Oh yeah, and if you see any football players back on campus tonight...

• Please remind them that they still have to beat Dartmouth (next Saturday at 1 p.m. at Princeton stadium. Can we get a sellout up in that piece?). Dartmouth has mostly been regarded as a pushover, but the Big Green picked up its second league win today, defeating Brown 19-13 in overtime.
  
• More significantly, the Penn Quakers beat Harvard today, 22-13. What does that mean? It means Harvard now has 2 losses in second place behind Yale and Princeton (who have one loss apiece). Should the Crimson defeat the Bulldogs when the two teams meet next Saturday at Harvard Stadium, Yale and Harvard would both have two losses. That game will start at noon, which means that Princeton will know before its game against Dartmouth is over whether or not a win would earn them AN OUTRIGHT IVY LEAGUE TITLE. On the other hand, if Princeton beats Dartmouth, but Yale wins as well, Yale and Princeton would share the Ivy League title (the Tigers could claim the "real" title since they beat Yale straightup). If Princeton loses AND Yale lose, Harvard, Princeton, and Yale would split the title three ways (Princeton could claim the "real" title for the same reason it will be having a bonfire this coming Thursday). If Princeton loses to Dartmouth and Yale wins, Yale would win the title outright.
• As nice as any of the preceding things would be for Princeton (except the last one, especially the first one), it should be noted that Columbia got its first win of the league season against Cornell today, 21-14. That means, at the end of the day, the only thing potentially separating Princeton from an undefeated season might be a loss to a team (Cornell) that lost to Columbia.
• Finally, congrats to the field hockey team.
  

Basketball: Whoop that Trick, yeah, Whoop that Trick

• Just back from the post-game press conference, and Kent State is getting fired up in the tunnel again with its awesome team cheer. The tricks they'll be trying to whoop this evening are the IUPUI Jaguars. The two teams will play for the right to take on the winner of tonight's Ohio State-Loyola game in the BCA Classic Championship game tomorrow.
• Princeton, meanwhile, after holding on for a 73-68 win this afternoon against VMI, will play Alabama A&M in the fifth-place game tomorrow afternoon at 2 p.m. "Dispatches from the sidelines" will be posting on the event live (the game could start shortly after 2, depending on how long the seventh-place game between SDSU and VMI takes).
• Alabama A&M defeated San Diego State in today's first game (right before the Tigers played) by a score of 70-66. In the post-game press conference, Scott talked about Alabama A&M's "junk defense," which isn't really a zone and isn't really man-to-man. The Tigers will have less than 24 hours to watch video of Alabama A&M and prepare for the game. Princeton did a good job preparing for VMI on short notice, however--a considerable task considering the Keydets' notoriously up-tempo style of play. Coach Scott said he made a few phone calls last night to people familiar with how VMI plays, and as a result, Princeton was able to hold VMI to less than half the number of points (68) the Keydets were putting up in their exhibition season.
• Scott was quite happy with the team's effort, reserving the most praise for his two freshmen, Gunn and Schroeder. Gunn hit the biggest shot of the game for the Tigers (a contested three that put Princeton up 67-62 with 33 seconds left and ended a 15-0 VMI run). Schroeder had 7 assists, again the only Tiger to play all 40 minutes.
  
• Scott felt Owings gave him everything he could have in his 16 minutes of play (14 points on 6-of-9 shooting and 5 rebounds) but that Owings' limited minutes (like last night) were a result of his recovery from a sprained ankle.
• Junior forward Kyle Koncz, who finished with 13 points, 3 threes and 4 assists, called Schroeder a "damn good guard who doesn't turn the ball over."
  
• Senior foward Justin Conway, who led the Tigers with 15 points and 6 rebounds, praised the team's improvement in interior defense and rebounding, while emphasizing that continued improvement is necessary. Along with Conway, sophomore center Mike Strittmatter and senior guard Edwin Buffmire also posted 6 rebounds.
• Another reminder: tomorrow afternoon's game against Alabama A&M will be played tomorrow at 2 p.m. or shortly thereafter, with "Dispatches from the sidelines" on hand again. The Tigers will look to start their season 2-1, which would also match their win total from the ENTIRE NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE LAST YEAR.
  

Basketball: Tigers win!

• Gunn gets two hands up in front of Chavis Holmes this time, who had dribbled to the exact same spot on the floor where he hit his last three. Holmes airballs while falling over. Game over. Tigers win 73-68.
  
• Koncz finishes with 13, Conway with 15, Owings with 14. Princeton shot 25 of 54 (46.3%) from the floor, 10 of 26 (38.5%) from deep. Tigers out-rebound VMI 37-24.
  

