In a quest for an Ivy League title, Penn football is a bit on the ropes. Here’s why.

How early is too early to call a game a must-win?

Penn isn’t even halfway through its schedule, but after an overtime loss to Dartmouth — and with Ivy League heavyweights Harvard, Princeton, and Yale still on the schedule — the Quakers can’t afford to drop another one to Columbia on Saturday (1:30 p.m., ESPN+).

The Quakers assuaged some worries with an overtime victory against Georgetown last weekend, but Penn (3-1, 0-1) will have its hands full with a strong, defensive-minded Columbia (2-2, 0-1) squad.

The Lions enter their homecoming matchup as the No. 1 scoring defense in the Ivy League, allowing just 8.5 points per game. In their last three, they’ve allowed 0, 10, and 0 points. Columbia’s defense has especially thrived on the passing game, ranking first in the Ivies in defensive passing efficiency.

“They’re playing an even-front scheme where they’re going to lock you down in man-to-man and try to force you to throw fades all day long and grind it on out,” Penn coach Ray Priore said.

Where the defense has thrived in the air, though, the offense has struggled. Senior quarterback Caden Bell has faltered this season, completing just 42.3% of his passes and barely scratching 100 yards a game. To be fair, he’s had to play through intense weather conditions in two contests. Still, Bell has yet to complete more than half of his passes in a single game this season — with or without a monsoon present.

Penn and Columbia have each been on the extremes in one area: penalties. While Columbia has the fewest penalty yards in the Ivy League, Penn had the most with 55 yards a game. But Penn’s opponents also have totaled the most penalty yards in the conference, while Columbia ranks second to last.

Earning a win on Saturday could come down to limiting the careless errors Penn has been privy to thus far, and forcing — or hoping for — some out of Columbia. Speaking of errors, Penn junior quarterback Aidan Sayin — who threw for a career-high 357 yards against Dartmouth and 254 yards against Georgetown — cost the Quakers with three fumbles across those two games.

Sophomore wideout Jared Richardson, who amassed 201 receiving yards and three touchdowns in Penn’s first two games, will be returning from a shoulder injury. But Columbia’s stingy pass defense might prevent Sayin from throwing for another 300 yards.

As such, the ground game will be vital for Penn. The Quakers have employed a run-by-committee approach thus far, but against Georgetown, freshman running back Malachi Hosley broke out. The rookie accounted for two touchdowns, including the game-winner, and 101 total yards, utilizing speed and agility.

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“He is a very, very electric player. … Right now, it’s been by committee, but he’s really taken himself to another level,” Priore said. “He is the first one out of that locker room every day, and he’s one of the last ones [out there], and he’s been blessed with some real God-given talents and skills, and I think our staff has done a great job of nurturing that, developing that, and bringing it out week-by-week.”

For the first time since 1992, Al Bagnoli will not be on either sideline of the Penn-Columbia matchup. Bagnoli was the head coach at Penn from 1992-2014 and then took the same job at Columbia, where he remained until his health-related retirement just six weeks before the Lions’ opener this season.

In his place is interim head coach Mark Fabish, who has a Penn background of his own. Fabish helped the Quakers win five Ivy titles: two as a wide receiver during his playing days in the 1990s and three more as Penn’s passing game coordinator and tight ends/wide receivers coach.

Also on staff for Columbia is Jon McLaughlin, Penn’s offensive line coach from 2006-14 and offensive coordinator for the final six of those years. McLaughlin left Penn along with Bagnoli and has been the Lions’ associate head coach and offensive line coach since.

Columbia offensive coordinator Joe D’Orazio never coached at Penn, but, like Fabish, played for the Quakers. As starting center, D’Orazio was a crucial piece in two of Penn’s conference titles, earning first-team All-Ivy twice during his four years with the program.

After acting as the Lions’ running backs coach since 2018, D’Orazio was promoted to offensive coordinator following Fabish’s elevation to interim coach.

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