Crimson Face Up and Coming Quakers

PHILADELPHIA, Pa.--If you're into seeing Benjamin Franklin on every street corner, with an occasionally Bernie Parent thrown in for variety, then you should definitely spend your Halloweens down here in the City of Richie Allen.

The Crimson did exactly that last night, and this afternoon at 1:30, the Ivy leaders will attempt to maintain their first-place costume for yet another week, as they exchange tricks and treats with the Penn Quakers.

Harvard, which finds itself perched atop the standings all by its lonesome, faces a Penn squad which, if last week's 24-20 win over Princeton is any indication, appears to be righting itself after a disastrous start.

The Quakers began with three losses, defeated Lafayette two weeks ago, and then shocked the Tigers last Saturday for the fourth year in a row. In so doing, they not only gave Princeton's title aspirations a severe jolt, but served notice that the Crimson may be in for more than just a tour of Independence Hall this weekend.

For the Crimson, this game is like a salami between the bulkie rolls, the valley between two menacing hills. Dartmouth is still within memory's reach, and Princeton, Brown and Yale lurk in the near future.

Penn, meanwhile, has hardly stirred memories of the Minnesota Vikings, all of which added up spells letdown, or overconfidence on Harvard's behalf. And everyone knows that overconfidence killed the cat (more specifically, the Princeton Tiger last week).

The Quakers, however, may also be in the market for a letdown, especially if Coach Harry Gamble is to be believed.

"We got off to a shaky start," the Quaker mentor said yesterday, "and although I'm pleased with our last two wins, there's always the possibility that we'll revert back to our earlier forms."

"Thus," he continued, "I don't want to say that we've arrived, because I'm somewhat concerned that after last week's big win over Princeton, we could suffer a letdown. But then again, so could Harvard."

Benched?

The Crimson's task will be made infinitely easier by the fact that Penn's star, halfback Jack Wixted, may watch this game from the sidelines. Wisted was instrumental in the Quaker's triumph a week ago, and has been outstanding all season for Penn, leading them in no less than five offensive categories, but he endured quite a beating against the Tigers.

Bruised ribs, a sprained ankle, and a locked knee forced him to miss practice all week, and as a result, "there's a good possibility he won't play," according to Gamble. "Ours is not an overly complicated attack," he added, "and we could replace Wixted, but all year we've preferred to give him the ball because we believe he's the best in the league."

Wixted may be the best Quaker, but he's not the only one. There's quarterback Bob Graustein, for instance, who completed 19 of 32 passes for 239 yards against a strong Tigers' defense. There's middle guard Bill Petuskey, who leads the club with 42 tackles, and there's linebacker Mike Welch, who had ten solo tackles alone against Princeton.

There's no denying the fact, however, that Wixted is the main man for Penn, and that without him, the Quakers' chances of winning today are quite slim. Stranger things have happened, though Last night, for example, there was this guy masquerading as Dave Schulz, the Philadelphia Flyers' bad boy, who kept hitting everyone over the head with a real hockey stick while yelling "April Fools."