Young Football preps for season

Fourth place isn't a position that Al Bagnoli has much experience with while at the helm of the Penn football team.

The coach, who enters his 11th season, has had a team finish lower than third only once -- and that was in 1997, when Penn forfeited five games due to using an ineligible player.

Yet, when the Ivy League released its annual Media Poll in August, the Quakers were picked to finish fourth.

Fourth would seem like a reasonable place for the Quakers to finish after graduating 16 starters from last year, if not for Bagnoli's amazing success rate at Penn -- a 67-31 record and four Ivy League titles.

There could be some concerns after losing players at almost every skill position, including quarterback Gavin Hoffman, Penn's all-time leader in passing yards and touchdowns, and running back Kris Ryan, the school's all-time leading rusher.

Still, that fourth-place seems a bit low.

"We're a bit insulted that we were picked fourth," Bagnoli said. "I'll be mentioning it a few times [to the players]."

In order, Harvard, Princeton and Brown are the teams picked to finish above the Quakers. Harvard, who went undefeated last season, returns -- among others -- star wide receiver Carl Morris from last year's squad.

Morris torched the Quakers for two touchdowns and 155 yards receiving in the Crimson's 28-21 win last season. The Quakers take on the Crimson at Franklin Field on Nov. 16. The season begins on Sept. 21 at Lafayette.

But while some of the Ivy League teams return a majority of their offensive stars, Penn will start a less-experienced lineup due to graduation.

Mike Mitchell is expected to take the starting role at quarterback. Mitchell sat out last season to concentrate on academics.

"I feel like we have pretty sick players coming back," Penn wide receiver Rob Milanese, who caught 57 passes last year, said. "I think Mike could be one of the best players ever in the league.

"The biggest asset about Mike Mitchell is that everyone loves the kid. We want to win for him."

At running back, the Quakers have several options, all of them fairly strong. Jake Perskie, the third-down back from last year, will compete for the job with Stephen Faulk.

Perskie rushed for 224 yards and three touchdowns last year, while Faulk was a starter for the Red and Blue last season on defense. He's also on the track team, and runs a 10.5 in the 100-meter dash.

"At tailback, we'll split between two or three guys," Bagnoli said. "We won't have a guy carrying 30, 35 times."

Faulk will continue to play at defensive back, as well as continue returning kickoffs. Last year he ranked second in the Ivy League in kick returns.

"We need him to define his offensive role," Bagnoli said. "We have a little bit of time. If he's carrying 30, 35 times, he's limited on defense. If he's only carrying 10, 12, he can play 20 snaps on defense."

Defense is where the Quakers have a more solid foundation. Two first team All-Ivy selections.,defensive end Chris Pennington and linebacker Travis Belden, key the lineup.

Belden won his second straight George A. Munger Award for Defensive MVP last season, the first player ever to do so. He is a captain along with Pennington, Milanese and offensive lineman Matt Dukes.

"I definitely feel like its my team," Belden said. "I think all of the captains feel the same way... I think if some of the young guys on defense really mature like I'm expecting, I think we'll be better [than last season]."

Whether the Quakers can recover from losing a majority of their starters will be told by how quickly the young players mesh. With a lot of new guys, it will be a baptism by fire for a lot of the Quakers.

And that fourth place prediction? If everything falls right, Belden says that everyone could be eating their words by the end of the season.

"We've basically been written off by all the reporters," he said. "I wouldn't have it any other way... we can just go out and bump some heads and smack some people around, and hopefully surprise some people."

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