PU on the road again

Tigers at third Patriot League foe

By: Justin Feil
   The schedule makers didn’t do the Princeton University football team any favors with its first four games.
   The Tigers will face their third Patriot League opponent when they travel to Colgate 1 p.m. Saturday. Princeton has already defeated Lehigh and Lafayette, picked to finish No. 3 and No. 2 respectively in preseason polls, and now takes on the Patriot preseason favorite.
   It is the second time that Princeton will face a Patriot team on the road, and the Tigers’ only non-Patriot League game was on the road at Columbia, where fluky outcomes are an annual occurrence.
   "We knew going in that our schedule was not one that favored us," said PU head coach Roger Hughes, whose team is off to a 3-0 start for the third straight season. "From the standpoint of the competition we’re playing and where we’re playing, these teams are much better at home. It’s a credit to our kids and to our coaching staff that we have found ways to win those games. Clearly we have the same sort of challenge this week. Hopefully, we’ve learned from the previous encounters the ingredients we need to keep this thing going."
   Colgate may present the toughest challenge yet. Princeton hasn’t won there since 1997, the last time they swept three Patriot schools. The Red Raiders are 27-5 in the last 11 years against Ivy League competition, and 13-1 against Ivies at home. They are 2-2 with losses at Massachusetts and against Monmouth.
   "I think it could be a defensive game because both defenses are very good, very physical and pretty athletic," Hughes said. "I think it just gets down to turnovers and field position from the kicking game. I think short fields favor the team that has them tremendously this week because of the defensive nature of both teams."
   Princeton is coming off its best special teams and defensive performances of the season in a 19-6 win over Columbia last Saturday. It is allowing just 10.0 points per game. Colgate has given up 16.5 points per game, but barely 12 points per game in its last three contests. The Red Raiders running game is led by reigning Patriot Rookie of the Year Jordan Scott, a sophomore running back who is already 16th among Colgate all-time rushers, while the passing attack is led by Mike Saraceno, a senior signal caller. They’ll be facing a Princeton defense that has improved every week.
   "I just think by Game 3, we’re probably more disciplined and staying in our gaps and doing our assignments correctly," said Tigers linebacker Jon Stem. "We got the first-game jitters out, where you’re kind of running around and not always in the right spot. I think we’re doing a better job of getting where we need to be."
   They’re also having a good time figuring out how to do it. Stem is in his first year starting, along with his fellow linebackers. The inexperience has not shown, even with stiff road challenges like the Tigers have faced in the early going.
   "It’s fun to get out there and play great teams like we’ve been playing," Stem said. "We don’t mind going on the road. It’s a challenge. That’s what we’re here for every week."
   Stem has enjoyed the challenge of this season. After serving as a back-up last year and special teams player, the junior has proven to be a quick learner. He recorded Princeton’s first sack of the season, in the win over Lehigh. It showed he did not take long to adjust to becoming a starter.
   "I have to do a better job of taking care of my body during the week, hydrating, being ready when you know you’re going to play more plays," Stem said. "When you’re going to play more plays and be in more physical plays, you have to be ready, get your sleep throughout the week."
   The Colgate team is enough to make any opponent lose a little sleep. The Red Raiders have won the last three games against Princeton, so there isn’t a player on the Tiger roster who has beaten Colgate. Stem is looking forward to helping the defense do its part.
   "They’re a great running team and their quarterback makes good decisions," Stem said. "He’s a senior. He can move around. They do a good job of mixing it up with runs and play action and bootlegs. They just have a lot of weapons they can use."
   Princeton, too, is finding new weapons every week. Jeff Terrell had mixed performances in last week’s win over Columbia, but has given the Tigers a reliable leader under center. R.C. Lagomarsino has developed into the big-play back and gotten more comfortable with every carry. The wide out corps has made plays when they have needed to, and the Tigers are gaining respect.
   This week, for the first time since November 1993, Princeton is nationally ranked. Princeton debuted at No. 22 in the College Sporting News Division I-AA poll.
   "My initial reaction was, no, I can’t believe it," Hughes said. "We’re excited about it. Clearly it’s flattering that people think that much of us. I think the wins we’ve had over the teams we’ve had that were picked very high in the Patriot League, and frankly have been perennial playoff teams, adds credit to our wins. But that said, the rankings at the end of the season are a heck of a lot more important than the rankings right now.
   "I haven’t even brought that up to the players at this point. It’s another facet of how we handle success. A national ranking is certainly where you’d like to get your team to, to be thought of, and our players need to understand that gives us a responsibility to play at that level. We can’t forget what got us to that point, and that’s hard work, being in place, playing as a team and making plays with the football."
   If Hughes is cautious at this point, it’s understandable. Princeton has started 3-0 before, and has played at Colgate before. It has not gone well in recent history.
   "We’ve been in this position two other years, being 3-0," Hughes said, "and Colgate’s been the team that has really stopped that winning streak. That’s in the back of the minds of our players. We also know Colgate’s tradition of winning. They’re picked to win the Patriot League this year. It’s no secret that they play very well at home and we haven’t had a lot of success up there."
   In the past year, Princeton has already broken some long streaks. They beat Penn and Harvard last year to end long series losing streaks. They won at Lehigh to open the year. And now Saturday, they have a chance to snap another one and win in a tough road game at Colgate.