Here's a look at what happened in the Ivy League over the weekend...

Deon Randall and Yale log an impressive win over Cornell to open their Ivy League season.

Julian Hayes and K.B. Asante combine to run all over Columbia in Monmouth's 37-14 win.

Quinn Epperly rushed for four TDs as Princeton cruised past Georgetown.

Villanova shuts down Billy Ragone and Penn. The Wildcats outrushed the Quakers 276-43.

Despite 273 passing yards and three touchdowns, Dartmouth falls in the fourth quarter to Holy Cross.

After a slow start, Harvard scores four unanswered TDs in the second quarter to knock off Brown.

From the Ivy League...

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Yale senior wide receiver/defensive back Deon Randall (San Diego) wowed the crowd in his first game at the Yale Bowl in nearly two years with a four-touchdown performance in the Bulldogs' 38-23 win over Cornell. Randall hauled in three touchdowns as part of a career day of 11 catches and 148 yards and added a fourth score on the ground. All four of his touchdowns came consecutively in the second half to break open a tie game at halftime. He also got his first collegiate action at defensive back, recording a solo stop and deflecting a pass.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Harvard junior defensive end Zach Hodges (Atlanta) was a presence up front all night for the Crimson in a 41-23 win over Brown. Hodges was in the Bears' backfield three times with three tackles for a loss for seven yards, including one sack. He added an interception and returned it for nine yards in the third quarter. Hodges finished the night with four tackles and a quarterback hurry in the victory.

SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Harvard senior placekicker David Mothander (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.) made all five PAT attempts and drilled two field goals, both from 36 yards out, finishing with 11 points in the Crimson’s win over Brown. Mothander now has 220 points in his career, which moves him to second on Harvard’s all-time career scoring list.

ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Yale freshman defensive back Robert Ries (Cincinnati) played well in his first collegiate game at the Yale Bowl with nine tackles and his first career interception in the Bulldogs' Ivy League-opening victory over Cornell. Ries' nine tackles were second highest on the team and four of his nine stops were solo efforts. He added a pass breakup in the win.

HONOR ROLL
Phillip Bhaya, Princeton (Sr., DB - Haddonfield, N.J.)
10 tkls. (4 solo), 1 BrUp

Cole Champion, Yale (Sr., DB - Planation, Fla.)
12 tkls. (10 solo), 1 BrUp

Quinn Epperly, Princeton (Jr., QB - Knoxville, Tenn.)
69 rush yds., 4 TDs; 3-6-0, 19 yds.

Marcorus Garrett, Columbia (Sr., RB - Marietta, Ga.)
15 car. for 115 yds., 2 TDs; 9 rec. yds.

Bobby Marani, Cornell (So., FS - Aptos, Calif.)
10 tkls. (7 solo), 1 FF

Jeff Mathews, Cornell (Sr., QB - Camarillo, Calif.)
25-43-2, 336 yds., 3 TDs; 26 rush yds.

Dominick Pierre, Dartmouth (Sr., RB - Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
18 car. for 124 yds., 1 TD; 16 rec. yds.

Vinny Pugliese, Columbia (Jr., LB - Copley, Ohio)
14 tkls. (6 solo), 1 sack, 2.0 TFL

Xavier Russo, Brown (Jr., LB - San Francisco)
8 tkls. (6 solo), 1 sack, 1.0 TFL, 1 INT

Conner Scott, Penn (Sr., WR - Kenilworth, Ill.)
11 rec. for 129 yds.

John Spooney, Brown (Sr., RB - Northfield, Ohio)
17 car. for 110 yds., 2 TDs, 5 rec. yds.

Paul Stanton, Harvard (So., RB - Kenner, La.)
16 car. for 91 yds., 2 TDs

Dalyn Williams, Dartmouth (So., QB - Corinth, Texas)
21-35-0, 273 yds., 3 TDs; 87 rush yds.

Henry Furman and Deon Randall lead Yale to a 38-23 win over the Big Red in its Ivy League opener.

Here is a look at four things to keep an eye on in Yale’s Ivy League opener against Cornell on Saturday at the Yale Bowl.

A Big Test: Yale will need to fin a way to contain Cornell QB Jeff Mathews or its going to be a long day for the Bulldogs. Expect a variety of different looks and lots of pressure for Yale's defense.

