Penn’s Players

Ray Priore has a talented crew to begin his tenure

My brief overview of the other Ivy teams’ incoming recruits continues today with a look at the now Al Bagnoli-less Penn Quakers.

Overall, this looks like a very good class. It may not have more standout stars than other Ivies right now, but so many of the players in the class appear to be just below that standout level.

That said, here are the players that seemed to be just a cut above:

At 250, DL Kevin Cadigan may end up being more of that kind of hybrid linebacker/lineman new head coach Ray Priore loved to use so much during his long tenure as Penn’s defensive coordinator. Either way, the Quakers must be happy to snatch this all state player from right under Brown’s nose. Another LB/DL hybrid candidate who could make a big impact in Priore’s system is Brody Graham from Jackson, NJ.

A more traditional DT is Cooper Gardner who could become a real force against the run.

It’s a running back-poor league in the Ivies, but Penn may have more than one very good back in this class. The first is a Niko France, who played as an option QB in high school. The other is Jay Cammon. Columbia was very close to getting him, but he chose the Quakers.

Penn has had good luck with players from Long Island’s St. Anthony’s HS, and OL Tommy Dennis looks like he’s a good bet. Long Island football has become very spotty since the 1980’s, but not St. A’s.

Finally, I think WR Christian Pearson has a lot of potential to be an impact receiver.