Princeton beats Yale, stays unbeaten in Ivy League play

The Princeton Tigers defeated the Yale Bulldogs 59-23 to capture at least a share of the Ivy League Championship.  Princeton is now 6-0 in the Ivy League and 8-1 on the season.

Princeton’s high-powered offense was on display throughout the game.  Yale scored first with a 48-yard pass by QB Logan Scott to Candler Rich with 9:04 to go in the first quarter.  The Bulldogs decided to go for two, but failed on a rushing attempt.  Princeton quickly answered with a 42-yard rushing touchdown by RB Dré Nelson at 7:26.  After the extra point, Princeton was up 7-6, and led the rest of the game.  The Tigers scored two more TDs in the first quarter while the Bulldogs scored one more TD, giving Princeton a 21-13 lead heading into the second quarter.

A crucial play took place with less than two minutes to go in the first.  Yale scored a touchdown at 1:17 to cut Princeton’s lead to one, and decided to attempt an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff.  Princeton Tiger Jakobi Johnson returned the failed onside kick 46 yards for a TD.  The play showed how focused the Princeton players were throughout the game, and took momentum away from an early game comeback by Yale.

To begin the second quarter, Princeton star QB Quinn Epperly connected on a pass to RB Di Andre Atwater.  Atwater was injured for much of his freshman season last year, and is beginning to hit his groove as a big time Ivy League running back.  Yale managed to kick a 39-yard field goal at 4:56 in the second to make it a 28-13 game.  The next four scores would be Princeton’s, and by 4:47 in the third it was 52-16.  The Tigers would tack on a touchdown in the fourth at 10:56 for the final score of the game.

Princeton’s offense was too much for the Bulldogs to handle.  Epperly finished with three passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown to bring his season total to 23 passing TDs and 17 rushing TDs.  The junior QB is a complete monster on the field.  Princeton star senior receiver Roman Wilson finished with 9 catches for 115 yards and 1 TD.  Wilson has 10 receiving TDs on the year.  Yale QB Logan Scott put up impressive numbers with 240 yards, 3 TDs, and 1 INT.  Scott is a sophomore, and has a bright future at the quarterback position.  Deon Randall, a star senior receiver for Yale, had 13 receptions for 127 yards and 1 TD.  Randall will go into his final game of his career against Harvard next week with eight receiving TDs and two rushing TDs on the year.

It was a special win for the Tigers on homecoming weekend.  Princeton stayed unbeaten in the Ivy League, and controls its own destiny against Dartmouth next Saturday.  If the Tigers win their final game against Dartmouth, they will win the championship outright because second-place Harvard has one Ivy loss (to Princeton).  Today’s win also means the Tigers have beaten both Harvard and Yale for the second year in a row, and will celebrate with a bonfire at a later date.

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