Through the air: While it was encouraging to get some solid play at QB last week, the Bulldogs will need to do a better job of attacking through the pass game. The Bulldogs can't rely on Tyler Varga to carry the ball 39 times and run for 200-plus yards each week. 

Breakout game?: Chris Smith is back and he's a playmaker. He had five catches for 40 yards last week. Smith is capable of going off at any time.

Controlling the tempo: Yale likes to run a lot of plays and keep a fast pace. The Bulldogs ran 86 plays last week. Meanwhile, judging from its opener, Cornell likes to slow the tempo. The Big Red ran just 45 plays in its opener. 

Yale opens Ivy League play Saturday against Cornell at the Yale Bowl.
What's your prediction?
Comment below.

QB Hank Furman was a full participant in Thursday's practice and is expected to start in Saturday's Ivy League opener against Cornell at the Yale Bowl.

"I'll be good to go," Furman said.

Furman injured his foot on Yale's first play from scrimmage of the second half of Saturday's 39-22 season-opening win at Colgate. Furman was on his way to an impressive day, completing 11 of his 17 passes for 129 yards. He also rushed for 60 yards and three TDs.

Reno said earlier in the week he will continue to play two quarterbacks, but Furman “earned the opportunity to play more of the game than the next guy” after his performance Saturday.

Also, WR Sebastian Little, who suffered a rib injury Saturday, practiced Thursday and should be able to play Saturday. Little was the team’s second-leading receiver with four catches for 56 yards.

Fifth-year senior DE Dylan Drake has really come into his own for the Bulldogs. Check out this feature on Drake, who earned Ivy League co-Defensive Player of the Week honors. 

Tony Reno said that QB Hank Furman is fine and is scheduled to practice this week.

However, Furman took part in minimal individual drills and was very limited in Tuesday's practice.

Furman left Saturday’s 39-22 season-opening win at Colgate after injuring his foot on the first play from scrimmage of the third quarter. He did not return. Before leaving, he completed 11 of his 17 passes for 129 yards, and also rushed for 60 yards and three TDs.

“As long as he responds well to practice this week, he’ll be good to go,” Reno said. “We’ll know 100 percent as the week goes on.”

Reno added he will continue to play two quarterbacks, but Furman “earned the opportunity to play more of the game than the next guy” after his performance Saturday.

Also, WR Sebastian Little suffered a rib injury. Reno said he’s a little banged up, but will be fine. Little was the team’s second-leading receiver with four catches for 56 yards.

RB Tyler Varga was also limited in Tuesday's practice, but that mainly to give him some extra rest after a heavy workload on Saturday.

ON SATURDAY’S WIN

Reno said: “I’m happy with the execution. We managed the game really well. We have a lot of room to grow and improve. It’s a young team. The faster we bring them along, the better we will be as a team.”

Reno was encouraged by the play of the Bulldogs freshmen Saturday.

FAST PACE

Yale ran 86 offensive plays against Colgate. Reno said during the preseason his goal was between 80-100. The Bulldogs probably would have been closer to 100 if not for running out the clock late in the game.

OL Wes Gavin played all 86.

“We played well as a unit,” he said. “We go so fast in practice, we’re used to it now. It doesn’t even phase us.”

GAVIN ON PLAYING ON THE OL FOR TWO QBs

Gavin said: “Furman and Morgan Roberts are both really similar. They’re both technically sound with their footwork as far as pocket presence and both are very mobile as well. So there’s not really a dropoff for me. The only difference is the snap count. That changes a little.”

UP NEXT

Yale hosts Cornell Saturday at noon to open up Ivy League play. Cornell rolled to a 45-13 win over Bucknell in its opener last week. QB Jeff Mathews is one of the best in the FCS and has drawn plenty of interest from NFL scouts. First-year head coach Dave Archer inherits a talented group led by Mathews. Cornell does have a solid running game (though it didn’t show last week: 21 carries for 17 yards for the team). The Big Red’s defense is a veteran group. They return their whole secondary and are very physical and big up front.

A GOOD WEEK FOR THE IVY LEAGUE

The Ivy League went 6-2 last week “I didn’t get a chance to see all the games on film,” Reno said. “But I think it’s a really strong league. There are really good players, talented QBs and good defenses.”

