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Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
#23 Football Enters November With Critical Showdown Against Local Rival Penn
November 03, 2006 | Football
Despite last week's loss to Cornell, Princeton still controls its own position in the Ivy League race. The margin for error has disappeared, though, and the #23 Princeton football team will need a win Saturday against Penn to set up a first-place showdown with Yale next week. Princeton, which ended a nine-year losing streak last week against Penn with a 30-13 win at Franklin Field, will host the Quakers at 1 p.m. in a game that can be seen live on both CN8 and Patriot Media TV. It can also be heard live on WBUD 1260-AM and on GoPrincetonTigers.com.
Game Information
Date/Time: Nov. 4/1 p.m.
Stadium: Princeton Stadium
Location: Princeton, N.J.
TV: CN8 (Comcast Cable), Patriot Media
Radio: WBUD 1260 AM
All-Time Series: Princeton 63-33-1
Last Year: Princeton 30, PENN 13
Last At Site: Penn 16, PRINCETON 15
Last Five Years: Penn 4-1
Current Streak: Princeton 1
Game Notes • Week 8
(CN)8 Is Enough • Saturday's game will be shown live on CN8, which is part of the Comcast Network in several Eastern markets. The talent will be Lou Tilley (play-by-play), Bubba Miller (color) and Rob Brooks (sideline). Patriot Media will also show the game live to the local Princeton area.
November Rain • For the second straight season, Princeton enters November with control of its own destiny in the Ivy League race. Of course, so do Harvard and Yale, and Brown and Penn aren't far off. If Princeton wins its final three games, it would clinch at least a share of the Ivy League title.
Learning To Share • As many as four teams could share the Ivy League title with 5-2 records this season. However, in the last 13 years, there has only been one season when two teams shared the Ivy League title (1999, Yale and Brown).
Once Bitten, Twice Shy • A two-loss team hasn't won the Ivy League title since 1982, when Harvard, Penn and Dartmouth all shared the league crown with matching 5-2 records. A two-loss Princeton team has shared the Ivy League title once (1963, with Dartmouth).
Seventh Heaven • A win today would be Princeton's seventh in its first eight games. The Tigers haven't won at least seven of their first eight games since 1995, when they started 8-0 and won their last Ivy title.
We Must Protect This House • Princeton has lost six straight home games to Penn, including all four played at Princeton Stadium. The Tigers had a similar losing streak at Princeton Stadium against Harvard before defeating the Crimson 31-28 two weeks ago.
Twice As Nice • Princeton hasn't won two straight games against Penn since the 1991-92 seasons. Princeton won 16 games over those two years, a total it can match with a perfect November this year.
Poll Position • Princeton is ranked 23rd in both the latest Sports Network I-AA Top 25 and the College Sporting News coaches poll.
Bouncing Back • Princeton has won three of its last four games following a loss. The Tigers followed their last loss, a 17-14 defeat vs. Yale in 2005, with a 30-0 win over Dartmouth in the season finale.
Scratching The Surface • Princeton is unbeaten on field turf, including the 30-13 win over Penn last season. In the last 10 games, the Tigers are 5-0 on field turf, 3-1 on natural grass and 0-1 on AstroTurf (Cornell).
Rallying Cry • Princeton has won four games this season when it has trailed in the second half, three it has trailed in the fourth quarter and two it has trailed in the final five minutes.
That Winning Feeling • Princeton has won 14 of its last 18 games, dating back to the 2004 season finale. Between Princeton's 1995 Ivy title season and that last game in 2004, the most games Princeton won in any 18-game stretch was 10, including one by forfeit.
Thirty-something • Princeton scored 31 points against Harvard in its last home game. That was the most points for Princeton in the span of 24 games; the
Tigers scored 35 in the 2004 season opener against Lafayette. Princeton did score 30 points in last season's victory over the Quakers.
Close Call • Princeton nearly defeated Penn the last time both teams met at Princeton Stadium. Following Derek Zoch's 27-yard field goal that gave Penn a 16-15 lead, Princeton kicker Derek Javarone missed a 41-yarder with 18 seconds remaining in the game. Of the four losses to Penn at Princeton Stadium, that was the only one decided by fewer than 13 points.
