Penn defensive tackle Tom Gilmore tackles Columbia running back Al Gonzalez during the game at Franklin Field on October 8, 1984 (Photo by David A. Fields).
As the fall sports season heats up, we take a look back at some of this week’s memorable moments in Penn sports history.
Women‘s Soccer: Most goals in an Ivy League game (6) in a 6-0 win at Cornell
In 2008, Penn’s women’s soccer team hoped to repeat the success of their 2007 Ivy League championship season. The Quakers brought back every starter from their 2007 roster, yet the team struggled in non-conference play and entered conference play with .500.
Although the team didn’t live up to the 2007 season, it broke records in a preseason matchup at Cornell. In a 6-0 shutout against Big Red, Penn scored the most goals in an Ivy League game in program history. The key to this record-breaking performance was the Quakers’ underclassmen. The influence of Penn’s newcomers wasn’t limited to this game either. In the team’s first ten games of that 2008 season, Penn’s freshmen scored 11 of the team’s 26 goals.
While that win over Cornell put Penn back on track toward his season goals, the Quakers won just two more games that season, making this record one of the notable highlights of the year.
Sprint Football: Penn’s single-game passing record of 429 yards against Army
As the 2009 Penn Sprint Football season began, the Quakers were on a good run, winning their first three games and averaging 106 points in the last two.
Game number four would prove to be a much more challenging game, however, as Penn faced an Army team that would share the Collegiate Sprint Football League (CSFL) title with the following season.
Penn traveled to West Point, N.Y. for the matchup, led by sophomore quarterback Todd Busler. Behind their young signalman, the Quakers trailed 35-26, beginning a three-game losing streak that would afflict the 2009 team, who ended 4-3.
Busler finished the game with 429 passing yards, the only time a Penn Sprint football quarterback has ever thrown for 400 or more yards in a single game. First and foremost, Busler assisted second wide receiver Whit Shaw, who totaled nine catches for 274 yards and two touchdowns, one of which was for 76 yards.
Shaw’s performance marked the second most yards in a game by a Penn Sprint football receiver, and Shaw’s 886 yards in the season is the most in a single campaign in program history.
In addition to competing in October 2009 with Army, Busler holds the next two spots on the list for most single-game passing yards occurring in consecutive weeks during his senior season. The closest person to get to Busler’s 429-yard record is 75 yards from reaching it.
Soccer: Penn smokes Columbia amid Ivy League three-peat fight backed by two receiver brothers
38 years ago this week, Penn Football dominated Columbia 35-7 in what was then called “whitewash.” It was an impressive display on both sides of the ball, as the Quakers grabbed five touchdowns on offense and didn’t allow the Lions to cross midfield until the third quarter. It was described as an all-around team effort, with three-fourths of the 117-man roster playing snap and quarterback Jim McGeehan delivering a characteristically excellent performance through the air.
Two of his main targets that afternoon were identical twin brothers Pat and Warren Buehler, both of whom were enjoying their breakout season. Warren had contributed as a freshman, including a crucial catch in the iconic 1982 Harvard game, but was limited by injuries in his sophomore season. Pat played primarily a reserve role during his first two seasons when he left his high school quarterback position. But coming into this game, both were key players, with Warren particularly shining with six catches for 157 yards and two points in two weeks.
McGeehan spoke highly of the duo at the time, but even admitted to sometimes having trouble distinguishing between the similarly talented twins.
“It was a lot easier to tell them apart if they parted their hair on different sides,” McGeehan told The Daily Pennsylvanian in 1984.
The 28-point win in Week 3 typified Penn’s season that year as they mostly went through the Ivy League in an 8-1 season that saw the Quakers finally claim a clear Conference title after two years of splitting -Competition blew up. This year, Penn has started the season similarly and certainly hopes to finish it on the same note.