From the Ivy League...

CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Dartmouth sophomore quarterback Dalyn Williams (Corinth, Texas) posted his third straight 200-yard passing game (228 yards) in four career starts while recording his first career 100-yard rushing game (119 yards) to lead the Big Green to a 30-23 triumph at Butler. Williams had personal highs in completions (22) and attempts (35) and extended his streak of passes without an interception to 149 to start his career. He guided the Dartmouth offense to touchdowns on each of the team’s first three drives, scoring the first points of the season on a one-yard dive for a lead the Big Green would not relinquish.

Harvard junior quarterback Conner Hempel (Union, Ky.), in his first-career start, led the Crimson to a 42-20 victory at San Diego. Hempel completed 25-of-34 passes for a career-best 345 yards and four touchdowns. He completed eight straight passes at one point and had all four of his touchdown passes came in the second half to break open what was a one-point game (14-13) at halftime. Hempel did not throw an interception and also ran for 38 yards in the win.

CO-DEFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Harvard junior defensive end Zach Hodges (Atlanta) made an impact in the Crimson’s 42-20 season-opening win at San Diego. Hodges put Harvard on the scoreboard with a 53-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown, the Crimson’s first fumble return for a score since 2007. He also made another fumble recovery later in the game when San Diego was near Harvard’s endzone on the one-yard line. Hodges recorded five tackles and assisted on a sack.

Yale senior defensive end Dylan Drake (Plantation, Fla.) was in the Colgate backfield all day as the Bulldogs opened the 2013 season with a 39-22 road win against the Raiders. Drake recorded six tackles (all solo) and notched the game’s only sack to along with three tackles for loss. He got in on the action on offense as well, catching a 15-yard touchdown pass from senior defensive back/quarterback Derek Russell on a fourth-down play with six seconds remaining before halftime.

SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Cornell senior placekicker John Wells (Alpharetta, Ga.) was perfect on all seven placement attempts (six PATs and one 38-yard field goal) in the Big Red’s 45-13 win over Bucknell. Wells’ nine kicking points in a game were the most since Brad Greenway scored 14 against Columbia in 2011. He may have been even more impressive on kickoffs, averaging 64.4 yards with five touchbacks in his eight kickoffs through a driving rain storm.

ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Brown freshman wide receiver/return specialist Alexander Jette (North Attleborough, Mass.) was fearless in returning punts in the Bears’ 45-7 victory over Georgetown to open the season. In his collegiate debut, Jette returned four punts 82 yards, averaging 20.5 yards per return, to help give the Brown offense excellent field position all game. His 82 punt return yards rank 11th on the school's single-game list for most punt return yards. Jette also got his first collegiate catch for five yards.

HONOR ROLL
Eric Armagost, Brown (Jr., DB - Fayetteville, Ga.)
5 tkls. (5 solo), 1.0 TFL, 1 INT

Kyle Cazzetta, Yale (Jr., PK/P - Slate Hill, N.Y.)
2 FGs, 3 PATs, 30.6 yds./punt

A.J. Dettorre, Dartmouth (Jr., DB - Moorpark, Calif.)
8 tkls. (8 solo), 1.0 TFL, 2 BrUps

Ryan Flannery, Columbia (Jr., WR - North Attleborough, Mass.)
6 rec. for 108 yds., 1 TD

David Park, Penn (Sr., LB - Buford, Ga.)
5 tkls. (2 solo), 1 sack, 1 FF

Dominick Pierre, Dartmouth (Sr., RB - Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
23 car. for 93 yds., 3 TDs

Billy Ragone, Penn (Sr., QB - Cheshire, Conn.)
21-28-0, 218 yds., 2 TDs

Lucas Shapiro, Cornell (Jr., WR - Antioch, Calif.)
5 rec. for 113 yds., 1 TD

John Spooney, Brown (Sr., RB - Northfield, Ohio)
14 car. for 102 yds., 2 TDs, 24 rec. yds., 1 TD

Michael Turner, Cornell (Jr., DB - Pikeville, Md.)
2 tkls. (1 solo), 1 FR, 1 INT

Tyler Varga, Yale (Jr., RB - Kitchener, Ontario, Canada)
39 car. for 236 yds., 1 TD

Roman Wilson, Princeton (Jr., WR - Broken Arrow, Okla.)
9 rec. for 168 yds., 1 TD

Mike Zeuli, Princeton (Jr., LB - Marlton, N.J)
18 tkls. (11 solo), 1.0 TFL

Here's a look at what happened around the Ivy League in Week One...

