Quakers seek to seize Szczur

Entering its showdown at top-ranked Villanova, Penn will be battling something more formidable than a daunting series history. Penn has not beaten Villanova in 99 years.

Saturday night at 7 p.m., the team’s biggest challenge will come in the form of 205-pound Wildcats star wide receiver Matt Szczur.

A “thorn in everybody’s side,” according to Penn coach Al Bagnoli, the two-sport, multi-position senior’s versatility has certainly been thorny for the Quakers.

Last year, Szczur (pronounced ‘see-zur’) scored on the first play of the game when he returned the opening kickoff 87 yards for a touchdown.

Though the Quakers were able to contain him for the remainder of the game, they were unable to shift the momentum that Szczur gained and ultimately lost 14-3.

“We did a fairly good job of containing him last year,” senior defensive back Josh Powers said. “So I think we’re playing on that same mode and mindset.”

Powers and the rest of the Penn defense — which has not allowed a point in the last 137 minutes of game play and is ranked first in the NCAA — are sticking with last season’s plan to conquer Szczur.

“Where he lines up on the field dictates what they’re going to do, which in turn is going to give us hints about what we should be running,” Powers said.

Szczur, the 2009 Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Year on both offense and special teams, is currently a finalist for the Walter Payton Award, which is given to the Football Championship Subdivision’s top offensive player.

“He certainly gives [Villanova] versatility,” Bagnoli said.

And while Szczur keeps himself busy in the fall playing for the reigning FCS champions, he also played in 39 games last spring for the Villanova baseball team.

Szczur led the Wildcats with a .443 batting average, and in a testament to his athletic ability, the Chicago Cubs drafted him in the fifth round of the MLB First-Year Player draft in June.

“We were all hoping he would stick with baseball,” Bagnoli said with a laugh.

But Szczur is back for his final year of football eligibility, and the Quakers defense has been preparing.

Though the No. 24 Red and Blue know to be aware of Szczur’s location on the field, Bagnoli also stressed that they are preparing as they would for any other game.

“You know that you’re going to have to play well and correct some of the first-game mistakes that we had,” Bagnoli said. The Quakers fumbled and turned over the ball three times against Lafayette last week.

While playing Villanova in the second week of the season gives Penn the opportunity to correct its first-game blunders, it also gives the Quakers fewer practices to devote specifically to preparing for Villanova.

Bagnoli also stressed that the margin of error this week against the number one team in the nation will be a lot smaller than it was against Lafayette.

“We’re going to have to be sharp,” he said.

The Quakers will need to be on point in order to give the thorny Szczur a taste of his own medicine.

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