Tales from the Train Tracks

Dartmouth football news will resume May 22 . . .

California Zephyr observation car

ALL ABOARD
If you've been following along, you know Mrs. BGA and I are heading out today on a cross country train trip using a USA Rail Pass, which enables us to take 10 "legs" over 30 days. Read about the pass HERE.

On our trip we hope to catch a Cubs game at Wrigley Field, visit friends during a four-day stay in Seattle and spend a week with That Certain Dartmouth '14 at Bryce Canyon, Utah, where she is a ranger/planner. (It's about a 3½ hour drive between Bryce and Green River, but in the west that's how far people drive to pick up milk.)

After Green River we will have four nights with my sister at her beautiful summer place on Colorado's Lake Dillon.

When we finally get back to Chicago we will decide if we've had enough of the train. As it stands, we'll head from Chicago to Washington, D.C., where we hope to meet up with a friend from my grad school days.

If we're tired of the train, we'll go directly from Chicago to New York and catch the Vermonter back home. Time will tell.

Here's our full itinerary: 

TODAY
The Lake Shore Limited
Depart: Boston South Station, 12:50 p.m.
Arrive: Chicago Union Station, tomorrow 10:12 a.m.

WEDNESDAY
The Empire Builder
Depart: Chicago Union Station, 3:05 p.m.
Arrive: Seattle King Street Station, Friday, 9:50 a.m.

MONDAY, April 29
The Coast Starlight
Depart: Seattle King Street Station, 9:50 a.m.
Arrive: Los Angeles Union Station, Tuesday, April 30, 9:11 p.m.

THURSDAY, May 2
The Coast Starlight
Depart: Los Angeles Union Station, 9:51 a.m.
Arrive: Emeryville (Bay Area), Thursday, 9:31 p.m.

SATURDAY, May 4
The California Zephyr
Depart: Emeryville, 9:10 a.m.
Arrive: Green River, Utah, Sunday, 7:44 a.m.

Sunday May 4-Sunday May 12
Bryce Canyon National Park

SUNDAY, May 12
The California Zephyr
Depart: Green River Utah, 7:44 a.m.
Arrive: Granby, Colo., Sunday 2:54 p.m.

Sunday, May 12-Thursday, May 16
Dillon, Colorado

THURSDAY, May 16
The California Zephyr
Depart: Granby, Colo., 2:54 p.m.
Arrive: Chicago Union Station, Friday, 2:50 p.m.

SATURDAY, May 18*
The Capitol Limited
Depart: Chicago Union Station, 6:40 p.m.
Arrive: Washington Union Station, Sunday, 1:05 p.m.

TUESDAY, May 21*
The Vermonter
Depart: Washington Union Station, 8:10 a.m.
Arrive: White River Junction, Vt., 6:15 p.m.

* Tentative

Looking Ahead

On a slow day, a few observations about Dartmouth's 2024 non-conference opponents, starting with Fordham, who the Big Green will face in its Sept. 21 opener.

Fordham went 6-5 last year overall and 2-4 in the Patriot League. . . . The big win was by a 40-37 score over FBS Buffalo. . . . The Rams lost at Colgate in their finale, 21-14. . . . They list 11 graduate students on their 2024 spring roster and transfers from Utah, Temple, New Mexico and Akron. . . . Returning standouts include quarterback CJ Montes, the New Mexico transfer who had 26 touchdown passes to just one interception last year, completing 241-of-376 passes (64.1 percent) for an even 3,000 yards while being named a finalist for the Walter Payton Award as the outstanding offensive player in the FCS. . . . Also returning is tailback Julius Loughridge, who averaged 104.2 yards per game a year while running for 1,146 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Central Connecticut, Dartmouth's Oct. 19 opponent, went 3-8 a year ago with a 1-6 mark in conference play including a 38-10 loss at FBS Kent State and a 42-20 loss at Brown. . . . The Blue Devils' spring roster incudes 13 transfers including two from Virginia Tech, one each from UConn and UMass and two from Villanova. . . . They return starting quarterback Matt Jenner, a transfer from City College of San Francisco, who completed 92-of-168 passes (54.8 percent) for 1,009 yards with nine touchdowns and eight interceptions last fall. . . . Also back is QB CJ Duell, who hit on 35-of-53 throws (66.0 percent) for 534 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions in two games before being lost for the season. . . . Leading running back Elijah Howard, a transfer from Virginia Tech, averaged 90.0 yards per game on the ground last year, with 257 yards against Delaware State, 146 against Brown and two other games over 100 yards.