Tyler Varga runs for a career-high 236 yards in Yale's 39-22 win over Colgate.

Brown generates 476 yards of total offense and the Bears route Georgetown 45-7.

Brett Nottingham, who transferred from Stanford to Columbia, completed 12 of 23 passes for 144 yards. He was sacked four times and threw two interceptions. The Lions fell 52-7 to No. 21 Fordham.

Jeff Mathews finished 15-for-23 for 285 yards and three touchdowns, as Cornell rolled past Bucknell 45-13.

Harvard was victorious in its first game in California since 1949 with a 42-20 win over San Diego.

Dartmouth scored on its first three possessions and held off a late rally from Butler for a 30-23 victory. 

Cheshire product Billy Ragone inched closer to Penn's all-time TD mark in the Quakers 27-21 win over Lafayette.

Lehigh rallied in the second half for a 29-28 win over Princeton.

Tony Reno said senior Henry Furman and Clemson-transfer Morgan Roberts will split time at QB in the season opener against Colgate.

The plan is to swap the quarterbacks every two series. Furman will start the game. Reno said both have played very well and will keep it this way until one pulls ahead.

Sophomore Eric Williams will be the third QB.

Furman played mostly at WR last season. He shifted to QB late in the year and finished the year completing 34 of 59 passes for 376 yards and two TDs. Roberts, a sophomore, was No. 3 on the depth chart at Clemson. He completed two of three passes for the Tigers. In a preseason scrimmage against Brown, Roberts completed 10 of 15 passes.

Yale opens up at Colgate on Saturday.
What's your prediction?  Comment below...

4-down Friday is back. Here is a look at four things to keep an eye on in Yale’s season opener at Colgate on Saturday.

QB mystery: Who will be under center for the Bulldogs? It seems to have come down to Sr. Henry Furman and So. Clemson-transfer Morgan Roberts. Furman did a solid job shifting to QB from WR late last season and looked good in camp. Roberts has looked strong as well. He has exceptional speed and experience playing at a big-time program.

Growing pains: The main concern for the Bulldogs lies within its defense. They are very young (five freshmen on the two-deep) and inexperienced. They will face quite a challenge to open the year against Colgate’s talented offense.

Welcome back: WRs Deon Randall and Chris Smith both return after missing last season. They should make an immediate impact and bolster a passing game that struggled last season.

Dual threat: Colgate QB Gavin McCarney missed last week because of injury. As of Friday, Coaach Biddle says he has a "good shot to play." He’s of the top QBs in the FCS and torched the Bulldogs for six TDs (four rushing, two throwing) in a 47-24 win last season. If he’s unable, look for Dylan Finelli to be under center. He rushed for 74 yards and threw for 46 yards in a 53-23 loss to No. 9 New Hampshire last week.

Yale opens its season on Saturday at Colgate, a team that already has played three games.
It's time for the Ivy League to add an 11th game. 

Inside the huddle. Taking a snap from under center. Throwing a deep pass or scrambling for a long run.
Ever wonder what it’s like through the eyes of a quarterback? Well, Yale and the New Haven-based digital-first creative agency Digital Surgeons made that happen Tuesday.
Read the story here and check out the video below.



Yale Football | Project Glass from Digital Surgeons on Vimeo.

It’s almost time.

Yale will open its season on Saturday at Colgate (0-3) at 1 p.m. Here are some notes from the first Yale football media luncheon at Mory’s.

RENO ON THE RED RAIDERS

The defending Patriot League champions are very talented on offense, Reno says. QB Gavin McCarney (who missed last week’s 53-23 loss to New Hampshire) makes plays with his feet and smart decisions in the passing game. Colgate has a strong running game. WR Dan Cason is a dangerous playmaker and tight end Kevin O’Connell is another option.

Defensively, Colgate is aggressive up front and its linebackers play downhill. They are very athletic in the secondary.

“There is a reason they were picked to win the Patriot League,” Reno said.

