PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania football team's season rolls on following a statement 36-24 victory over Dartmouth last weekend to begin Ivy League play. On Friday and for the first time ever, Penn faces off against Marist in both teams' final non-conference tune-up under the lights at Franklin Field. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
 
The Red Foxes have had an up-and-down start to the 2025 campaign, not able to gain much momentum coming off wins. Marist defeated the PFL's preseason favorite San Diego, 19-14, last Saturday in Poughkeepsie.
 
GAME 4 – PENN (2-1, 1-0 Ivy) vs. MARIST (3-2, 1-1 PFL)
Community Night/Cancer Awareness Game presented by Penn Medicine
Friday, Oct. 10, 2025 | 7 p.m.
Franklin Field | Philadelphia, Pa.
Watch Live on ESPN+ ($) | Listen Live (QAN) | Live Stats | Tickets
Digital Game Program | Penn Game Notes (PDF)  | Marist Game Notes (PDF)
 

Community Night
Friday is Community Night, with West Philadelphia schools, church groups, youth teams, and community groups eligible to receive complimentary tickets for the game. Group leaders can request tickets for their organization here.
 
Cancer Awareness Game
As the Quakers take on the Red Foxes, Penn Athletics is partnering with organizations across campus and in the community to raise awareness for all cancers and recognize those who have battled or are currently battling cancer.
 
New Beginnings
Penn and Marist are meeting for the first time ever on Friday, the second new opponent the Quakers will face in 2025 following a matchup with Stonehill to begin the campaign.
 
Although never facing the Red Foxes before, this will be Penn's fifth meeting all-time against a Pioneer Football League opponent, previously facing Davidson twice (in 1984 and 1985), San Diego (2004) and Jacksonville (2014).
 
Non-Conference Dominance
This will be third and final non-conference matchup of the year for Penn when it faces off with Marist Friday evening. It has a shot to finish the slate with a winning record for the eighth consecutive season.
 
The Quakers are 17-4 in non-conference action since the 2017 season, going 2-1 in 2024, 3-0 in both 2022 and 2023, 2-1 in 2021, 2-1 in 2019, and 3-0 in 2018. Penn topped Stonehill in the season opener before falling on the road at No. 9/10 Lehigh.
 
Having Success... At Night
Friday will be Penn's third night game at Franklin Field in the last three seasons dating back to 2023. It's the first of two in 2025 (Brown on Oct. 31).
 
The Quakers are 30-22 in night games all time and 20-14 at home.
 
Despite a winning record overall, Penn has dropped six consecutive home night games dating back to Sept. 29, 2017 vs. Dartmouth. The Quakers are searching for their first victory since Nov. 11, 2016 vs. Harvard.
 
Scouting The Red Foxes
Coming off a signature victory over preseason PFL favorites San Diego last weekend, who were receiving votes in the latest FCS polls, Marist enters the weekend with a 3-2 overall record and among the league leaders.
 
The Red Foxes began their season with a 31-14 victory over New Haven but hit turbulence by dropping a 34-23 decision to Bucknell. Marist bounced back with a 21-10 road win over Wagner.
 
Perhaps a good omen for Penn, the Red Foxes have not been able to string together wins with a loss following each victory so far.
 
Offensively, QB Sonny Mannino has been the team's engine by leading in both the pass and run games. He's completed 88 of his 167 pass attempts with 875 yards, seven touchdowns and just three interceptions. He also has a team-high 77 carries for 226 total yards and two scores. Mannino is averaging 45.20 yards per game this year.
 
Receivers Connor Hulstein and Lance Martinez have combined for seven of Marist's nine TDs this season. Martinez has 10 catches for 229 yards and three TDs while Hulstein is at 17 receptions, 223 yards, and four scores.
 
Defensively, Nate Furrow leads the Red Foxes with four sacks (six TFLs), while Kade Werner has two sacks and three TFLs. Defensive back Nate Robinson, Jr. had a team-leading three interceptions and nine pass breakups.
 
Defending Champs Defeated
Penn earned a statement win over two-time defending Ivy League champion Dartmouth at Franklin Field on Saturday in the first Ivy contest for both teams.
 
