PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania sprint football team enjoys the spoils of victory as the Quakers' offense outdoes Chestnut Hill for a 42-32 victory to start CSFL South Division play.
 
Once again, Eddie Jenkins and Laquan McKever shined bright as the pair combined for 466 yards of offense and six touchdowns to lead the Quakers to victory in the battle between Philadelphia's two sprint football programs.
 
NOTES
*McKever ran circles around the Griffins. The sophomore posted a career high 238 yards on 25 rushes with two touchdowns. He put the game to bed with a 46-yard rush to the house to make it 42-26 with just under two minutes remaining in the game. His 238 yards ranks seventh all-time in the single-game record book
 
*Jenkins is posting career numbers in his final season with the Quakers. The senior quarterback went 10-for-14 with 117 yards and a pair of touchdowns and added 99 yards on 15 rushes with two touchdowns—including a 36-yard rushing touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
 
*Jenkins now has 18 total touchdowns on the season (seven passing, 11 rushing). He is nine shy of the program record of 27 set by Todd Busler in 2011.
 
*Brendan McCaffrey was Jenkins' favorite target today, taking seven receptions for 47 yards and reeling in both of Penn's passing touchdowns. The two touchdowns today matches his career total.
 
*Penn's defense came up with two big takeaways in the second half. Davis Buchanan nabbed his first career interception, picking off Michael Marino in the endzone while Luca Curran set up Penn's final score with an interception late in the fourth quarter.
 
*Captain Aaron Johnson once again led by example, leading the team with nine total tackles.
 
*Josh Trybus is causing problems for opposing offenses. The junior defensive back leads the team with four interceptions and has gotten one pick in each of Penn's games this year.
 
*Penn's defense limited the Chestnut Hill running game, holding the Griffins to 60 yards on 22 rushes.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The game got off to an electrifying start. The Quakers and Griffins each scored on their first two possessions to make it 14-14 early in the second quarter.
 
The Penn offense continued to roll after forcing Chestnut Hill to punt on its third drive. Pinned within their own 10-yard line, the Quakers drove 90 yards—with McKever accounting for 71 of those yards—to take a 21-14 lead. The drive was capped off by a six-yard pass from Jenkins to McCaffrey for the score.
 
The Griffins quickly responded, with Marino finding James Naylor Jr. on a screen pass which was taken down the sideline for a 34-yard touchdown. A missed point after attempt maintained the Quakers' lead—a lead they would never relinquish.
 
Feeling the Griffins' breath hot on the neck, the Quakers closed out the half with a two-minute drill to extend their lead. McKever once again teed up Penn in the red zone with some shifty rushes, and on first and goal Jenkins once again connected with McCaffrey to give Penn a 28-20 lead with 39 seconds remaining in the half.
 
The third quarter had a stark contrast to the first. Both teams were able to drive into the red zone, but a pair of failed fourth down conversions—Chestnut Hill's ending on an interception by Buchanan in the endzone—left the score at 28-20 heading into the final quarter of play.
 
The Griffins cut it close once again through the great play of Marino. Taking over at midfield following a Jenkins interception, Marino drove Chestnut Hill down the field to score, finding Domoree Hill on a 15-yard strike to pull the visitors within two. The Griffins went for two following their score, but Buchanan broke up the potential game-tying pass on the attempted conversion.
 
Pinned deep within its own half again, Penn relished the adversity and took a chunk of time off the clock with an eight play, 89-yard drive to make it a two-score game. Utilizing a successful running game, Penn chipped its way down the field. On the Chestnut Hill 36-yard line, Jenkins was gifted with a chasm opened by his offensive line. He broke between the tackles and darted down the field and into the endzone to give Penn a 35-26 lead.
 
Chestnut Hill hardly had an opportunity to respond as Curran snagged an interception on the Griffins' second play of the drive, the McKever delivered the knockout blow with a 46-yard rushing touchdown on the first play of the Penn drive to give the Quakers a 42-26 lead with under two minutes remaining.
 
The Griffins showed no quit, taking the ball down the field to score in just over a minute, but a recovered onside kick following the score wrapped things up.
 
UP NEXT
The Quakers enjoy their bye week next weekend as the focus shifts to their big division rivalry game as Penn heads too Anapolis, Md. to take on Navy on Friday, Oct. 18.