we didn't make enough plays consistently." The offensive numbers looked good. Jim Finn returned to form after an off-game against Richmond, rushing 39 times for 136 yards. Quarterback Matt Rader was 17-for-25 for 126 yards, with one touchdown and no interceptions. But not many of those yards came on the Bucknell side of the field. When the offense got deep in Bucknell territory, it was unable to score touchdowns. The Quakers had the ball past midfield seven different times, but only managed to put 13 points on the board. One key problem was the predictability of the Penn offense. On 11 different occasions, Finn ran the ball on both first and second downs. This often led to third-and-long situations that magnified the inconsistency of the passing game. "We played well at times and we didn't play well at other times," Rader said. "We had a couple dropped balls.? We just need to do a good job of catching the ball." Rader also tended to deliver the ball extremely quickly. This tactic limited the number of hits he took, but also limited the team to short gains on some long third downs. Of the four Penn possessions that started in Bison territory, the offense stalled on the first three. The Quakers' average starting field position on those three possessions was the Bucknell 34, but they only managed two field goals. "Good field position helped us, but I thought we made a lot of mental mistakes," Rader said. "I thought we should've put more points on the board." Penn did show some promise, however, on a drive early in the fourth quarter that ended with a five-yard touchdown pass from Rader to Ben Zagorski. The drive was highlighted by an amazing one-handed catch by Doug O'Neill for 31 yards. "We took the ball downfield a little bit [on that drive]," Rader said. "We ran the ball a lot, and I thought taking the ball over the top was the key to that drive." Waiting a few more seconds before passing opens up the defense and will give the Quakers some long completions. Finn will also get more running room. While it will inevitably lead to a few hits on Rader, he went 3-for-3 for 42 yards on that drive alone. By only throwing quick passes for short gains, Rader allows defenses to concentrate on Finn. This would stop if defenses had to worry about getting burned by long bombs. But Rader seems more content with a risk-free offensive game plan in order to limit mistakes. While that was enough against Bucknell, it may prove too difficult for Finn to fight through the stacked defenses later in the season. "Rader was solid but not spectacular," Bagnoli said. "He didn't have any turnovers. He played a solid game." But Rader's quick passes are also the result of an offensive line struggling through injuries and inexperience. Jason Lebron, Carmelo Rubano and Jesse Simonin have all battled injuries already this season, which forces younger players into service. A healthy offensive line will give Rader more time in the pocket, and a more successful passing game will allow some creativity on offense. The Quakers could even throw on first down for a change. These changes are not lost on Rader, who worked wonders on the touchdown drive. But one touchdown drive per game is not enough if Penn is serious about this season's Ivy League championship.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.