The Quakers scored their most points in the series since 2016 in a 36-24 victory, rallying from a 14-3 second-quarter deficit to outscore the Big Green 33-10 the rest of the way. Quarterback Liam O'Brien was exceptional, accounting for four touchdowns by throwing for 147 yards and two TDs on 16-of-21 passing while adding 99 rushing yards and two more scores. O'Brien connected with nine different receivers, led by Bisi Owens (46 yards, TD) and tight end Cadin Olsen who caught his first career touchdown.
 
The nation's leader in all-purpose yards per game, Julien Stokes totaled 141 return yards—including a 65-yard punt return that set up points—and helped shift field position all afternoon.
 
Penn recorded a go-ahead safety on a botched punt and the defense got its first two interceptions of the season from Alec Wills and freshman Ezra Fearon.
 
Senior captain John Lista returned from injury to lead the defense with 15 tackles (including 10 solos) as the Quakers held the Big Green to just 326 total yards—well below their 478-yard average.
 
More Weekly Honors
O'Brien and Stokes were honored by the Ivy League for Week 3 — O'Brien named Offensive Player of the Week, and Stokes Special Teams Player of the Week.
 
O'Brien accounted for all four Penn touchdowns (completing 16-of-21 for 147 yards and two scores, plus rushing for 99 yards and two more TDs). Stokes, meanwhile, returned a punt 65 yards in the fourth quarter to set up a score, amassed 141 total return yards—including a 34-yard kick return—and extended his streak to three straight games with 100+ return yards.
 
Stokes is the first player in Penn history to begin a season with three consecutive weekly honors.
 
Lista and Fearon also earned spots on the Ivy League's weekly honor roll.
 
All Juice, No Brakes
Julien "Juice" Stokes is a force to be reckoned with and he's just getting started. The fifth-year senior is putting together one of the most impressive seasons on special teams in recent memory and is making history in the process.
 
Stokes had 141 total return yards in the victory over Dartmouth on Saturday and has 100+ return yards in three consecutive games to begin the year.
 
He heads into Week 4 the nation's leader (FCS or FBS) in all-purpose yards per game at 195.0 by a very healthy margin and has nine kick returns for 269 yards and five punt returns for 147 yards and a TD. At 1,115 career kick return yards, Stokes is now just 34 yards from passing Mark Fabish '96 (1,148) for second all-time and 122 from the record, currently held by Chris Wynn '09 (1,236).
 
Target Practice
In Penn's Week 1 victory at Stonehill, O'Brien targeted just six receivers, completing a pass to five. At Lehigh in Week 2, it was much of the same after targeting seven, but completing to five.
 
The script was flipped on Saturday against Dartmouth, however, with looks going to nine different targets. All nine of those caught passes including four for Owens and three each to Richardson and Alex Haight.
 
All Ready For Richardson
Despite a relatively quiet effort against the Big Green last weekend, Richardson had been delivering standout performance after standout performance for the Quakers to begin the 2025 season, solidifying his reputation as one of the Ivy League's premier playmakers.
 
Through the first two games, he recorded 244 yards on 17 catches and three touchdowns. His most impressive outing came at nationally-ranked Lehigh—his "homecoming" game—where he amassed 141 yards and two touchdowns on 12 receptions.
 
Richardson continues to climb Penn's all-time receiving list, entering Week 4 with 1,753 career yards, having just cleared Doug O'Neill '00 (1,614) for seventh all-time. Richardson begins to chase Conner Scott '14 for sixth at 1,762 and then will turn his attention to becoming just the sixth Penn receiver to reach the 2,000-yard milestone.
 
In addition, Richardson is ranked fifth in Penn history in touchdown receptions with 18, passing both Don Clune '73 and Christian Pearson '18 at 17. He needs four TDs to pass Rob Milanese '02 for fourth with 21.
 
O'Brien's Offense
You couldn't ask for a better start to a season for Penn senior QB O'Brien, who heads into Week 4 ranked third in the Ivy League in passing yards per game at 233.7, while completing 67.4 percent (60-for-89) of his passes—ranked second—with six touchdowns over three picks.
 
His passer rating of 149.1 now ranks second behind only Harvard's Jaden Craig (207.9).
 
O'Brien entered this season with just four starts under his belt after taking over for the injured Aidan Sayin following Week 6 vs. Yale. He immediately jumped off the page at Cornell when he set Penn's single-game program records for passing touchdowns (6) and total TDs (7) in a 67-49 victory over the Big Red. He got himself on the map when he was named FCS National Offensive Player of the Week by Stats Perform following the effort.
 
