For Halloween weekend, Penn’s defensive unit dressed up as a ferocious, Red & Blue monster, which tormented Brown quarterback E.J. Perry all afternoon long.
A season-high eight Quakers recorded a sack in Penn’s 45-17 win at Franklin Field, including a career-high three by senior linebacker Jake Heimlicher. The defense also forced three turnovers—two interceptions and a fumble recovery.
The offensive unit dressed up as a Nissan, running on all cylinders.
Freshman quarterback Aidan Sayin may just be the solution to the Quakers’ quarterback quandary; for the second straight game, he threw for two touchdowns. The first, a 13-yard pass in the first quarter to senior wide receiver Ryan Cragun, gave the Red & Blue a 7-0 lead.
After a Brown touchdown, which evened the game at 7-7, senior running back Isaiah Malcome scored on a 45-yard jaunt to put Penn ahead 14-7 after one quarter of play.
Sayin’s second touchdown pass came early in the second quarter, a 12-yard dart to sophomore wide receiver Joshua Casilli, which made it a 21-7 game.
On the ensuing drive, senior linebacker Garrett Morris picked off Perry’s pass and returned it 42 yards for a touchdown, pushing the lead to 28-7.
Brown kicked a 48-yard field goal, and following a failed onside kick, senior kicker Daniel Karrash nailed a 40-yard field goal of his own.
Trailing 31-10 with 3:40 left before halftime, the Bears had two chances to make it a game. On first-and-10 from Penn’s 29-yard line, senior defensive back Jason McCleod, Jr. intercepted Perry’s pass in the endzone, and in the final seconds of the quarter, junior defensive lineman Micah Morris blocked a 54-yard field goal attempt.
Late in the third quarter, another long run by Malcome—this one for 65 yards—set the Quakers’ up with first-and-goal from the five-yard line. Freshman running back Julien Stokes punched it in on the next play. Senior running back Trey Flowers added a one-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Sayin finished 11-16 for 97 yards and two touchdowns. Malcome rushed nine times for 121 yards and a touchdown, averaging 13.4 yards per carry. Cragun had four receptions for 65 yards and a score. Senior linebacker Brian O’Neill had a team-high 12 tackles and a fumble recovery.
Morris finished with six tackles, one tackle for loss, one interception, and one touchdown. For his performance, he has been named Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week.
Penn is 3-4 overall and 1-3 in the Ivy League headed into this Saturday’s homecoming game against Cornell (1-6 overall, 0-4 in conference) at 1 p.m. at Franklin Field.