Basketball: Chavis Holmes unbelievable

• Gunn fails to get a hand up on Holmes, who swishes yet another 3. Holmes has 29.
• Koncz fouled with 8.4 to go. He drains the first FT, drains the second. Huge.

Basketball: 15 seconds left

• Conway heads to the line shooting 1 and 1. First one rattles in. That's big. Second one swishes. That's bigger.
  

Basketball: Schroeder to Conway

• Schroeder shows a ridiculous vertical leap near midcourt to bat away a VMI pass from underneath the basket. Conway, following the play like always, retrieves the lose ball and darts in for a layup. 69-62 Princeton.
• Reggie Williams drains an open three on the other end to respond. Williams is shooting just 4 of 14, but he's got 11 points and that was a huge shot.

Basketball: Two minute warning

• VMI continues to frustrate Princeton with a full-court press. Koncz attacks the basket, but is blocked/fouled without a call.
  
• Chavis Holmes buries a three. 64-62 Princeton with 1:05 to go. Chavis Holmes has 26 points on 8 for 13 shooting, including 3 of 5 from three-point land.
• Tigers stick with lineup of Koncz, Schroeder, Gunn, Conway, and Buffmire. Owings is out because of his ankle sprain. He didn't reinjure it, but Scott knows he has to limit Owings' miniutes. He's played 6 second-half minutes.
• Lincoln Gunn three from the corner with a hand right in his face. He'd been silent for a while, but no fear in taking the big shot.
  

Basketball: Too close for comfort

• With 2:08 remaining, Reggie Williams scores inside for VMI to cut it to 64-57.
  
• Schroeder turns it over bringing the ball up, Conway dives on the floor for the loose ball and is called for his fourth foul of the game. Chavis Holmes, of course, goes to the line. He hits them both to cut Princeton's lead to 5. That's 5. Smallest lead of the second half.
  

Basketball: A second Princeton win of the day in sight

• This one would be just as big, right?
• Out of a timeout at the 3:47 mark, Buffmire is at the line shooting two with his team up 64-53. Fittingly, he misses them both. Tigers are 9 of 17 from the line.
• Chavis Holmes is out of his mind. His 20th and 21st points of the game come on a pretty up-and-under layup to cut Princeton's lead to single-digits. The Keydets are definitely coming alive.

Basketball: But I don't wanna go outside

• The Tigers' inside game has taken a quantum leap forward in this game. Conway scores again on a layup, then on the next possession dishes to Buffmire for a look under the basket. Buffmire is blocked, but he fights to put it back up again and get it to go.
• The Keydets respond with 7 unanswered points to cut the lead back down to 11, 64-53, with 4:05 left.
  

Basketball: Koncz pushes lead to 14

• With his third three of the game. After starting slow, he has 11 points here in the second half, is 4 of 6 from the field and 3 of 5 from deep.
• As VMI brings up the ball, Conway dives on the floor to force a jump ball. The possession arrow points Princeton's way. He then scores to make the score 60-44 Princeton with just over six minutes left.
  

Basketball: Do the Princeton fans here know?

• There are about 20 fans wearing Orange & Black here in Columbus, all spread out across one big section. They've been very vocal, and are clearly pumped with Princeton's hoops effort. Should I yell out to them that the Tigers are now in the driver's seat for an Ivy League championship in football?
  

Basketball: Where have all the threes gone?

• Koncz short on a contested three from the corner and the Tigers are 7 of 22 from downtown.
• Buffmire reminds Princeton that it can win despite that fact, taking it strong to the hole and finishing with a mid-air transfer of the basketabll from his left to his right hand.
• Koncz takes about three seconds looking at a three from the corner, then nails it. Chavis Holmes answers with his own three, quickly on the other end. 51-40 Princeton with just over 9 minutes left.
  
• Now Buffmire's racking up the assists, hitting Strittmatter underneath for a layup. Buffmire has 4 assists and Koncz is right behind him with 3. Schroeder still leads the way with 5.
  
• Strittmatter throws away another pass to Chavis Holmes, who takes it in for a strong layup. Holmes now has 17 points, 12 in the second half. Holmes has only played 16 minutes, but he leads all players in points, and in steals, with 4.
  
• The Tigers have helped VMI stay in this game with some sloppy passing. Princeton has one more turnover than VMI, 18 compared to 17. But Princeton is up because they also have 17 assists. VMI has an unbelievable four.
  

Football: Bonfire!!

Students in orange Tshirts are flooding the field, they're gathering at the 50 and just going nuts, jumping up and down.

Who wouldn't be excited about some fire on cannon green?

Football: Princeton wins!!!