Steel Curtain
Penn's defense looked fierce and strong in Saturday's win over Dartmouth, putting together its best performance of the young season so far. But no one looked as dominant as Lista did for the Quakers, leading the effort with 15 total tackles (on 10 solo stops), while adding a TFL, all while coming back from an injury.
 
In addition, Kadari Machen totaled two TFLs (for a loss of seven yards) with one TFL each for Cole Olsztyn and Jake Davis (who had the team's lone sack).
 
The Quakers' pass coverage was excellent, totaling two interceptions—one each for Wills and Fearon—while Ty Cortes, Josh Narcisse, Olsztyn, Jayden Drayton, and Ryan O'Connell all recorded pass breakups.
 
In The National Rankings
If you're looking for punt return defense or punt returns in general, look no further than the Penn Quakers, who lead the nation in both categories at -5.5 yards per game and 29.4 yards per attempt, respectively.
 
Penn is also tied for first with five others in fourth down conversion percentage (1.000), while ranking fourth in fewest penalties (15), ninth in fewest penalty yards (159), 10th in first downs defense (67), 14th in net punting (40.09), 19th in tackles for loss allowed (4.00), 21st in completion percentage (66.7), and 23rd in turnovers lost (5).
 
As you already know individually, Stokes leads the nation in punt returns (29.4 ypa), punt return TDs (1), and all-purpose yards per game (195.0). He's also third for combined kick return yards (416).
 
O'Brien is among the FCS's best signal callers, ranked 17th in completions per game (20.0) and 18th in completion percentage (67.4). He also ranks seventh in points responsible for per game (18.0), 21st in passing yards per game (233.7), and 30th in passing efficiency (149.1).
 
Richardson ranks eighth in receiving yards per game (93.7) and is tied for sixth with Owens in receptions per game (6.67).
 
Freshman kicker Mason Walters is also among the nation's leaders, ranking 17th in field goals per game (1.33) and 25th in field goal percentage (80.0).
 
Academic Heisman Watch
Besides a strong outing at Lehigh last weekend, O'Brien also found himself in the news for being named a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy, announced by the National Football Foundation (NFF) and the College Football Hall of Fame.
 
One of four co-captains for the 2025 season, O'Brien is a member of several campus and community initiatives including Penn's Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC), the Penn Athletics Wharton Leadership Academy (PAWLA), and the Ivy League Football Council, the leadership group that brought the FCS Playoffs to the conference for the first time ever.
 
He has also participated in Uplifting Athletes, a non-profit organization that invests in lives of those affected by rare diseases, which sponsors Lift for Life events. He also has been involved in Penn Football's annual Bone Marrow Drive with NMDP.
 
A Finance and Business Analytics double major in Penn's prestigious Wharton School of Business, O'Brien spent the past summer as an Investment Banking Analyst at J.P. Morgan as a part of its Business Services Coverage Group. He received a full-time job offer from the company upon completion.
 
Those Are Some Good Works!
Not only was he recognized for his effort on the field, Bergin also got some love off for his work in the community by being nominated for the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team.
 
The Allstate AFCA Good Works Team was established in 1992 by the College Football Association, recognizing the extra efforts made by college football players and student support staff off the field. AFCA became the governing body of the award in 1997 and continues to honor college football players who go the extra mile for those in need. Allstate worked to present the award starting with the 2008 season.
 
Bergin, a team captain for the 2025 season, is a key contributor to the Penn Football chapter of Uplifting Athletes, where he helps coordinate team fundraising events either through games or lifts to raise money and awareness for children with rare diseases. He and his teammates involved helped raise over $7,000 two years in a row.
 
In addition, Bergin has been involved with Young Quakers, an organization partnered with the University of Pennsylvania's Netter Center that works with Philadelphia kids ages 6-18. He's also a member of the Penn Athletics Wharton Leadership Academy (PAWLA) and Penn's Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).
 
Like other football student-athletes, Bergin has also donated his time to helping at Get in the Game Bone Marrow drives for NMDP.
 
Follow The Action
Joe Tordy (play-by-play) and Penn Athletics Hall of Famer Joe Valerio C'91 (analyst) will have Friday night's call on ESPN+ while Matt Leon (play-by-play) and Hench Murray (analyst) provide the radio call on the Quaker Audio Network (QAN).
 
For the latest on Penn football, follow @PennFB on X (formerly Twitter), @PennFootball on Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com.