A NEW FACE

Yale has faced Georgetown in its last six openers. The Bulldogs won all six against the Hoyas and haven’t lost an opener since falling to San Diego in 2006.

WHO WILL PLAY QB?
As expected, Reno wouldn’t give any update on the quarterback situation. Morgan Roberts, Henry Furman and Eric Williams are competing for the starting spot. It appears in practice as if Roberts and Furman are the finalists for the job, with Williams still in the mix though.

GAME PLAN

Reno said he wants to run 90-100 plays per game. Last year the Bulldogs averaged somewhere in the 70s.

“I’m an attack first kind of guy,” Reno said. “I want to attack in all three phases. In the no-huddle, you’re able to control the tempo of game. If you want to snap fast, you can. If you want to snap midrange or slow, you can. I like to run the football. We’re going to run the football. We’re not going to throw it 60 times.

LOOKING BACK

A quote from Reno on last year’s QB dilemma…

“We beat Penn and this group of kids never beat Penn. We felt moving forward, we were making strides. I was sitting in the coaches’ locker room with my wife and the trainer walks in and says you don’t have a QB. I said ‘what do you mean.’ ‘There are no one left.’”

“At that point, I said there are one of two things we can do: complain about it or fix it. I called offensive coordinator Kevin Morris and told him I’m going to throw on single wing formation tonight and I suggest you do the same. That was a lot of fun. We had to shut practice down. The kids played their butts off. On the flip side, I was walking down here with Beau Palin today and said it’s so nice to walk into this meeting knowing we have 4-5 QBs on the depth chart.”

