Brown Is Poised for an Ivy League Title

If we look at Ivy League football just this season, we can see a Brown team that has resurrected itself to claim first place and, if the chips fall where they should, an Ivy League championship.

This is no overnight feat.  This took a steady growth period—since 2002, their last losing season—to get the Brown program back to where it is currently the best in its conference.

In '08, impressive wins over archrivals Harvard and Penn put them on track to add to their trophy case.  If the Bears can get by Yale on Nov. 8, they stand an excellent shot at putting it into cruise control with games against winless Dartmouth and Columbia to wrap up the season.

What I like about the Ivies is everyone has a chance.  Some teams, like Columbia, just don't properly position themselves for success. 

Cornell, despite far too many lackluster seasons, is showing some signs of life under head coach Jim Knowles.  It really looks like the current coaching staff is pulling it together. This is a perfect example of the direction Columbia needs to take.

Look at Cornell's record just this year (3-4). It's not impressive if we just look at Ws and Ls, but Cornell has been in every game they have played—except against Brown.  They are playing well and not caving in.  They are showing stability.

Dartmouth has had some excellent seasons in the long history of their program.  They have won a good share of Ivy championships and had some terrific players and coaches along the way.  Unfortunately for them, the 2008 season is a catastrophe.  They could go winless.

If they play the role of spoiler in their remaining games, it would not be surprising though.  That's just how Ivy play is.  In fact, I bet the Big Green do have something left in the tank.

Traditional power Harvard has faltered only once this season—against Brown.  They still have Penn and Yale to play though.

Last year it looked like Yale would go wire to wire.  Their brilliant season came to an unfulfilling climax in losing to archrival Harvard on their home field.  Yale is not short on toughness.  Key players QB Matt Polhemus and RB Mike McLeod took on the Yale hockey team in some fisticuffs. 

Yale has a strong football heritage.  The accomplishments of Carm Cozza still stand for something in New Haven, and current head coach Jack Siedlecki is doing justice to that heritage.

Dean Cain’s Princeton Tigers have looked ordinary this season.

Penn really only established itself as an Ivy League powerhouse beginning in the '80s.  How they did it is with very aggressive recruiting, due diligence, assigning the budget to get it done, and really bringing in a caliber of athlete that set a standard for years to come.

Now every student athlete that arrives at Penn has the winning mentality already in place.  This wasn't something out of thin air.  It was by design with the right coaching and the right personnel.

Most of the Ivies will always have a good team because they have a very deep recruiting pool to work with.