Princeton just picked up a first down, and now its 2nd and 11 with 37 seconds left. As long as there's no disaster, this game may be over with. Princeton band is going nuts and Yale is quiet.

The Princeton students rush the field!!!

Final Princeton 34 Yale 31

Football: YOU CAN FEEL THE HEAT

Yeah, I can feel the heat. The bonfire. It's coming. And it's going to be HOT HOT HOT. Princeton students, your dreams have come true!

Basketball: No need to keep freshman fresh

• Schroeder and Gunn lead the Tigers with 28 and 27 minutes played respectively. They lead the Tigers in minutes for the season. For the second straight game, Schroeder hasn't left the court. Scott said after last night's game that Schroeder would need some rest after a 40-minute effort, but apparently he does not have enough confidence in the back-up point guard options (junior Kevin Steuerer or sophomore Jason Briggs) to insert them, especially here in cruchtime.

Basketball: Lead down to 6

• Koncz throw away a pass, intercepted by Travis Holmes (not his twin brother, Chavis Holmes), who runs up court and nails a pullup three. It's 41-35 Princeton.
• Koncz responds with a cutting layup on the other end...another Schroeder assist on that one. He's got 5 of Princeton's 5 helpers.
• 45-37 Princeton with 11:43 to go.
  

Football: Terrell throws for more yards than the number of people at the basketball game

That 57 yard touchdown pass pushed Terrell to 376 yards, the highest total for a Princeton quarterback since a long time, regardless that's some sick stats and we're not done yet.

Now defense is stopping McLeod, after 151 yards in just the first half, he hasn't been able to get anywhere in the second. Someone must have giventhe D a talking to.

With 5:30 remaining, the Tigers are up by three, that two point conversion was a crucial call by Coach Hughes, and well executed by Terrell, who has been just fantastic.

Yale is the only team this senior class has not beaten at least once in their tenure at Princeton, and Terrell is trying hard to make sure that changes.

Basketball: Lead back down to 8

• 39-31 Princeton After 4 straight Keydet FTs.
• Conway feeds Owings beautifully on a fast break the other way. Owings blocked and fouled, misses both free throws! Tigers are 4 of 9 from the charity stripe after going 8 of 15 last night. That is inexplicable.
• Conway hits a pair of free throws. Back on the right side of 50%.
  

Basketball: Carl Josey hits 2 of 2 FTs for VMI

• Would have hit 3 if his first name was spelled with a "K".

Football: Let's put it away!

Terrell just picked up a HUGE first down! Okay, well, that's kind of to be expected from a guy who's been huge all day long. This guy is a quarterbacking beast. He's thrown for 300+ yards, the first time since 1985 that a Princeton QB has done so. The offense is running the ball now to soak up some clock. Yale only has one timeout left because they used two on their last drive that fizzled out on a 3rd and 8. I think they should have gone for it right there, becasue the offense has been unstoppable, really, this half. The Bulldogs have no answer. No answer!

Football: PRINCETON TAKES THE LEAD

After another 3 and out forced the amazing D, Jeff Terrell set up for one pass and that's all he needed. Brian Brigham was streaking down the left sideline, wide open, and Terrell nailed him for the touchdown. Then, on the two point conversion attempt (in order to go up by 3), Terrell hit Circle. PRINCETON 34, YALE 31.

LET'S GO TIGERS! YEAH BUDDY!

Basketball: Koncz first points of game

• On a contested three-pointer from the corner. He was the Princeton offense during the first half last night, but only 1 shot in the first half of this game.
• 14 assists on 14 field goals
• Chavis Holmes answers with a three for VMI that looked like it bounced off the top of the backboard. 39-27 Tigers with 15:52 remaining.

Basketball: Start of the second half

• Owings rattles in a three from the wing to give Princeton it's first double-digit lead of the season, 36-24. 14 points for Owings.
• Amazing defensive play by Koncz on the other end, blocking an up-and-under layup attempt by a Keydet. For some reason, neither this block nor the really obvious one by Owings in the first half have been recorded by the scorer's table. So, officially, the Tigers still have 0 blocks on the season. It's going to be an uphill battle if the official scorers are against us.
  

Football: Berry Berry good again

The passing game is going strong again, complete to Circle, first down at the 45. Shields, Toresco gives another first down. Then a monster pass to Adam Berry and the Tigers are first and goal at the 8 yard line.

Then on the next play, its a pass to Circle, deep in the endzone -- good for a TD.

The Tigers will go for two, but they're stopped.

So its Yale 31, Princeton 26, just 1:12 elapsed.

