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Princeton University Athletics
Tigers, Bulldogs Renew Second-Longest Rivalry In Division I
November 11, 2003 | Football
Nov. 11, 2003
Only Lehigh and Lafayette have a longer Division I rivalry than the one that will be renewed at Princeton Stadium on Saturday. For the 126th time, the Tigers and Bulldogs will meet, with both looking to release some frustration from last weekend... as if there is an additional need for motivation in this rivalry.
Princeton-Yale Game Notes in PDF Format
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Game Notes
Splitting Headache - The last five senior classes at Princeton have ended their careers with a 2-2 record against Yale. The Class of 2004 would be the first since the Class of 1998 to have a winning record against Yale with a win today.
Passing Fancy - Matt Verbit has moved into sixth place all-time at Princeton with 2,909 career yards passing. He can tie teammate Dave Splithoff for fifth at Princeton if he avarages 268.5 yards passing in each of the last two games.
More Passing - Matt Verbit is on pace to throw for 2,468 yards this season, which would be fourth-best all-time at Princeton. To have the second-best single-season mark (Doug Butler's record of 3,175 yards is well out of reach), Verbit would need to average more than 347 yards per game in his final two games.
Yard Sale - Junior wideout B.J. Szymanski is averaging 20.5 yards per reception this season, which would be a single-season record if he doesn't catch another pass this season. The current record is held by Marc Ross, who averaged 20.3 yards per catch in 1993 (29 catches for 586 yards). More Yards - If B.J. Szymanski never caught another pass in his career, he would own the Princeton record for yards per catch in a career. He currently averages 19.7 yards in his career, far ahead of Michael Lerch's record average of 17.3 yards per catch.
Catching On - B.J. Szymanski needs six catches to move into the Top 10 all-time at Princeton. He currently has 72 catches, 12th best; he is sixth all-time at Princeton with 1,415 receiving yards.
Look At Me, I Can Be Centerfield - B.J. Szymanski was an All-Ivy centerfielder last season, and one his best games was against Yale. He went 5-for-6 with an RBI, three runs scored and two stolen bases.
Day At The Veach - Jon Veach has six touchdowns for Princeton in the last three weeks. No other Princeton player has six touchdowns this season.
Two For Two - Princeton is a combined +2 in turnovers in its two wins this season and -10 in its six losses, including five turnovers last weekend against Penn.
Blair-Witch Project - Senior wideout Blair Morrison caught nine passes for 121 yards, both career highs, in Princeton's loss to Penn last week.
I'm Honored - Freshman punter Colin McDonough has earned Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors twice this season, including in Princeton's win against Cornell. McDonough leads the Ivy League in punting (39.8 yards per punt) and has taken over the extra-point duties for Princeton, going 4 for 4 on his attempts so far.
Justin Time - Sophomore linebacker Justin Stull had 12 tackles, including 10 solo stops, last week against Penn. No other Princeton player had 10 total tackles. Stull also had three tackles for loss, one sack and one forced fumble.
Tackling The Issue - If Justin Stull has two average performances in the final two Princeton contests, he will end the season with 109 tackles. For the next closest player in the Ivy League to catch him, Columbia's Steve Cargile, will need to average 15.5 tackles per game.
More Tackles - Justin Stull is on pace to become the first Princeton player with 100 tackles in a season since Jim Salters did it in 1998.
End Of The Line - Senior defensive end Joe Weiss will be playing his final home game Saturday. The lone returning first-team All-Ivy player from 2002, Weiss is second on the team with 64 tackles this season, including 12 for loss, and four sacks. For his career, Weiss has 153 tackles, 38 tackles for loss and 16 sacks.
Tim-ber! - Princeton's other defensive end, Tim Kirby, is tied for the team lead with four sacks and has 52 tackles this season. An All-Ivy selection in 2002, Kirby is Princeton's active career leader in tackles (170), and has 29 career tackles for loss to go along with nine sacks. Kirby will be making his 34th consecutive start Saturday against Yale.
Just Say YES - Today's game is being televised live by the YES Network, a scenario that has been kind to Princeton recently. The Tigers are 2-0 on the channel and has averaged 36.0 points per game.
Hammerin' Hank - This will be the final home game for equipment manager Hank Towns, who will retire after his 34th year of service to Princeton. There will be a presentation for Hank at halftime, featuring three speakers, including Maryland governor and former Princeton captain Robert Ehrlich '79.
The Crystal Ball - The 2003 Princeton season will come to an end next Saturday when the Tigers travel to Hanover, N.H. to take on the Dartmouth Big Green. The contest will begin at 12:30 and can be heard live on Moneytalk 1350 and GoPrincetonTigers.com.
Tale of the Tape
Yale Princeton 38.5 Points Per Game 20.6 27.9 Points Allowed Per Game 27.4 189 First Downs 146 75/107/7 Rushing/Passing/Penalty 59/81/6 186.1 Rushing Yardage Per Game 138.5 20 Touchdowns Rushing 11 295.4 Passing Yardage Per Game 246.8 276/174/6 Att./Comp./Int. 254/131/5 18 Touchdowns Passing 11 45/385 Penalties/Yards 50/423 34/32.6 Punts/Avg. Per Punt 39/39.8 30:49 Time of Possession 26:01 11/66 Sacks By/Yardage 15/87 8/4 Fumbles/Fumbles Lost 25/15 11/14 Field Goals/Attempts 3/8 52 of 121 Third-Down Conversions 32 of 108
Lasy Year: Yale 7, Princeton 3
NEW HAVEN, Conn. - An 11-yard touchdown pass to Rob Benigno with 4:42 remaining in the game was the only scoring play of the day for Yale, but it was enough to ensure a 7-3 win over Princeton on a cold, rainy afternoon. Yale's defense pitched a shutout over the final three quarters.
Princeton, which had prided itself on big offensive plays last season, was held in check by both the blitzing Yale defense and the tough weather conditions. The Tigers managed only three plays that gained more than 20 yards, the last of which nearly brought the Tigers back into the lead late in the game.
The first of the three big plays helped Princeton to its only points of the game, a 20-yard field goal by Derek Javarone. Quarterback Matt Verbit hit classmate B.J. Szymanski on a quick out along the right sidelines. The 6-5 sophomore made the cornerback miss and sprinted down the sidelines for 43 yards. Princeton got the ball down to the 3-yard line, but could not get into the end zone. Javarone converted to give Princeton the 3-0 lead.
One of the toughest performances of the season by the Princeton defense kept that lead alive for more than two and a half quarters. While there were a pair of big plays (an interception by senior Drew Babinecz and a blocked punt by freshman Abi Fadeyi), the defense spent most of the day doing the little things right. The defensive line got pressure on sophomore quarterback Jeff Mroz, the secondary mixed coverages and made plays and the linebackers combined for 14 solo tackles and two assisted tackles.
The Bulldogs scored their touchdown by moving 85 yards in 13 plays of the fourth quarter, the final of which was the touchdown on a fade pass by Mroz.
Princeton would have two more chances and looked like it would make good on the first one. Princeton opened that drive with a screen pass to Cameron Atkinson, who broke free and sprinted down the left sidelines. James Beck, a member of the Yale secondary, took the best angle on the play and tackled Atkinson at the Yale 36-yard line.
The Tigers would move the ball three yards further before failing on fourth down. After using all of its timeouts to get the ball back, Princeton would have one last chance. A third-down conversion pass to Andy Bryant got Princeton to the 37-yard line, but a run of four yards and a trio of incompletions ended the contest.