PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania football team used a quick start on Saturday at Franklin Field in defeating Bucknell, 34-17. The game was the season opener for the Quakers, while the Bison fell to 0-3 on the young season. Penn won its season opener for the second year in a row—the first time the Red and Blue have won back-to-back games to open a season since the 2005-06 seasons.
 
Two weeks behind the rest of college football—as they are every year—you think the Quakers were chomping at the bit to play a game? That appeared to be the case, as they held a 17-0 lead before Saturday's contest was five minutes old and scored those points without running a play on their side of the field.
 
Ryan Glover made his first start at quarterback for Penn and proved to be a dual threat. He completed 12-of-21 passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns, and ran for 48 yards showing a threat to scramble out of trouble. Karekin Brooks rushed for 72 yards and scored twice, while Abe Willows caught five passes and also ran 11 times.
 
The defense, meanwhile, was in attack mode all day. The Quakers had a staggering eight sacks—the most by a Penn defense sacks in a game since recording seven against Cornell in 2003—and 14 tackles for loss.

It took the defense all of one play to make an impact, in fact, Jacob Martin intercepting John Chiarolanzio's first-down pass at the Bucknell 36-yard line. The last time Quaker fans saw Jacob Martin on the field was the final play of 2017 when he knocked down a Cornell pass in the endzone to lock up a 29-22 win. The Quakers turned that turnover into six quick points, as Karekin Brooks took it up the gut from five yards out on just the fourth play of the drive to give Penn a 7-0 lead just 1:46 into the contest.
 
Penn then forced Stefone Moore-Green to cough up the ball as he returned the ensuing kickoff, and Justin Morrison recovered for the Red and Blue. After a replay review—the first at Franklin Field in this new era of video replay within the Ivy League—the Quakers took over and made it 10-0 as Jack Soslow kicked a 49-yard field goal.
 
Penn's special teams again came into play on Bucknell's next drive, as Patrick McGettigan blocked a Bison punt attempt and James McCarthy scooped it up, stumbling to the 6-yard line before falling. One play later, Brooks was scampering untouched into the end zone for a 17-0 Penn lead.
 
Bucknell finally got on the board with 4:58 left in the opening period, taking advantage of a short field to kick a 34-yard field goal and make the score 17-3.
 
Soslow put Penn's lead back at 17 points early in the second quarter, booming a 48-yard field goal through the uprights just 47 seconds in. Then, after a defensive stop deep in Bucknell territory, the Quakers needed just three plays to go 51 yards for paydirt, the final 33 coming when Ryan Glover found Tyler Herrick along the left sideline for his first collegiate touchdown pass.
 
Penn's next possession ended with a turnover in its own territory, however, and Bucknell took advantage. The Bison went 32 yards for a touchdown, the last 11 coming on a pass from Logan Bitikofer to Alan Butler, to make the score 27-10. The Bison then missed a 36-yard field goal on the last play of the half, sending the teams to the locker room with Penn up 27-10.
 
Penn started with the ball in the second half, but Bucknell's Bryan Marine intercepted Glover on the Quakers' third play and returned it to Penn's 14-yard line. Just two players after that, Bitikofer found Andrew Owens for an 11-yard score and the Bison were within 10 points at 27-17.
 
Penn then muffed the ensuing kickoff, as Morrison let it bounce and then barely got out of his end zone before being tackled. Glover was able to get the Quakers out of trouble, however, as the Red and Blue advanced the ball to the 36 before a Drew Brennan punt flipped the field.
 
Things slowed down significantly after that. In fact, it wasn't until 10:21 was left in the fourth quarter before either team scored again. This time, it was Penn who found the end zone, after Isaiah Malcome returned a Bucknell punt 40 yards to the Bison's 32-yard line. Following a Bucknell personal foul, Glover found Kolton Huber for an 11-yard score to make it 34-17. As it turned out, that closed out the scoring for the day.
 
Penn is back at home next Saturday, hosting Lehigh at 3 p.m.