Princeton knows it needs to hurry up, but with 9:30 remaining, and just a touchdown away from the win, the Tigers are far from beaten.

Basketball: Football

• The announced attendance in New Haven for the Princeton-Yale game is 43,406!?! That is ridiculous. There are 12 people here at Value City Arena. Seriously, though, maybe 150. I will count them right now... 182.

Football: Defense holds strong

After Terrell's unfortunate interception, the Bulldogs had a chance to dramatically increase their lead. The defense, however, held strong and limited Yale to a field goal. Tim Strickland may have saved the Tigers season when he broke up a pass that was on target into the endzone.

Yale 31, Princeton 20.

Basketball: Into halftime

• Savage hits an open three from the wing to put Princeton up nine points heading into halftime. The score is 33-24. Tigers are shooting 50 percent from the field despite hitting just 5 of 14 three-pointers. If Princeton starts making open threes, it reall will be dangerous offensively. Until then, the Tigers are good enough to be taking it to this VMI squad.
• 12 assists on 12 field goals at halftime. That's really a good sign.
• Princeton is outrebounding the Keydets 18-10. Owings has grabbed 2 of the Tigers' 4 offensive rebounds, and he's been key in limiting VMI to just one offensive rebound.
• The Tigers do have 12 turnovers to offset their 12 assists. That's a big change from last night. Amazingly, against Loyola, the Tigers had 6 turnovers--but none of them were the really bad kind. Three of them were ball-handling violations (travels/double dribbles) and three of them were player control (offensive) fouls. That means 0 bad passes. Coach Scott was exceedingly pleased with that in last night's press conference. Understandably.
  

Football: Start of the fourth

So in both student sections everyone is standing, and making themselves heard, there's even a D and a fence picture in the Princeton stands . Announced attendance is 43,406.

To start the fourth, McLeod is tackled Boardman, and Yale is forced to punt. The defense is getting itself in the game.

Terrell's pass is tipped and the ball intercepted just five feet in front of him, the Tigers really need the defense now, as Yale gets the ball around the Tiger 25.

Basketball: Airball free throw

• By VMI's Adam Lonon. Then his coach takes him out of the game. That's the great thing about airball free throws. By rule, when a player airballs a freethrow it is a violation and the other team gets the ball out of bounds (otherwise, you could airball on purpose, right into the hands of one of your teammates). So, with the stoppage in play, the coach is allowed to make a substitution. In this case, VMI's coach chose to take out the poor kid who just airballed his free throw. Between the histronics and the cruelty, I'm really liking this coach.
  

Basketball: Back up 5

• Two Buffmire free throws put the Tigers up 27-22.
• Savage attacks the basket and heads to the line for two free throws. He misses his first, but makes the second.
• Meanwhile, the Tigers are outrebounding VMI 15-9.
• Owings comes up with an emphatic block inside, swatting a Keydet layup attempt out of bounds while yelling. First block of the Princeton season! 58 minutes of basketball and it was worth the wait
  

Football: Terrell and Circle keep the Tigers in this thing

On 2nd and goal from the 16 yard line, Terrell easily lofts a pass to Circle in the left corner of the endzone. But on the ensuing extra point kick, a bad snap kept the Tigers from getting the extra point. Still, it's a 1 possession game now, with the third quarter about to end. Yale, 28, Princeton, 20.

Football: De ja vu?

4th and 1, de ja vu anyone? But Terrell doesn't even pass it off, he just fakes, it then runs around the defense for the first down. No heroics by Toresco needed, Terrell can handle it by himself this time.

Football: Time to take advantage of good field position.

After the Tigers failed drive, the D held up again. 3 and out by the Bulldogs offense. Looks like the swagger is back.

Basketball: With 6:06 left in the first half

• Princeton is in the bonus and leading 21-20. Savage heads to the line shooting a 1-and-1. Misses the first. That happened to the Tigers at least three times last night as well.
• Just noticed that the Tigers have 8 assists on 8 baskets. That is the epitome of Princeton basketball. For comparison, the Keydets have 3 assists on 7 baskets.
• Travis Holmes gives VMI the lead with just under 5 minutes left, 22-21. The Tiger offense has gone stagnant.
• Owings layup puts Princeton right back up by one. Another nifty pass by Schroder set it up, his third of the game. 9 points for Owings.
• Schroeder to Owings again! This time off Schroeder penetration for an Owings baseline jumper. 10 assists on 10 baskets now.
  

Football: McDonough is clutch

Another monster punt by McDonough and Yale is stuck at thier own 2 yd. line. This one didn't need Foran to stop it, it rolled out of bounds like it knew the Tigers needed a little help right about now. Do I hear chants of safety?

