Yale/Penn at the half

Pretty forgettable first half by the Bulldogs.

By my count, Brook Hart has been sacked four times. He was also intercepted by Jared Sholly with the Penn sophomore returning the pick 15 yards for the game's only touchdown.

Yale had a promising opening drive behind some hard running by Rodney Reynolds. When the 12-play drive stalled, Tom Mante just missed a 54-yard field goal. Making matters worse, freshman Jeff Marrs was called for a personal foul allowing the Quakers to start their first drive inside Yale territory. The drive ended with Andrew Samson's 35-yard field goal.

Three plays later Hart telegraphed a pass intended for Chris Smith. Playing a zone blitz, Sholly retreated and jumped the route to put the Quakers up 9-0. A bad snap prevented the extra point from being attempted.

Yale did well to keep Penn off the scoreboard the rest of the way.

A few notes, Marcus Wallace got the start at strong safety for the injured Larry Abare.

The ever changing Yale offensive line featured Cory Palmer and Nathan Burow at tackles, Mike McInerney and Gabe Fernandez at guard and Jake Koury back at center after missing the last two games with a bruised calf.

Smith had a brilliant return on the opening kickoff negated by a holding penalty, called EXTREMELY late as was a personal foul call for a facemask on Adam Money to give Penn a chance to add to its lead in the final minute of the first half.

Adam Money and Travis Henry have had outstanding first half performances on defense for Yale while former Staples star Brian Levine has made his presence felt.

Yale, which managed only 92 yards of offense in last year's loss to Penn, managed just 56 yards on 30 plays in the first half.

If Yale doesn't protect Hart and apply some pressure on the pash rush, it could be a long second half.