Half Full And Half Empty

TigerBlog is more fascinated by the idea that the small, wide glass can hold as much as the clearly taller but thinner glass than he is in trying to figure out if either glass is half full or half empty.

Pete Carril famously said "these are tough times for a pessimist," and he said back in the 1991 season, when the Princeton men's basketball was on its way to a 14-0 Ivy League season.

He also once said that he thinks like a pessimist and works like an optimist.

TB doesn't view the glass as half full or half empty. He sort of views it as both.

In TB's mind, there's room for both optimism and pessimism. Why wouldn't there be? It's not a world of absolutes.

There certainly was room for both Saturday afternoon as he stood on the sidelines at Goodman Stadium and watched Princeton open its football season at Lehigh with a 17-14 loss.

On the one hand, Princeton fell behind 17-0 at the half. On the other hand, the Tigers wiped out Lehigh in the second half and almost came all the way back.

Let's start with the pessimistic side.

Princeton fell behind and never had the lead. The Tigers struggled offensively through the first half. The defense was hurt by a few big plays that led to the 17 points.

Then there's the optimistic side.

Princeton could have given up but didn't. Lehigh could have sprinted away from Princeton in the third quarter, but the defense didn't permit that. Not in the least.

Princeton held Lehigh to 17 points this year after allowing 35 and 34 to the Mountain Hawks the last two years. Lehigh averaged 3.1 yards per rush in this game after going for 4.6 per carry last year against Princeton.

Stats aside, watching Princeton defend in the second half, TB was impressed by how physical the Tigers were - and especially by how emotional they were. It was as if they were taking it all personally.

And then, after three scoreless quarters, Princeton put up two touchdowns, got a stop and had a chance to drive for a tying field goal or winning touchdown.

Princeton did all this without Chuck Dibilio, last year's Ivy League Rookie of the Year, who is out this year after suffering his stroke. Quarterback Connor Michelsen made his first career start, as did many other players.

In fact, TB could make the case that the biggest difference between Princeton and Lehigh Saturday was that it was Lehigh's third game and Princeton's first. Maybe it would have been different had it been Princeton's third and Lehigh's first.

So where are the Tigers now?

Well, they're home Friday night, in the first meeting ever between Princeton and Georgetown. The game kicks at 7 pm and can be seen on ESPNU, as an aside.

The Hoyas are 2-1, with wins over Davidson and Wagner and a loss to Yale Saturday. Clearly, this will be a good test for Princeton and an aid in the barometer of where the Tigers are as the season starts to gain some steam.

Princeton will be at Columbia in the Ivy opener the week after the Georgetown game. Then there is a game at Lafayette, followed by six more Ivy games.

Can Princeton look at its performance against Lehigh and look at it as a positive, with much to build on? Clearly Lehigh has one of the top programs in Division I-AA, and Princeton was right there with the Mountain Hawks the whole way.

Still, it's important to measure success in wins and losses as well. It's one thing to say "hey, we're getting better," but for the players, there is so much more meaning in seeing the results in wins vs. losses.

So where are the Tigers?

Depends on whether your glass is half full or half empty.

TB's glass is both - but he's really hoping that it gets fuller and fuller as the year goes by.

If ever a team deserved it, the Princeton football team does.