Merrimack, Dartmouth's Sept. 18 opponent, went 5-6 a. year ago with a 4-3 mark in conference. . . . The Warriors defeated Central Connecticut in their penultimate game, 35-24 and lost to 2023 Dartmouth  opponent Lehigh, 14-12 in Week 2. . . . They have not updated their roster for the spring but last year's roster featured transfers from Rutgers, Buffalo, Maine (2), Colgate and Stetson. . . . As a junior last fall, quarterback Malakai Anthony completed 49-of-101 passes (48.5 percent) for 795 yards with eight TDs and two interceptions. . . . Gavin McCusker, listed as a sophomore a year ago, was 38-for 88 passing (43.2 percent) for 474 yards with two interceptions and one touchdown. . . . Tyvon Edmonds Jr., listed as a junior a year ago, ran for 1,247 yards and 10 touchdowns with five games in triple figures, including 213 yards against DII Virginia-Lynchburg.

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Three players Dartmouth faced are among the top 15 potential FCS NFL hopefuls per the updated Draft Scout service (LINK):

Ranked as the top potential draft pick is former Yale offensive tackle Kiran Amegadjie. He's projected as a second- or third-round selection.

New Hampshire running back Dylan Laube is the sixth-ranked prospect and a potential sixth-round selection while Yale wide receiver Mason Tipton is 15th with a seventh-round or "high priority free agent."

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Remember that thought about Ivy Leaguers sticking around the Ancient Eight until they can grad transfer, emphasis on grad?

It's not as true, apparently, in basketball. Following in the footsteps of guard Malik Mack, who is departing Harvard for Georgetown after just one season in Cambridge, now it is Yale 7-footer Danny Wolf trading New Haven after two years for Ann Arbor as a highly regarded transfer to Michigan. (LINK)

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EXTRA POINT
Given that we are hopping on our cross country train tomorrow, Mrs. BGA and I jumped the gun and did our GreenUp Day walk yesterday, filling three bags with assorted detritus.

Here's something that occurred to me while we were scouring the sides of our rural dirt road. While it annoys me to no end, I suppose given open container laws I know why people toss beer cans and the like out the window of their vehicles. There's no excuse, but I understand why they are doing it.

What I don't understand is tossing water bottles, ice tea cans and soda cans and bottles.

Potpourri

From a BGA – The Sequel posting a couple of days ago in which head coach Sammy McCorkle spoke about the Big Green having a week off in the middle of spring practice (LINK):

"It's a big week for their recovery physically," (McCorkle) said. "Obviously (strength and conditioning coach Spencer (Brown), (head trainer Ben (Schuler) and I collaborate on to make sure this is an opportunity for our guys to kind of recover. But we're not going to slow down at all when it comes to continuing to improve our physical part, getting stronger and continuing to stay in shape.

"Spencer's got them lifting three times, Monday, Wednesday, Friday and they'll be outside a couple of time doing some speed work and some change of direction stuff. We want to be maintaining our physical condition to make sure that we're prepared when we hit it next week."

Dartmouth football's social media picked up on that theme:

Hear from @DartmouthFTBL athletic trainers Ben Schuler and Tory Engel, during this development and recovery week of spring practice.#TheWoods🌲 | #GoBigGreen pic.twitter.com/a34xzp64xE

— Dartmouth Athletics (@dartmouthsports) April 19, 2024

If you haven't seen "cupping therapy" in action you will see it 20 seconds into the one-minute video. Pretty strange stuff.

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Oh yeah. The second installment of the look at spring football midway through the allotted 12 practices was posted last night HERE. 

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From an NCAA release about new college football rules (LINK):

For all three divisions (I, II and III), teams have the option of using tablets to view in-game video only. The video can include the broadcast feed and camera angles from the coach's sideline and coach's end zone.

And while the story isn't clear about if another change is across all divisions there's this . . .

The panel approved adding an automatic timeout when two minutes remain in the second and fourth quarters. 

(Feel free to call that a two-minute warning, kids.) 

Also from the release was this about putting the "uni" back in uniforms:

The panel did not support a uniform rule proposal made by the Football Rules Committee. Panel members were not comfortable with on-field officials having to enforce the recommended rule. 

The panel understands the rules committee's concern but encourages the committee to look for an administrative solution that does not include game official enforcement.

Green Alert Take: I don't know for sure but I wonder if that has something to do with players turning their football pants into shorts?

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Do you shake your head when you read about a college athlete at his or her third or even fourth school? Just wait. From Bleacher Report story report about NCAA rules changes (LINK):

 (A)thletes who meet academic requirements will be allowed unlimited transfers and will be granted immediate eligibility under the new rule system.

