Could Penn have been the "Stanford of the East"?

The Sons of Ben, a Union fan club, are surrounded by smoke created by PPL Park employees during a game last month. The Drudge Report used the photo Monday with a link about the fall of the U.S. economy.

By Mike Jensen, Inquirer Staff Writer

Posted: April 26, 2011

According to an Equity in Athletics Disclosure report, this is how Ivy League schools stacked up in athletic department revenue in the 2009-10 academic year:

1. Yale ($36.5 million)

2. Penn ($30.4 million)

3. Princeton ($19.5 million)

4. Columbia ($19.3 million)

5. Cornell ($19.0 million)

6. Dartmouth ($18.5 million)

7. Harvard ($17.9 million)

8. Brown ($15.2 million).

Let's also look at the locals. Here's athletic revenue for the Division I schools:

1. Penn ($30.4 million)

2. Temple ($28.8 million)

3. Villanova ($27.7 million)

4. Drexel ($16.1 million)

5. St. Joseph's ($13.8 million)

6. La Salle ($11.1 million).

As for number of unduplicated participants, Penn also tops the local list:

1. Penn (897)

2. Temple (559)

3. Villanova (527)

4. St. Joseph's (441)

5. Drexel (419)

6. La Salle (416).

Apparently, Penn's revenue numbers are a little higher than normal since the school is nearing the end of a five-year capital campaign that raised funds for its new weight room and training facility under Franklin Field and some money for additional fields at Penn Park near the Schuylkill Expressway.

But here's one bottom line: With more sports (nobody else has a sprint, or lightweight, football team or varsity men's rowing, for instance), and its own unique, revenue-generating, on-campus activity (Penn Relays), Penn probably has the most complex athletic department - the most moving parts - of the locals.

Over a half-century ago, the school made the right decision by joining the Ivy League, but it is interesting to think about what might have been if Penn had stayed in the big time, trying to be the Stanford of the East. The entire landscape of Eastern and local sports would be different.

Reason No. 374 to get to the Penn Relays

Florida Gators fans can see exactly how fast running back Jeff Demps can move. Demps just ran a wind-aided 9.96-second 100 meters, the fastest time in the NCAA so far this year.

That speed is the No. 1 reason Gator fans gave new Temple head coach Steve Addazio a hard time about his play calling as Florida's offensive coordinator last season, since Demps didn't turn into the next Percy Harvin.

Where in the world is . . .

Michael Jordan? The former Penn point guard, who turns 34 in June, is now with his fifth German club, LTi Giessen 46ers, in the top German division, sharing a backcourt with former Temple guard Ryan Brooks.

There are many other locals playing professionally in Germany, including former Coatesville and Seton Hall guard John Allen, former Villanova forward Dwayne Anderson, former Bartram and Virginia forward Jason Cain, former Engineering and Science and Texas Tech guard Will Chavis, former St. Joseph's forward Robert Ferguson, former Norristown and Colorado State guard Willis Gardner, former Schalick and Seton Hall guard Paul Gause, former Penn Charter and Notre Dame forward Rob Kurz, and former Simon Gratz and Temple guard Mark Tyndale.

Random questions

Did anybody out there have a positive encounter with Lenny Dykstra away from the field while he was with the Phillies? That would be news, judging by my e-mail. . . . Does any sports figure in town have a lower profile than Sixers president Rod Thorn? Smart move, since Thorn has to know his tenure will now be judged by whether he can get a go-to player into town. . . . Has an NHL goalie ever played 3,017 minutes in the regular season and just 71 minutes in the postseason without an injury factoring in? . . . Were you glued to the television Sunday waiting to see if Lee Westwood or Luke Donald would rise to No. 1 in the world golf rankings?

Contact staff writer Mike Jensen at 215-854-4489 or mjensen@phillynews.com