DEFENSE 
DE 40 Beau Palin Sr. 6-3, 247 pay-lin a leader in the Warrior-Scholar Program
10 Victor Egu Fr. 6-3, 235 ee-goo Born in Nigeria, family moved to U.S. when he was 5
NG 97 Kyle White Sr. 6-7, 268 played on offensive line and wore No. 71 his first 3 seasons
94 Pat McHugh So. 6-2, 258 played in one 2012 game
DT 96 Copache Tyler Fr. 6-3, 280 captained wrestling team in high school
53 Jeff Schmittgens Jr. 6-4, 240 earned spring practice DL award
DE 99 Dylan Drake Sr. 6-3, 224 5-2-7 at Columbia ’12; TD catch vs. Dart ’12 (sp. Tms); medical hardship waiver
91 Kolu Buck Sr. 6-3, 230 played in 6 games and had 4 solos in 2012
B 49 Andrew Larkin So. 6-2, 206 missed freshman season with injury
52 Aaron Ault So. 6-3, 194 played in 6 games on special teams in 2012
M 42 Will Vaughan Jr. 6-1, 225 1st collegiate start at Princeton ’11; 2-3-5 at Brown ’12
44 Brian Leffler Sr. 6-0, 225 1-6-7 at Gtown ’12; 3-1-4, blk kick vs. Colgate ’12; INT vs. Penn ’12; med hardship
S 22 Charles Cook Jr. 6-3, 210 5-4-9 at Columbia ’12
33 Chris Brady Sr. 6-0, 198 1-3-4 at Columbia ’12; 2009 National Championship Team for Don Bosco
CB 17 Spencer Rymiszewski Fr. 6-0, 185 rim-uh-shev-skee accomplished piano player
31 Max Napolitano Sr. 5-11, 182 intern with MLB Brewers last summer, did sausage race
CB 23 Foyesade Oluokun Fr. 6-2, 200 fo-yay-sa-day o-loo-o-kun earned 8 high school varsity letters between FB and Basketball
12 Nick LaTesta Jr. 5-9, 172 1-2-3 at Cornell ’12
SS 5 Cole Champion So. 5-11, 183 9 solos vs. Lafayette; 12 total at Columbia ’12
13 Derek Russell Sr. 6-1, 183 Played QB and WR in 2012; off bench to beat Penn as QB; starter at QB vs. Harvard
FS 34 Robert Ries Fr. 5-11, 185 reece competed in FB, baseball, track and ran lawn care business while in high school
20 Nick Okano Sr. 5-11, 182 o-kahn-o 2-4-6 at Georgetown ‘12; interceptions vs. Cornell and Columbia ‘11
OFFENSE
WR 3 Chris Smith Sr. 6-0, 200 All-Ivy in 2011; not in school in 2012
9 Cameron Sandquist Sr. 5-9, 174 10-76, 1 TD vs. Colgate ’12; 98-Yd TD Georgetown ’12 – longest Yale play ever
WR 29 Grant Wallace Jr. 6-0, 187 11-118, 1 TD at Harvard 2012, father (Bob) played for Carm Cozza
82 Myles Gaines Fr. 5-11, 175 won numerous WR MVP awards at various national camps
TE 18 Keith Coty Sr. 6-2, 225 ko-tee missed 2012 with injury
86 Adam Conklin Jr. 6-3, 231 played in every 2012 game and had 2 starts
LT 79 Wes Gavin Sr. 6-6, 286 3-year starter on OL; 2010 freshman MVP
65 Khalid Cannon Fr. 6-6, 265 Interested in chemistry with hopes of becoming a pharmacist or a pharmacologist
LG 67 Will Chism Jr. 6-3, 277 chiz-em Phil Steele's College Football Preview pre-season All-Ivy League squad
69 Stephen Shoemaker Jr. 6-2, 285 played on JV last 2 years
C 60 John Oppenheimer Sr. 6-0, 264 2 F-REC after interceptions 2011; spoke to U.S. Congress about bone marrow research
75 Mason Friedline Fr. 6-5, 290 freed-line
RG 50 Luke Longinotti So. 6-4, 265 lawn-gin-otti played in 10 games in 2012; scuba diver
62 Derrek Ross So. 6-4, 264 played JV in 2012; twin brother, Dustin, is also on Yale OL
RT 70 Ben Carbery Jr. 6-5, 287 Frosh MVP in 2011
78 Ben Killion So. 6-6, 273 Only Wootton High School player ever selected for Crab Bowl All-Star Game
QB 7 Henry Furman Sr. 6-4, 210 18-28, 184 in 1st collegiate start at any position (QB vs. Princeton ’12)
or 19 Morgan Roberts So. 6-3, 210 Clemson backup QB in 2012
8 Eric Williams So. 6-3, 192 Started 6 games in 2012; 1,056 yards and 6 TDs
HB 2 Deon Randall Sr. 5-8, 175 All-Ivy in 2011; missed 2012 with injury
4 Sebastian Little So. 6-1, 210 3 receptions in 2012 opener at Gtown; injured in that game and missed rest of 2012
RB 30 Tyler Varga Jr. 5-11, 220 220 yards Columbia (Yale’s 6th best game); 2012 FCS leader in All-Purpose
32 Candler Rich Fr. 5-11, 190 Scored 102 TDs in high school playing both ways; 20 interceptions
SPECIAL TEAMS
PK 37 Kyle Cazzetta Jr. 6-0, 208 Section IX (NY) record 51-yard FG in HS 2010
42 Parker Toms Jr. 5-11, 200 2011 WCAL Kicker of Year
H 13 Derek Russell Sr. 6-1, 183 DB who played on offense last year
14 Logan Scott So. 6-1, 187 backup QB
LS 40 Beau Palin Sr. 6-3, 247 captain and starting DE
11 Spencer McManes Fr. 6-3, 210 Mac-man-us backup QB
P 37 Kyle Cazzetta Jr. 6-0, 208 72-yard punt at Brown ‘12
43 Bryan Holmes Fr. 5-11, 205
PR 2 Deon Randall Sr. 5-8, 175
9 Cameron Sandquist Sr. 5-9, 163 6 for 53 yards in 2012
KOR 3 Chris Smith Sr. 6-0, 200 only Ivy player with 2 KOR for TDs in one game (at Brown ’10)

Kyle White has moved from the O-Line to NT and should bring some help and leadership to Yale's defensive line. Check out this feature on White.

Interesting story on Tony Reno's "right-hand man, courtesy of Chicago's Daily Herald.

And how do you think Yale will fare this season? Vote below...

  

Brown edged Yale 14-7 in Saturday’s scrimmage at Providence, R.I.

Logan Scott hit freshman WR Robert Clemons on a fade route in the red zone for the Bulldogs lone TD.

The biggest issues for Yale right now are consistency and familiarity on offense, along with inexperience on the defensive line and in the secondary.

