Penn coach laments Ivy rules

Al Bagnoli has led a charmed life.

But as the second-winningest coach (146 games) in Ivy history embarks on his 23d and final season as Penn's football coach Saturday with a game at Jacksonville - three weeks after the Dolphins began the season - he has has a bone to pick.

League rules mandate that Ivy schools just play 10 games, meaning Ivy teams always begin the season two and sometimes three weeks after their opponents have played their first game.

"It's a problem that we start so late," Bagnoli said. "As a result, we are always playing catch-up to our opponents. Whether you are Penn and you are flying to Jacksonville or you are Princeton and you are flying to San Diego, you are playing a team that has had two or three games. They have figured out their identity, what they can and can't do.

"They have some answers to what they can and can't do, and we're still trying to solve all that in the context of a game. It puts you at a huge disadvantage."

Saturday's game at Jacksonville (1-1) not only marks the first time since 2004 that the Quakers will fly to and from a game, but this will be Penn's first game in the state of Florida. Before Saturday's game, the deepest trip South the Quakers had ever taken was a 1917 trip to play Georgia Tech in Atlanta.

Penn registered its first losing season since 2007 last year when it dropped its last four games to finish 4-6 overall and 3-4 in the Ivy. Jacksonville, ranked No. 8 in the FCS Coaches' Poll, evened its record last week with a 35-18 victory over San Diego State.

Bagnoli's final season begins with sophomore Alek Torgersen (6-foot-3, 225 pounds) making his first career start.

"He's a big, strong and very athletic kid who can make all the throws. He's a kid that really can do all the things you want your quarterback to do," Bagnoli said. "He's inexperienced, but we're very happy with his preparation to play."