Offensive Notes • Week 8
Winning Foote-ball • Senior quarterback Jeff Terrell has a 13-4 record as a starter. The last Princeton starting quarterback who won at least 13 of his first 17 starts was Joel Foote, who graduated in 1994, went 15-3 as a starter and led the Tigers to the 1992 Ivy League title.
Movin' On Up • Senior quarterback Jeff Terrell has thrown for 3,228 career yards, seventh-best all-time at Princeton. He needs 218 yards to tie Dave Splithoff for sixth place on the all-time list and 396 to tie Bob Holly for fifth place.
Three's Company • Jeff Terrell set a career high with three touchdown passes in last season's 30-13 victory at Penn and did it again earlier this season with three scores against Lafayette. In three home starts this year, Terrell has thrown seven touchdown passes and only two interceptions.
Total Recall • Jeff Terrell leads the Ivy League and is ranked ninth nationally with 243.9 total yards per game. He has four multiple-touchdown (running or passing) games this season and only one game without any touchdowns, last week against Cornell.
Rob-bery • Junior Rob Toresco has scored touchdowns in three of the last four games for Princeton, including a 1-yard run against Cornell last week. Toresco led Princeton in the 2005 win against Penn with 70 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries and another score on a seven-yard reception.
Three-Pointer • Brendan Circle caught a touchdown pass in three straight games (Oct. 7-21), including the game winner against Harvard two weeks ago. The last Princeton receiver to catch touchdowns in three straight games was Kevin Duffy, who did it during the final three games of the 1995 Ivy championship season.
Jake The Snake • Tight end Jake Staser led Princeton in receiving last week with four catches for 73 yards. The last tight end to lead Princeton in catches was current Pittsburgh Steeler practice squad member Jon Dekker, who caught four passes for 54 yards and a score against Penn in 2005.
Dollar Bill • In one series of relief for starting quarterback Jeff Terrell against Harvard, junior backup Bill Foran engineered a 10-play, 50-yard touchdown drive late in the first half. Foran threw for one first down and converted a 4th-and-6 with a 14-yard run to extend the drive.
Fresh Faces • Princeton started two freshmen, Mark Paski and J.P. Makrai, on the offensive line against Brown. It was the first time that happened since the 1996 season, when Hamin Abdullah and Bernie Marczyk started together.
Making His Mark • Mark Paski became the first freshman ever at Princeton to start his first career game on the offensive line.
Defensive Notes • Week 8
Quarterly Report • Princeton hasn't allowed a fourth-quarter point in five straight Ivy League games dating back to last season and six of seven total games this season. The only team to score in the fourth quarter against Princeton this season was Colgate.
Conversion Chart • Princeton leads the nation in third-down conversion defense, allowing a first down on only 23.3% of its opponents attempts (21 of 90).
D+ • Princeton is ranked either first or second in each major team defensive category in the Ivy League. The Tigers are first in both scoring defense and team defense and second in both rushing and passing defense.
The Longest Yard • Penn running back Joe Sandberg averages 103.6 yards rushing per game. Princeton hasn't allowed a 100-yard rusher over the last 11 games, dating back to a 2005 contest against Harvard's Clifton Dawson. Princeton limited two of the Ivy's top three rushers (Dawson and Cornell's Luke Siwula) to less than 100 yards this season.
No I In Team, Or Tackle • Despite having the No. 1 defense in the Ivy League, Princeton doesn't have one player ranked in the Top 20 in tackles. The top Tiger in that category is Tim Boardman, who is tied for 22nd with 5.7 tackles per game.
Tim-ber • Senior defensive back Tim Strickland will make his program-record 38th consecutive start this weekend. He had one of his best games in last season's 30-13 win at Penn with a pair of interceptions to go along with three solo tackles. Strickland, who has never missed a start, has three interceptions this season, including one last weekend.
Double Trouble • Junior linebacker Tim Boardman set a career high with 15 tackles last weekend at Cornell. He has both of Princeton's double-digit tackle performances of this season, including a 12-stop game against Colgate.
Twice As Nice • Defensive back Kevin Kelleher recorded two interceptions in the final four minutes of the 31-28 victory over Harvard. It was Princeton's fifth multiple-interception performance by one player in the last 10 games.