There are a lot of new pieces to the puzzle still getting acclimated to the offense. The Bulldogs certainly have talent. However, they haven’t named a starting QB and their top two WRs and starting TE missed last season.

On defense, the Bulldogs are simply young.

“I’m definitely very concerned about our d-line and secondary,” Tony Reno said. “Guys who are continuing to improve and doing everything we ask of them. But there’s a learning curve and growth cycle.”

Reno rattled off a few players that played well Saturday: DT Kyle White, DE Beau Palin, LB Andrew Larkin, DB Foyesade Oluokun, OL Wes Gavin and Clemons among others.

He also mentioned DT Copache Tyler. Tyler 6-3, 280-pound freshman, who was also a standout wrestler in Springfield, Ill. Right now, Tyler is taking first-team reps as the 3-technique. Reno said he has great leverage and has been very dependable in camp so far.

The starting QB job has come down to Roberts, Hank Furman and Eric Williams. All three are pretty close, according to Reno.

“At 12:55 p.m. I’ll know,” said a joking Reno, about naming a starter 5 minutes prior to its season opener against Colgate on Sept. 21.

Reno said Brown is very good and have a talented QB in Pat Donnelly, who looked sharp Saturday.

“You could tell when he comes into the game because they are much smoother,” Reno said. “They are good up front on both sides. They have some big WRs. They’ll be a force to be reckoned with.”

LOOKING AT COLGATE
Meanwhile, the Red Raiders, who Yale opens with on Sept. 21, dropped to 0-2 on Saturday. Colgate fell 37-34 to Albany. The Red Raiders turned the ball over four times in the first half. They will have three games under their belt before taking on Yale.

  

Wide receivers Chris Smith and Deon Randall are back for the Bulldogs and should bolster what was the worst passing offense in the Ivy League last season. Check out this feature on the Smith and Randall.

Southington Sr. QB Stephen Barmore recently gave his commitment to Yale.
He's the type of dynamic QB that Tony Reno looks for to run his offense. Barmore is 6-2, 210 pounds. He’s 20-3 as a starter for the Blue Knights and has thrown for 4,491 yards, 34 touchdowns and 19 interceptions in his career. 

Here are some notes from Yale’s intrasquad scrimmage on Saturday…

• The Bulldogs played all four quarters and ran nearly 200 plays. Reno said he wanted the team to run as many as possible to get a good look at, and a healthy amount of reps for, the quarterbacks on the roster.

• Right now, Reno says, there are five QBs in the running for the starting job: Derek Russell, Henry Furman, Morgan Roberts, Eric Williams and Logan Scott. They saw the majority of the reps Saturday.

“Of those give, they will start to separate themselves,” Reno said. “We’re looking at whole body of work.”

Don’t expect a starter to be named until the week of season opener against Colgate (Sept. 21).

• Defensively, the Bulldogs need to work on open-field tackling. That has been a concern early in camp and during the scrimmage.

• As expected, junior RB Tyler Varga is running hard and well. He broke off a couple of nice runs Saturday. Reno said freshman Candler Rich is the No. 2 RB right now.

• Freshman TE Leo Haenni made a couple of big catches. Haenni is a 6-3, 225-pound TE from Franklin, Ohio. Sophomore WR Grant Wallace also looked strong. As reported last week, WR Chris Smith is back. He was held out of the scrimmage (hamstring) as a precaution, but probably could have played.

• On the defensive side, freshman DB Robert Ries stood out, along with Kyle White. White moved from OL to DL this season.

• Right now, about half of the freshmen on the roster are on the (unofficial) two-deep depth chart. That includes highly touted OLB Victor Egu.

“He made a real jump last week,” Reno said. “Things are starting to slow down for him. He had a good scrimmage.”

• Reno said the PK spot is one of the top battles in camp. Jr. Kyle Cazzetta has really improved coming into camp, but freshman Bryan Holmes is challenging him. Holmes had 45 of 53 kickoffs downed for touchbacks as a senior last season.

• And once again, Reno made sure to point out how critical the senior leadership has been starting with captain Beau Palin.

‘They are great leaders,” he said. “This is a very close group, very tight. Part of that comes from being here all summer together. “

• Reno also noted the new turf at Frank Field should be finished within the next 10 days.