Basketball: Defending the three

• For the second night in a row, the Tigers are doing an excellent job getting out on three point shooters and forcing them into off-balance or rushed three-point attempts. Loyola shot 5 of 13 from deep last night, and VMI has come out really cold, shooting 1 of 9 so far.
• Meanwhile, VMI has made 6 of its 7 shots from inside the three-point line. While Gunn, Koncz, and Schroeder are quick enough to really shut down outside shooters, the big guys seem to have no chance against VMI's rather pedestrian post players. In an interview after last night's game, Strittmatter placed a lot of the blame for that on himself, but Schroeder said that he and the other guards had to do a better job keeping opponents from driving past them to get inside penetration.

Football: The D is back?

So I just posted like 2 minutes ago, but the D just walloped the Bulldogs running game. McLeod ran 2 times, got stuffed the first time and sacked the second time. Then Polhemus, who hasn't really had to throw all game, failed to convert on 3rd and 12. That decision to go for it on 4th and 14 doesn't seem so crazy when you've got a defense that will back you up. Bulldogs punted it back to the 30. Princeton takes over.

Basketball: Looking Buff

• Senior guard Edwin Buffmire muscles around a VMI defender to get off a pretty curl-around pass to Conway, who makes the layup to put Princeton up 19-13.
  
• Another nice Buffmire pass goes through freshman forward Zach Finley's hands. Buffmire is manning the high post for the most part, while Finley is deep in the post.
• Strittmatter three in-and-out. He can definitely shoot threes, though--he showed it last year, and his jumper looks even more natural this year, jumping higher on his release and not as stiff.
• Finley bobbles another pass and let's it go out of bounds. Scott brings him out in favor of junior forward Noah Savage, but it's surprising that he came in before Savage at all. Of all the Tiger freshman, he's the only one that really, really looks like one.
• Koncz dishes to Strittmatter for an open layup. Koncz and Schroeder lead Princeton with 2 assists apiece. They led the way with 3 apiece last night.
• Tigers are shooting 8-of-14 from the floor. VMI, 7-16.
  

Basketball: Loyola coach a drama queen

• As Gunn gets tackled by a Keydet while trying to gain control of his dribble and the ref calls a foul, the VMI coach crumples to the floor by the bench and unfurls a blood-curdling scream of "OH NO!!!" Then he stands up slowly and calls a timeout.
• There's 11:34 left and the Tigers lead 14-8. Good start. I can't say enough about the offense so far this year. The Tigers could have scored more like 70 points last night if they had made their open threes, layups and free throws (they were 8-of-15 from the foul line--I liked how Coach Scott, after the game, while lamenting how the Tigers missed open shots, put missed free throws into that category. No shot is more open, after all)
• Schroeder hits his first career three-pointer. He and Gunn were 0-of-5 from downtown last night, but they've started 3-of-4 tonight. Owings, meanwhile, is 3-of-3 from the floor to lead all scorers with 7 points.
  

Football: Yale can punt too

So the entire first half the Tiger defense did not force a punt. To open the second half they thought they'd do something different, but Yale was up to the challenge, the Bulldogs punted to the 5 yd. line where Shields caught it, then was tackled at the 10yd. I might've let that one bounce.

Basketball: Offense/Defense

• The Tiger offense early on this season and this game is really looking leagues ahead of where it was last year at this point. But part of the fluidity has to do with the type of players we have out there, none of whom unfortunately are bangers inside. This is going to lead to a lot of inside baskets and offensive rebounds, at least in the non-league season. Once the Ivy season starts, Princeton's not going to be facing as many opponents who can outmuscle them/outjump them off the floor.
• Owings nice change-of-direction mid-air off a Conway dish for an layup to put Princeton up 11-6. Lots of missed layups last night, so good sign.
• Owings bangs a three from the corner to surpass his scoring total from last night (3 points) and put the Tigers up 14-8 with 13:30 to go. The shot came after 6'3" Lincoln Gunn blocked a jumper by a Keydet shooter to start a quasi-fast break.
  

Basketball: Gunnin'

• Gunn swishes another three, this one from the corner, with a man in his face. I like.
• It's going to be exceedingly difficult to avoid a lot of poor puns on "Gunning" over the next four years.
• Gunn-to-Schroeder-to-Owings leads to a beautifully executed inside bucket, with Gunn passing to his cutting classmate, who passed to a cutting Owings. Tigers up 9-4 at the 15:51 mark.
  

Basketball: Control yourself!

