Ivy League Showdown Friday Night As Penn Hosts Harvard

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The eyes of the Ivy League will be on Franklin Field on Friday night as the University of Pennsylvania hosts Harvard.

This game will go a long way towards determining how the Ivy title race plays out. Harvard is 7-1 and right now alone in first place in the Ancient 8 with a 5-0 record. Penn is 5-3 overall and a game behind the Crimson with a 4-1 Ivy mark. A Harvard win clinches the Crimson at least a piece of the title, a Penn win keeps them in play for at least a share.

The Quakers will be looking to bounce back in this one after they lost to rival Princeton last time out, 28-0. Penn never really got its engine running against the Tigers as Princeton dictated throughout, utilizing a ball-control offense.

"Kept to short passes, quick running game, their guys moved the chains, found the openings, obviously hit the end zone," Penn head coach Ray Priore tells KYW Newsradio. "Defensively, they didn't allow us to have any explosive plays, we drove the ball between the (thirty-yard lines) pretty effectively but we had a couple of turnovers in the red zone, failed on a couple of fourth down opportunities. So they forced us to make our own mistakes and unfortunately we did."

Listen to the entire interview with Penn's Ray Priore:

While the loss to Princeton was obviously frustrating, Priore knows they are still in the title hunt and he is looking forward to this next big game against Harvard.

"To get a second chance at it, very very grateful as a program right now," Priore says. "Our guys are set on getting the job done. That was our one flat game of the year. We'll come back out in this one and hopefully be firing on all pistons."

The Crimson have won three straight since their only loss of the season (31-17 setback at Holy Cross on October 15th). Priore says it is easy to see why Harvard continues to have success.

"They're not making a lot of mistakes," he says. "They are playing very, very steady. Good team football. Good on defense, good on offense, their special teams are solid. They're just not making critical mistakes and that's the mark of a real good team."

This will be Penn's third Friday night game of the season. They beat Dartmouth and Yale, both on the road, in the first two.

Last season these teams met up at Harvard Stadium, Penn winning, 35-25.

Friday night's game will start at 8:00pm.