Getting to Know You...

My pre-Ivy Football media day 7-day series preparing everyone, (especially the members of the media, with what they need to know about every Ivy team other than Columbia), continues today with a look at Princeton:

2012 Record: 5-5 (4-3 Ivy, tied for 3rd place)

Head Coach: Bob Surace

Last Season in One Sentence: Defying all expectations, the Tigers looked like a dominant team as soon as the Ivy schedule kicked in... until a late season fade took them out of title contention.

Returning Princeton Players You Need to Know: DL Caraun Reid, DB Anthony Gaffney, WR Roman Wilson,  

Big Losses: DL Mike Catapano, LB Andrew Starks, TE Mark Hayes

Big Questions: Reid may be the best overall weapon in the Ivies, but will he be as effective without Catapano and Starks playing alongside him? Is the Princeton offense solid enough to sneak up on anyone this season? Will DiAndre Atwater play and if so why wasn't he mentioned in any of the spring team discussions by Coach Surace? 

Jake’s Overall Take: What Princeton did down the stretch of 2012 is pretty telling. The Tigers lost three of their last four, including two high stakes games at home vs. Penn and Dartmouth. Clearly, this is a much better team than I gave them credit for a year ago. But I'm just not sold on them after that dubious finish.