• "Player control foul" on Conway. I wish there were more of those called. It's almost as funny a name for a foul as Keydets is for a team. Why they haven't decided to just call it an offensive foul or a charge like they do in the NBA is beyond me.
• Conway hits 1 of 2 free throws to tie the game, 4-4, with just over 17 minutes remaining in the half.
  

Football: A failed drive

Terrell, Circle, and Brigham had been having their way with the Bulldogs' secondary, but on the 19 yard line, they failed 3 straight times. RC Lagomarsino was brought down for negative yardage on the play, bringing up a 4th and 14. Hughes elected to go for it, but Terrell was brutally sacked, as he really had no chance to go anywhere with the ball. Bulldogs take over on downs.

Basketball: Tip off

• VMI wins the tip. Their team name is the "Keydets," which seems a little too cute for a team name.
• Gunn hits his first career three-pointer to open the scoring. Really fluid shooting stroke. And it's good to see him still looking for his shot early on. He was looking for it in the first half last night, but after a few minutes he just started passing up open shots. He finished with just 3 points in 32 minutes of court time (3rd most on the team). But that was his first career game, and this is his second.
  

Basketball: Starting lineups

• Same 5 starters as last night, no suprise: junior forward Kyle Koncz, senior forward Luke Owings, senior forward Justin Conway, freshman guard Marcus Schroeder, and freshman guard Lincoln Gunn.
• As you'll notice, the Tigers no longer bother to have one of their five starters announced as their "center." That's what they did last year with Conway, but now he and Owings are both listed as forward, and take turns guarding the opposing center on defense
  

Basketball: A little more pregame

• Check out the recap and box score of VMI's loss to Ohio state last night. As you can see, VMI shot the ball horribly (30.2%), but the Buckeye's are ridiculously good, so there's a bit of an excuse for that. Still, the way Princeton ran it's offense last night (which was well--57 points is nothing to laugh at for the Tigers), you have to think they could have mounted a better effort, even against the 4th-ranked team in the country.
• For a recap of Princeton's loss to Loyola last night, just check out all the earlier postings in this blog. The big stat I missed last night at the end of the game was the rebounding margin. Princeton was outrebounded 33-14 by the Ramblers, allowing 11 offensive rebounds. That was obviously a part of the porous interior defense to which I attributed the loss (30 of Loyola's 68 points were in the paint).
  

Football: First half analysis and thoughts

Okay, so things need to change. Quickly.

First of all, and most obviously, the Tigers need to shut down the run. Anytime Princeton gets pocket penetration, Polhemus gets outside and picks up huge chunks of yardage. McLeod, obviously, is having his way, as he has 4 TDs on the day. If the D can't make a few stops here in the second-half, then the offense has no chance of getting the team back in this thing. I think that Terrell is in-synch, and he's having a pretty good day--they just needed some time to figure out the Bulldogs' D. The 2-minute offense and the quick passing plays are working very effectively, but there's not much you can do when your D is giving up huge plays every time the opposing offense gets the ball.

The real problem is, the Tigers never should have been in this position in the first place. Yale has us exactly where they want us. With a large first half lead, Yale can come out and punish our already tired D with more McLeod and Polhemus. Polhemus hasn't really beaten us with his hands so much as his feet, but he has made some key passes when he's had to. The Tigers need to create some havoc back there--generate a few turnovers or something. At the very least, the D needs to come up with stops on third down. So far, they haven't gotten any stops, except for the failed field goal attempt that opened up the game.

I'd look for the D to come out with an attitude adjustment and for the offense to come back out and keep on doing what it's been doing. All things considered, the Tigers could be in a far worse position than they are right now.

Let's see if Hughes can get this defense back to being agressive and dominant. It has been all year, and it really can't stop right now, or our dreams of an Ivy League championship will be smashed to pieces.

Football: A lackluster end to the first half

Down 28-14, the Tigers had a couple of chances to get some more points before the end of the half. With 1:09 on the clock, the Tigers started driving. Terrell made some nice passes--especially the one to Brian Brigham that would have put the Tigers at the Yale 25 yard line or so, but a costly holding penalty forced Princeton to march backwards. Terrell still managed to complete some passes to Brigham and Circle and had the Tigers in position, at the 36 yard line with 6 seconds to go. A quick sideline pass to Brigham should have put the Tigers at the 30 with a few seconds to go, but for some reason the officials didn't stop the clock. I couldn't see very well, but it definitely looked to me like Brigham got out of bounds. Coach Roger Hughes definitely wasn't happy with the call--neither am I. The 1:09 was wasted, and now the Tigers have to come back out and defend against the Yale offense which has run all over them all day.