And then there's this from a story headlined Virginia law allows schools to pay athletes for NIL (LINK):

The law explicitly states that athletes should not be considered employees of their school. Schools in Virginia are still not allowed to pay athletes for their performance in a sport, but starting this summer, they will be able to use university or athletic department funds to pay athletes for appearing in marketing campaigns. 

If you are a purist, stick with the Ivy League, right? Then again . . . 

From a column several days ago in the local Valley News (LINK):

The battle between Dartmouth and its basketball team has already turned ugly. The college is getting a behind-the-scenes assist from alumni who are not thrilled about their alma mater becoming home to the first collegiate athletic team in the country to unionize.

And . . .

 In a Wall Street Journal op-ed last week, (Dartmouth President Sian) Beilock vowed Dartmouth will “go all the way to the Supreme Court if that’s what it takes to prevent this misguided development from taking hold.”

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EXTRA POINT
Like a lot of you, I'm sure, we don't eat at our dining room table all that often. At the risk of incurring Mrs. BGA's rath, I have to admit that it can devolve into something of an item collector on occasion. 

This is one of those occasions. With our cross-country train trip just a couple of days away, the table is becoming a gathering place for little things we want to make sure we don't forget. Kindles. Charging cords. Wall nuggets. Two pairs of binoculars. A small first-aid kit. Ear plugs. Ear phones. Triple-A batteries. Lemonade and ice tea mix. Peanut butter cheese crackers. Energy bars. Peanut M&Ms. On their way to the table soon are power banks, memory cards, a remote trigger for shooting photos, a mini tripod for a camera, a wifi hotspot and more.

We'll surely forget a few things but hey, that's what money's for, right? 

Spring Things

Dartmouth social media has a post about a new addition to the Big Green coaching ranks:

Join us in welcoming our new Football Recruiting & Operations Coordinator @CoachEBrenss to The Woods!#TheWoods pic.twitter.com/OtmDmfn74I

— Dartmouth Football (@DartmouthFTBL) April 18, 2024

A little more background from a story posted on BGA – The Sequel (LINK):

A final addition joining the Big Green staff this week is Erin Brennan, the latest woman to work in the Dartmouth program. A former soccer player at Alabama's Spring Hill College, she will serve as recruiting and operations coordinator for the Green. She has been an assistant to the athletic director at Isidore Newman School in New Orleans and came to attention at the Manning Passing Academy.

"She comes from (graduating wide receiver) Jarmone Sutherland's school," said (head coach Sammy) McCorkle. "She'll take a little off Danny O'Dea's plate and allow him to do more of what he's really good at."

Speaking of The Sequel, here's the lede to a lengthy story spun out of Dartmouth's first six spring practices that went up on the free site last night :

Wide receiver Paxton Scott has led Dartmouth in catches each of his first three seasons. Nose guard Josiah Green had more tackles last year than either of his two linemates who will be playing at the FBS level in the fall as grad transfers.

The easy thing to talk about during the off week in the middle of Dartmouth's 12 spring practices would be to focus on stalwarts like Scott and Green. But Sammy McCorkle, in his first spring practice since being officially named head coach early last fall, was more than happy to work his way around the field sharing thoughts about players who might be a little more under the radar.

To find the full story, which also includes thoughts on spring recruiting and a lot more, click HERE. Again, it's available to all.

Courtesy Dartmouth football social media

The Sequel will have another spring story tonight featuring thoughts from Coach McCorkle about new associate head coach Wendy Laurent. Also his perspective on the big Pro Day by Quinten Arello, on the benefit of having fifth-year seniors, on when captains will be named, and a very special down-and-back trip he made to another campus. Check it out tonight HERE.

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The Athletic has an NFL Draft preview called The Beast available on PDF to subscribers that runs well over 300 pages. It lists former Dartmouth corner Isaiah Johnson, who spent the past two years as a grad transfer at Syracuse, 44th among available cornerbacks. How much detail does The Beast go into? Here's text accompanying Johnson's statistics and measurements:

Isaiah Johnson, the youngest of seven children, was born in Ohio, and his family lived in Switzerland from 2005-10. For high school, he attended Detroit Country Day, because of its art program (he is a skilled sketch artist).

Wow. Here's more: 

He received several Ivy League offers and signed with Dartmouth, where he spent four years. After his breakout 2021, he graduated from Dartmouth and transferred to Syracuse, where he started for two seasons at outside cornerback. Johnson is a king-sized cover man with outstanding length and the balanced athleticism to overwhelm receivers in press. Despite the air space he covers, his ball skills are only okay, and he tends to lose positioning versus quick route runners (his on-field movements don't consistently match his three-cone-time). Overall, Johnson lacks ideal long speed, but he’s a smart, long player and strong tackler, making him a worthy developmental option at safety or as a press corner.

