Penn football falls just short at Princeton, 22-17

PRINCETON — Penn football just can’t seem to catch a break.

After losing consecutive Ivy games to Yale and Brown, the Quakers came to New Jersey with an upset on their minds, but came up just short, falling to Princeton, 22-17.

“I commend our kids,” said coach Al Bagnoli , who coached his third-to-last game. “They played their tails off. They deserved a better fate. I don’t say this very often, but I thought that game was stolen from us.”

The Red and Blue (1-7, 1-4 Ivy) had key calls go against them, including a pass interference that led to three late points and an interception that was questionably ruled incomplete.

But the key play of the game came with just over five minutes left and Penn down by five. On a fourth and six at Princeton’s 27-yard-line , sophomore quarterback Alek Torgersen hit senior receiver Spencer Kulcsar over the middle but couldn’t pick up the first down deep in Princeton territory. From there, the Tigers ran out the clock on one final drive.

Due to injuries on defense that mounted up during the game, it was a no-brainer for Bagnoli to go for it on fourth.

“I recognize who we had playing on defense,” he said. “The best opportunity was for us to go for it. We came with two defensive linemen who were already hurt and two more got hurt during the game.”

At the start, the Red and Blue fell behind early despite some strong drives on offense. Torgersen led the Quakers into the red zone on their first drive, but a sack and a missed field goal by junior Jimmy Gammill led to no points.

Princeton (5-3, 4-1) responded with a field goal, yet Penn used a wide-receiver pass by senior Conner Scott to fellow senior receiver Eric Fiore to march into Princeton territory.

However, disaster struck as sophomore run-and-gun quarterback Adam Strouss fumbled on first and goal. The Tigers’ Dorian Williams brought the ball all the way to Penn’s nine yard line, which led to another field goal.

Princeton would lead 12-0 before long as senior quarterbacks Quinn Epperly and Connor Michelsen drove Princeton down for a one-yard Epperly touchdown run.

The teams exchanged touchdowns shortly thereafter, with Torgersen finding Scott and Epperly finding Princeton’s Connor Kelley for five-yard scores, making it 19-7 Princeton. Penn added a field goal before halftime, leaving down 19-10.

In the third quarter, Penn’s defense played one of its best quarters all year. Senior captain Evan Jackson forced a fumble on Princeton’s first drive. The Red and Blue capitalized offensively with a highlight-reel one-handed touchdown grab by freshman wide receiver Justin Watson , his second score in as many games.

However, after the early score, neither squad could break free offensively. Each defense held tough, stalling the opposition with key sacks or strong coverage in the secondary, as Penn’s secondary stood tall against Princeton’s senior quarterbacks .

“We really focused on getting back to the basics this week and being sound,” defensive back Jackson said. “That offense is a lot of trickery so we really had to hone in this week.”

Late in the third, Jackson thought he had an interception after Michelsen was hit after throwing. However, the pass was ruled incomplete despite replays on NBCSN that showed otherwise, leading Penn to accept a holding call while Princeton kept possession.

But after a questionable pass interference call in the early fourth quarter, Princeton drove for a field goal, letting the Tigers take a 22-17 lead.

Penn drove down with one of its most inspired drives of the game as Torgersen completed eight passes. The last pass went to Kulcsar, who set a school record for receptions in one game with 16, but couldn’t pick up the first down. The Tigers’ senior running backs, DiAndre Atwater and Will Powers, finished things off from there.

Penn now has two games left in its season and in coach Bagnoli’s career. The Quakers’ final home game is against Harvard on Nov. 15.

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