Men's Basketball: Game 2 against Loyola in 15 minutes

What's up what's up,

Back at Value City Arena on the Ohio State Campus for the second game of the men's basketball team's season, in the Black Coaches Association Classic tournament. This blog is going to be happening simultaneously with Ashley Wolf and Adam Rubin's ongoing blog on the Yale-Princeton football game (which has been the only thing good about that game). We don't have the ability to run two separate blogs as of now, so look for "Football" to head all the football game postings, while "Basketball" will head my future postings

After last night's 68-57 loss to Loyola (Chicago) last night, the Tigers will try to rebound against the Virginia Military Institute. VMI lost 107-69 last night to host Ohio State, the fourth ranked team in the nation.

The game should be starting in about 10 minutes. The Tigers are on the floor for shoot-around. No new haircuts this time.

Where's the defense?

The scoring in this game is getting ridiculous, neither defense has been effective. Yale is running all over the Tigers, they're now first and goal after a monster run by Henley.

And McLeod runs in again, for his fourth touchdown of the HALF. This ties for the most points Princeton has let up in a game, and we still have time left in the half.

Coach Hughes said last week they needed to work on their run defense after letting up too many yards to Penn's Sandberg, who ran 173 yds on them. Doesn't look like the week of practice helped.

Yale 28, Princeton 14.

Passing frenzy

Two long passes to Terrell's favorite receiver Circle, one caught at the 30 and one at the 16, and suddenly the Tigers are within range of a TD.

Another to Shields at the 6, and they're facing the endzone.

Terrell runs with it, but Yale is closing in, he pump fakes the pass, and dodges right by the Casey Gerald, right into the endzone. Not good enough for sportscenter perhaps, but that's still another amazing TD by Terrell.

Tigers 14, Yale, 21.

Total drive time: 1 min. 20 sec.

Terrell should take up acting in addition to football

Wow. I've never seen anything like that before. Terrell had been working the quick pass offense to perfection, completing passes to Circle, Shields and Toresco. But then, on the 6 yard line, Terrell scrambled left. He had no where to go with the ball, and standing in between him and the endzone was Yale cornerback Casey Gerald. So Terrell pump fakes, Gerald jumps into the air, and Terrell walks into the endzone unscathed. Literally. What a play, I've never seen anything like that in my life!

Stinks to be Gerald right now.

McLeod and Polhemus are running wild!

The Tiger defense has been stellar all year long, but right now it's suffering. McLeod and Polhemus have been running wild over the Tigers. 2 huge runs by McLeod and Polhemus have brought the Bulldogs all the way down to the 5 yard line, and...yep, McLeod punches it in again for his 3rd touchdown of the day. Yale 21, Princeton 7.

Princeton hasn't stopped the Yale offense all day. Something's going to have to change, and soon. If the Tigers can get into the locker room down by 7 at halftime, they'll be some lucky felines. They need a TD here, and they have about 4 and a half minutes to find one. Let's get to it.

Berry, Berry good

Terrell is starting to get the passing game going. He has another nice one to Circle, and then Toresco has an open lane down the middle.

Suddenly the Tigers are at the 20. Terrell rushes, there's a fumble as Yale converges on ball, but the ball is loose, and then Adam Berry reappears, and he's running, running free straight into the endzone. Extra point good.

That's a lucky break for the Tigers.

Yale 14, Tigers 7.

Going for it on the fourth

It's the second quarter now, the Tigers are slowly driving down the field after Ploszek returned the kick to the 20.

Terrell has a nice complete pass to Circle at the 50 yd. line, but the Tigers are fourth and 6.

The Tigers go for it, but Terrell misfires and its Yale ball.

Princeton needs to come up with a big stop here.

Too much McLeod

The Yale running back took the ball from the 39 all the way to the 15. It looked like he was going to go left, but then changed directions and went right and simply ate up the open space.
2 plays later, McLeod took it in for another 6. Extra point is good; Yale 14, Princeton 0.

This is not the situation the Tigers wanted to be in. Yale plays from ahead much better than it does from behind. Princeton had best put some points on the board on this ensuing drive, or the Bulldog running game is going to take over, if it hasn't already.

Yale strikes first

After being pinned at their one-yard line, the Bulldogs drove all the way downfield to about the four-yard line. From there, it was a simple matter of handing off to McLeod, who punched it in for the TD. Extra point good; Yale 7, Princeton 0.

The Tigers have responded in situations like this all year long--let's see if they can do it again.

"Let's go Tigers"

Princeton's passing defense didn't come through there as Chandler Henley catches a pass at the 30 for a big gain.

There's a solid block of orange in the away stands, but the endzones are pretty empty on both sides, as the Yale bowl with its cement and old school wooden bleachers seems just massive. A chant of "Let's go Tigers can be heard" from across the field though, the Princeton students are making themselves heard.

