PICKING IT UP: Princeton University football player Torian Roberts picks off a pass last Saturday as Princeton played at Lafayette. Junior defensive back Roberts returned the interception 38 yards for a touchdown as the Tigers went up 28-7 on the way to a 38-28 win over the Leopards. Princeton, now 1-1, hosts Columbia (1-1) on October 3 in the Ivy League opener for both teams. (Photo by Sideline Photos, provided courtesy of Princeton Athletics)
By Bill Alden
In its season opener on September 20, the Princeton University football team built a 14-point halftime lead against the University of San Diego only to lose 42-35.
Last Saturday at Lafayette in its second game, Princeton experienced a sense of déjà vu as it jumped out to a 28-14 lead over the Leopards at intermission.
But this time, the Tigers closed the deal, holding on for a 38-28 win before a crowd of 7,127 at Fisher Field in Easton, Pa.
Princeton head coach Bob Surace sensed that his players were determined to seal the deal as he heard them exhorting each other in the locker room at halftime.
“I walked in and heard all of the guys talking about finish and that piece of learning,” said Surace. “They were saying that we have to show what we learned.”
While some sloppy play doomed the Tigers in the opener, the Princeton offense was much sharper against the Leopards, starting with an opening drive of 80 yards on 13 plays that culminated with a one-yard touchdown run by Ethan Clark.
“I thought we executed third down really well,” said Surace, whose team converted 8-of-13 third downs on the day “Some of them were short yardage and we ran it, some were really good throws and catches. We really did a good job executing.”
Doing a good job forcing turnovers in the second quarter turned the tide for the Tigers. Marco Scarano recovered a fumble that led to a four-yard TD run by quarterback Blaine Hipa as Princeton went up 21-7. Later in the quarter, junior defensive back Torian Roberts returned an interception 38 yards for touchdown as the Tigers extended their lead to 28-7.
“Torian recovered one, he caused one, he had one for a touchdown,” said Surace. “We really empathized that, it is probably one of the bigger differences. There are so many things that happen in a game. We didn’t catch the ball great on some opportunities in the first game. I thought we did a really good job attacking the ball when they had ball carriers. I thought our coverage was really good.”
In the second half, Princeton utilized ball possession to help hold off the Leopards.
“The difference was that our offense controlled the clock in the second half so we got our legs back where last week we couldn’t get our legs back,” said Surace. “We did a better job offensively with the plan.”
With Princeton clinging to a 31-21 lead in the fourth quarter, Roberts came up big again, causing a fumble that Kyler Ronquillo recovered. The Tigers cashed in that turnover as Kai Colon hit Jackson Green with a 4-yard TD pass to make it a 38-21 game.
“That was terrific, not only the tackle but Kyler is like the energizer bunny,” said Surace. “The ball is on the ground, I have never seen a guy go in a 10-yard span as fast as he did to scoop it up. I thought it was going to be one of those ones where the ball is out and the guys were going to be fighting for it.”
Princeton’s play in the trenches on both sides of the ball was terrific.
“I watched their games and that is a very good defense, they were fifth in the country at pressure rates,” said Surace off Lafayette which brought a 3-1 record into the contest. “We went from giving up five sacks and a number of pressures versus San Diego to this front which is top 5 in the country with no sacks and just a couple of pressures. That was huge. Their offensive line is just moving people. Their top two running backs were averaging 8.5 and 4.9 yards a carry. There wasn’t as much space for them to run. That was a real positive to not have that type of space. I felt that was a factor.”
The quarterback rotation of seniors Colon and Hipa has been a positive for the Tigers. Colon completed 13-of-20 passes for 133 yards and one touchdown in the win while Hipa went 8-of-12 for 84 yards and rushed for 21 yards and one TD.
“More good players on the field is better than less,” said Surace. “We have done it before. One thing that I let both of them know is just play the play. You are not going to get more opportunities because you get on SportsCenter with a highlight throw. I am looking at each play and decision-making and that is their strength. One is a righty, one is a lefty, they do some things differently.”
Sophomore receiver Green is emerging as a top target for the QBs as he made five receptions for 64 yards and one touchdown against the Leopards.
“We had another No. 4, Jesper Horsted, and I just remember when we first saw him and it looked like he was in slow motion,” said Surace. “We had these tracking devices and learned that he was incredibly fast. Jackson Green has that same body control. You watch him and it doesn’t look like he is running and then he is the fastest guy.”
On defense, junior linebacker Chase Christopher was the top guy on Saturday as he made a game-high 14 tackles.
“He just runs, he plays football hard,” said Surace. “When we recruited him, there was a lot of Ozzie Nicholas (a former star linebacker for the Tigers) to his game with his size and the way he can run. Chase last year had a good year but he thought too much. You could see the brain working whereas Ozzie just went. You just play and you are a good player, you cover up for some of those inexperience mistakes. Now we are just seeing him play and it has been fun.”
Surace knows the Tigers face a hard test as they host Columbia (1-1) on October 3 under the lights in the Ivy League opener for both teams.
“They have a lot of returning starters, they are really well coached,” said Surace of the Lions, who shared the league title last fall with Dartmouth and Harvard. “I thought starting with [Al] Bagnoli (the former Penn coach who guided Columbia from 2015-22), they really committed to football. They understood what you need and they went above and beyond with their alumni and their administration. When you do that, you hire a guy like Bagnoli with his experience and then [Jon] Poppe, who I think is a terrific coach, you put yourself in position to sustain success.”