Yale, Penn, Brown Still Alive in Ivy League Title

And then there was one.

After six consecutive weeks having a tie atop the Ivy League leader board, the University of Pennsylvania (7-2, 5-1 Ivy) emerged as the lone team in first place last Saturday, clinching a tie for the 1998 Ivy League title.

The rest of the pack, however, remains open, with Yale (5-4, 4-2) and Brown (6-3, 4-2) vying for a piece of the league crown. With losses on Saturday, Harvard (4-5, 3-3) and Princeton (4-5, 3-3) were knocked out of any possible share of the championship this year.

The basic scenario next week for Penn is very simple: one victory equals an uncontested Ivy League Championship. However, a Quaker loss and victories by either Brown or Yale would end the season with a tie for the title.

Last Saturday saw several great finishes that had major impacts on the 1998 season's outcome.

With 44 seconds left in the Brown-Dartmouth (2-7, 1-5) match-up, Dartmouth senior quarterback Mike Coffey found receiver Damon Ferrara in the back of the end zone, tying the score at 21-21. The game, which seemed destined for overtime, turned into a Bear victory when a short kick off and a shoddy defense turned into a Bear touchdown.

With five seconds remaining, Bear quarterback James Perry--the Ivy League Offensive Player of the Week for the third time--found senior Zach Burns in the end zone for the victory. Perry closed the day 30-of-47 passing for a total of 396 yards. Perry remains only 209 passing yards away from setting the Ivy-League single-season passing record set by Princeton's Doug Butler in 1993.

Meanwhile in New Haven, Yale (5-4, 4-2) continued its surprising season with a 31-28 victory over Princeton (4-5, 3-3).

The Bulldogs opened up the scoring, taking an early 17-0 lead including an 83 yard touchdown return by Nate Boxrucker.

Despite falling behind early and giving up a total of seven turnovers, the Tigers roared back, eventually taking a 28-24 lead with 8:47 left in the fourth quarter.

Led by the arm of Joe Walland, who went 14-of-26 for 206 yards and two scores, the Bulldogs immediately retaliated with a 76-yard scoring play to junior Jake Fuller.

The Tigers had several chances in the closing minutes, but was thwarted by the Bulldog defense, thanks to two interceptions by Boxrucker and sophomore Than Merril.

In total, the Bulldog defense intercepted Tiger quarterback John Burnham six times. Despite the interceptions, Burnham passed for his fourth straight 200-yard game, with a total of 249 yards. No other Tiger QB has achieved this feat since present Dallas Cowboy QB Jason Garrett did in 1987.

The Bulldogs, in the midst of their best season in a decade, need only beat Harvard to accomplish their first five-win Ivy season since 1990.

In New York, Columbia (4-5, 3-3) defeated the Cornell Big Red (4-5, 1-5) 22-10 with several big fourth-quarter plays.

On the day, Kirby Mack led all rushers with 96 yards on 14 carries, while Cornell senior QB Mike Hood led all passers, going 25-for-42 for a total of 233 yards.

Rounding out Ivy League action in Philadelphia, the Crimson became victims to Quaker revenge. Last year in Cambridge, the Crimson defeated Penn 33-0, clinching the Ivy League title. This year, however, things were a bit different, as the Quaker 41-10 win guaranteed Penn at least a share of the Ivy League Crown.

With the outright title on the line, Penn will travel to Ithaca to face Cornell. With a victory against the Big Red, the Quakers will snag their seventh outright title.

Quaker running back Finn also has the opportunity to break the school's single-season rushing record. Presently, he has netted 1,262 yards on the year, and needs only 41 more this Saturday to break Bryan Key's 1989 record of 1,302 yards.

Hoping for a Quaker loss, the Brown Bears travel to New York City, putting their five game winning streak on the line as they face Columbia. The Lions have won their last two games, and will be fighting for an even .500 season.

With a victory against Columbia and a Quaker loss, the Bears will grab a share of the Ivy League Title.

Rounding out weekend action, Yale travels north to Cambridge for The Game. Yale, winners of three of their last four, is tied for second place with an outside shot at a tie for the Ivy League Crown.

Harvard, on the other hand, has lost its last two games by a combined margin of 52 points. However, the past has shown that season performance, momentum, injuries and odds mean nothing when it comes to The Game.

Although the Ivy standings seemed to clear up a bit last weekend, four important games are left to be played. And one must always be prepared for the unexpected when it comes to Ivy League football.