With Honors • Defensive lineman Tom Methvin is one of three Princeton defenders to win the Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week award in the first five weeks of the season. Both Tim Strickland and J.J. Artis earned the award after recording multiple-interception games in September victories, while Methvin won the award after a three-sack, three-pass breakup performance at Brown.
Miscellaneous Notes • Week 8
National Champion • Senior punter Colin McDonough was named the National and Ivy League Special Teams Player of the Week after a brilliant punting performance against Dartmouth. The three-time All-Ivy selection averaged 48.5 yards per punt, and recorded punts of 59, 61, 62 and 64 yards.
With (Many) Honors • Colin McDonough could become Princeton's first four-time All-Ivy player in program history. He was a first-team selection in both 2003 and 2005 and a second-team selection in 2004.
More Honors • Sophomore kicker Connor Louden was named the Ivy League Special Teams Player of the Week after making two field goals, including a 34-yarder to force overtime with 4:02 remaining, in the 27-26 win over Colgate. Louden is in his first year as the starting kicker and is one of two placekickers in the Ivy League to have a perfect PAT conversion percentage.
First Of All • In the last four weeks, Princeton has beaten the preseason favorite of both the Patriot League (Colgate) and the Ivy League (Harvard).
The Crystal Ball • Princeton will travel to New Haven next weekend for a showdown with historic rival Yale at 12:30 p.m. If the Tigers defeat Penn, regardless of what Yale does today at Brown, Princeton will be playing for at least a share of first place in the league. Yale enters the weekend with a 4-0 Ivy League record, although it has games against Brown, Princeton and Harvard coming up in November. The game can be heard live on WBUD 1260-AM.
One More Try • Members of the Class of 2007 have been part of wins against 10 different teams. The only team Princeton has played and not beaten over the last four seasons is Yale.
(End) Zoning Out • Princeton hasn't scored a touchdown in the Yale Bowl in more than eight quarters. The last was a 32-yard scoring pass from Jon Blevins to Chisom Opara with 16 seconds remaining of an eventual 19-14 win in 2000. Since then, Princeton has lost 7-3 (2002) and 21-9 (2004).
Home Sweet Home Finale • Princeton will conclude its 2006 season in two weeks when it hosts Dartmouth at 1 p.m. at Princeton Stadium. It will be Senior Day, as well as the third “Battle For The Sawhorse Dollar,” which Princeton has claimed over Dartmouth in each of the last two seasons.
The Last Time: Princeton 30, Penn 13
PHILADELPHIA — It takes something special to end nine years of frustration. The Princeton football team entered its showdown with Penn at Franklin Field having lost nine straight to the Quakers, but the Tigers found something special in their own special teams. Three huge plays set up a dominant fourth quarter that led Princeton to a 30-13 win over Penn. The win gave Princeton a share of first place in the league with Brown.
It wasn't only the special teams that led to one of the program's biggest victories over the last decade. The offense was both balanced and effective, and quarterback Jeff Terrell played his finest game of the season. The defense shut down the Penn running game and forced a 3-and-out on two
critical possessions in the second half.
But it was the special teams that made the most memorable plays. Brig Walker blocked a point-after attempt following a Penn touchdown, which was picked up by Luke Steckel and ultimately returned by Jay McCareins for Princeton's first ever defensive extra point. Tim Strickland, who picked off two Quaker passes in the first half, blocked a field goal, and Jon Stem recovered a fumble on a Penn kickoff return that led to the final touchdown of Princeton's day.
The offense was as balanced as it was all season. The Tigers ran for 187 yards and threw for 193 yards. Terrell completed 16 of 25 passes and threw a career-best three touchdowns, including a career-long 60-yard scoring pass to Derek Davis and a 33-yard crossing pass to Jon Dekker that opened Princeton's fourth-quarter lead to 10 points. Rob Toresco led the rushing attack with 70 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries, and he added a seven-yard touchdown reception.
The defense loaded men in the box to limit Penn's run game, and the secondary responded to the challenge of single coverage with four interceptions. Besides Strickland's two interceptions, both McCareins and J.J. Artis added one apiece. The interception for McCareins ensured that he would end his career with at least one interception against every Ivy League team.
Senior linebacker Abi Fadeyi continued his career year with nine tackles, including one for a loss, and classmate Rob Holuba added eight tackles and a sack. Penn was limited to 84 yards rushing, almost 70 yards less than its season average.