PLAYERS TO WATCH WR Brandon Bowser (Sr.), WR Pete Chromiak (Sr.), DE Chris Sullivan (Sr.), DE Bill Beechum (Sr.), SS Keenan Shaw (Sr.), FS Tad Crawford (Jr.), CB Prosper Nwokocha (Sr.).

KEY GAMES at Princeton (Oct. 1), at Dartmouth (Oct. 22), at Cornell (Nov. 12)

2005 OUTLOOK The Lions better win early, because with all their games against beatable Ivy competition on the road, the league slate will not be kind to Columbia this season. The Lions’ two most winnable games are the season opener under the lights at Fordham and the home opener against Duquesne. After the Dukes, the only visitor to Wien Stadium that looks manageable is Yale. An 0-2 start could easily spiral into an 0-10 finish, so it’s imperative that Columbia takes one of those two opening contests. The Lions should be able to manage that, and possibly even take a road game at Princeton or Dartmouth for a 1-6 league finish.

Penn Quakers:

AREA OF STRENGTH Defense

AREA OF WEAKNESS Wide Receiver

PLAYERS TO WATCH QB Pat McDermott (Sr.), RB Sam Mathews (Sr.), TE Chris Mizell (Sr.), WR Matt Carre (Jr.), OL Don Snyder (Sr.), LB Ric San Doval (Sr.), LB Kory Gedin (Jr.), DB Casey Edgar (Sr.), DB Michael Johns (Sr.)

KEY GAMES vs. Villanova (Sept. 24), at Brown (Oct. 29), at Harvard (Nov. 12)

2005 OUTLOOK In the minds of the Ivy media, the Quakers have been deemed the team to beat this season. Earning that distinction on the field, however, might be a tougher task. Penn meets its two most difficult Ivy opponents—Brown and Harvard—on the road and must close out the year with a pesky Cornell squad that found its stride down the stretch last season. Penn doesn’t appear to have improved enough to take down the Crimson in Cambridge, and it probably won’t be able to dodge all the bullets he did the year before, so the Quakers should finish the year with a 5-2 league mark.

Yale Bulldogs:

AREA OF STRENGTH Offense

AREA OF WEAKNESS Linebacker

PLAYERS TO WATCH QB Jeff Mroz (Sr.), RB David Knox (Sr.), WR Chandler Henley (Sr.), TE Alex Faherty (Sr.), FB Taylor Craig (Jr.), C Ed McCarthy (Soph.), DT Andrew Ralph (Sr.), DE Brandon Dyches (Sr.), SS Matt Handlon (Sr.)

KEY GAMES at Penn (Oct. 22), at Princeton (Nov. 12), vs. Harvard (Nov. 19)

2005 OUTLOOK Yale’s schedule has it primed for a quick start with a trip to mid-major San Diego preceding three consecutive home dates against beatable competition. If Mroz, Knox, and Henley can mesh at the skill positions, the Bulldogs could jump out to a 4-0 mark. For Siedlecki to maintain the support of the Yale faithful, the Bulldogs have to win three out of those first four. With Lehigh, Penn, Brown, and Harvard highlighting the second half of the schedule, Yale will be lucky to break .500 this season. The Bulldogs will likely finish with a 5-5 mark, 3-4 in the Ivy League.

—Staff writer Michael R. James can be reached at mrjames@fas.harvard.edu.