Switch to safety at Penn worked for Jaskowski

Sebastian Jaskowski came to Penn out of Moorestown High thinking he would be a running back.

That all changed the first day he hit the practice field as a freshman.

"My first day at Penn I was told that I was playing defense," Jaskowski said.

Good move by the Quakers.

Now a senior, the 6-foot, 205-pound Jaskowski has enjoyed success as a hard-hitting, sure-tackling safety.

He entered the starting lineup the final four games during his sophomore season in 2011 and has been there ever since.

Last year he had a team-high 72 tackles in nine games, missing one contest due to injury. Jaskowski had at least four tackles in every game and four times he recorded 10 or more. He was fifth in the Ivy League in tackles and was a first-team all-Ivy selection.

Jaskowski played a key role in helping Penn win the Ivy League title last season and is a major reason the Quakers have been picked to repeat.

Also a baseball standout in high school, Jaskowski is somebody who has a nose for the ball.

"He is really the prototypical safety you want," Penn coach Al Bagnoli said. "He can cover people, has really good size, he's fast, he's fearless, aggressive and has great instincts."

Jaskowski can play either safety position and will frequently switch between strong and free safety, depending on the opposition's alignment. In the opening win over Lafayette he shared the team high with five tackles along with linebacker David Park and fellow safety Evan Jackson.

"We have him at the right position where he is allowed to invert on both sides of the ball and be a really good run defender," Bagnoli said.

And Jaskowski is also adept at defending the pass

"He can play pass coverage well," Bagnoli said. "He can line up over receivers and tight ends and we are very fortunate to have somebody with that kind of versatility."

Jaskowski is looking forward to the Schuylkill Showdown, Saturday's 5 p.m nonleague game at Villanova. He said that coming out of high school, Villanova was one of the schools he was considering.

"It would mean a lot [to win] and for the last three years we have been unable to beat them and even before that it has been over 100 years since we've been able to pull one out," Jaskowski said.

He wasn't exaggerating. Villanova leads the series, 12-5, and has won the last 12 games.

Penn's last win was 1911, although the teams next game after that season wasn't until 1980.