McLeod dodges through the middle for another big carry until Strickland tackles him at the 50.

3rd and 10, but Polhemus came threw with a huge pass.

Matt Murray rushes down the sideline. The Bulldogs are 4yds from the endzone.

McLeod goes for a long run ...

McLeod goes for a long run as he dodges the Princeton defense and runs out of bounds for first down. The Tigers need to figure out how to stop him.

This time its the quarterback Matt Polhemus that does the damage, as he runs for a first down. Artis is called for unnecessary roughness and the 15 yd. penalty puts Yale at the 18 yd. line.

Tim Boardman tips the ball and just misses the interception.

Yale goes for a field goal, but misses. Tiger ball.

McDonough's my hero

12:54 p.m.

• After a hard hit in the backfield on running back RC Lagomarsino, Terrell puts together two great passes to wide receiver Brian Brigham that more than compensate for the negative yardage.
• Terrell almost gets sacked, but manages to throw it out to tight end Jake Staser, who picks up half a yard or so on the play. Nice job of avoiding the sack by Terrell.
• Tigers have to punt; McDonough drops a KILLER PUNT onto the 5 yard line, which bounces back to Yale's 1, where it's downed by Foran.

At Yale: Time to rock and roll

12:35 p.m.

• Yale wins the coinflip, Princeton to receive. Shields brings it out to the 50 on a nice return.
• Fumble! Tigers fortunately recover, but it looked like the Bulldogs had a pretty good shot at it.
• False start penalty on Princeton. Looks like we're a little jumpy to start this one off.
• 2rd and 19. Terrell pump fakes and throws deep on the left sideline, but the pass is overthrown.
• Looked like they tried a trick play of some kind; Terrell handed it off on third down to backup qb Bill Foran, but he's brought down.
• McDonough punts the Bulldogs back to their 20. Nice diving reception by the Yale receiver to keep the ball from bouncing back further.
• Polhemus displays his scrambling ability while picking up a first down for the Bulldogs.
• Handoff to McLeod, a gain of 5 on the play. He's a dangerous one--the Tigers need to keep him contained.
• Another handoff to McLeod, but there's an offsides penalty on the Princeton D. Brings up 2nd and 1 for the Bulldogs.

Fire it up

This is the girl on the football beat here, and I’ll be bringing you the action live from the Yale Bowl along with Adam Rubin, but first a few notes about the journey.

9:13 a.m.
Study Bus: Three things we do better than Yale: 1. Study 2. Cheer 3. Win
Due to my impending JP, I may not have had the full bus ride experience, instead I followed Caitlin Sullivan '07 bearing an orange sign proclaiming the “Study Bus,” with the pathetic hope of making some progress on said paper, but seeing 500 Princeton students, all in orange and black, lining up for the buses was something else. It’s a showing of school spirit that I haven’t seen since, well, the last Yale game. But let’s keep that memory blocked and hope Caitlin's sign is right.
Once we get to Yale those 500 students will be clad in bright orange shirts saying “Fire it Up” on the front and bearing an image of a roasting bulldog on a spit over a campfire on the back. Kudos to Rob Biederman, USG, and whoever designed that tshirt.

9:38 a.m.
We’re finally off
They’ve just given us a handout, key info:
4. We have ordered $1000 of Hoagie Haven sandwiches that we will distribute when the buses arrive at Yale.
(They’ve put all the food in the bottom of our bus. The press box will probably have food, but like all things in New Haven, it probably sucks in comparison to quality Princeton fare)
10. As they say in Texas: Come Early, Be Loud, Stay Late, Wear Orange!

As we pull out I notice the student souvenir agency is selling their signature ‘Yale Sucks’ tshirts as well as some tiger tails. Those shirts always remind me of a kid at my high school who used to wear his Yale Sucks tshirt to gym class – his life goal was to follow his brother to Princeton — he’s now at Duke, he probably has less opportunity to wear it there.

10:23 a.m.
We’re on the Turnpike, I’d forgotten how bouncy buses can be. Our bus apparently has a heating problem as well, it’s a sauna and the bus driver can’t fix it. This part of Jersey is pretty ugly, and I’m from the Garden State. JP’s going ok. In case you cared, glucose uptake after insulin stimulation occurs primarily through glucose transporter type-4 (GLUT4) after it is translocated to the plasma membrane.

12:00 p.m.
Just saw a sign for New Haven-Yale hospital, so we must be close. Winter seems to have come already to Connecticut, the leaves are all off the trees and it’s sort of dismal looking.

12:30 p.m.
We're here!