Graduating Dartmouth safety Quinten Arello doesn't have a bio in The Beast, but his measurements and drill numbers are included on a chart of available players at the position. He is ranked 55th among the 216 available safeties. For perspective, among the 10 players listed immediately below Arello in the rankings are products of Wisconsin, Texas A&M, Penn State, Auburn and Notre Dame.

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From Football Scoop under the headline FDA approves rapid concussion blood test (LINK):

Developed by a team led by Pittsburgh Steelers team neurosurgeon Dr. David Okonkwo, the test's manufacturer says it can rule out concussions with a 95.6 percent accuracy when assessed within 24 hours of injury. The test works by detecting two proteins, UCH-L1 and GFAP, released within the blood following a concussion. 

Abbott, the test's manufacturer, believes it will be available for bedside use in hospitals by this summer. The next step will be for use on the battlefield and the sidelines.

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EXTRA POINT
Those of you who have been following along may recall that when I drove my car up to Newport, Vt., to see the total eclipse the EV's odometer passed the mileage threshold for the warranty to cover fixing the faulty lock on the hatch. As it turns out the magic number was 36,004 miles, and thanks to my drive on eclipse day and then bringing the car 33 miles south to the dealer it was at about 36,200 miles or so when the dealer plugged a doohickey in to get an official odometer reading.

Showing surprising heart, the word back from Detroit is that we will be responsible for just 10 percent of the repairs. It's still ridiculous that the total repair will be in the neighborhood of $300, but $30 or so sure beats the alternative.

Spring Ahead

A look at Dartmouth spring football at the midway point of the 12 sessions will be posted tonight on the new barebones site BGA – The Sequel HERE. 4 p.m. editor's note: The story has been posted.

In addition to providing thoughts about players who have opened eyes during the first six practices,  how the spring has gone as a whole and the naming of Wendy Laurent as associate head coach, the Sequel will explain what the players are doing this week, why they aren't practicing, and a lot more including a very special trip by head coach Sammy McCorkle. Oh, and if you missed the spring practice preview, that already has been reposted on the site here (LINK).

A reminder that the new BGA site, which is available to everyone, will have Dartmouth game coverage of a sort this fall, as noted in this space yesterday.

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Speaking of what the players are doing this week, Spencer Brown, Dartmouth's highly regarded strength and conditioning coach addressed exactly that in a video posted on Big Green social media:

Hear from Spencer Brown, the Holekamp Family Director of Strength & Conditioning, about the importance and area of focus for @DartmouthFTBL in the spring.#TheWoods🌲 | #GoBigGreen pic.twitter.com/ByOCNfbBHl

— Dartmouth Athletics (@dartmouthsports) April 17, 2024

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It's just a "brief," but Dartmouth's new offensive quality control assistant Grayson Kline got a mention in Penn State's Daily Collegian. (LINK) What the Collegian should have included in the story, of course, is former Nittany Lion offensive lineman Wendy Laurent being named the Big Green's associate head coach earlier this spring.

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While Dartmouth has had a good number of former football players enter the portal as grad transfers, to date virtually all have left only after picking up their degrees, something first Buddy Teevens and now Sammy McCorkle encourage. Princeton lost a promising running back after a strong freshman season in 2022 and now a Yale undergrad has entered the portal, but to this point most of the football players who transfer out of the Ivies are doing so only after graduation, not before.

It's starting to look as if that may be changing on the basketball side. The Harvard Crimson has a story about guard Malik Mack, who this winter was named the Ivy League rookie of the week eight consecutive times, walking away from a Harvard degree to play at Georgetown. From the story (LINK):

"Mack and his family have previously spoken about weighing the benefits of a Harvard degree against the financial pressures of not having an athletic scholarship or the potential to make money through an NIL collective . . ."

Yale sophomore Danny Wolf, a 7-foot center/forward who some analysts list among the top dozen players in the portal, could be moving on as well. And while he has said he intends to return to school, Princeton sophomore guard Xaivian Lee has declared for the NBA Draft. (LINK)

Green Alert Take: Could it happen in football? Perhaps, but it says here it is a lot harder to project how a top Ivy football player will translate to the FBS than it is a basketball player to a big-time program.

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Remember that post about small college towns described this way (LINK)?

These 10 small college towns — selected by an expert panel and voted as the best by readers — have fun, youthful vibes, unexpected dining and shopping options, and plenty of cultural offerings. Throw in a beautiful campus and some regional surprises and you have a recipe for a great vacation.

Here's the final ranking:

1. Oxford, Miss.
2. Oxford, Ohio
3. Frostburg, Md.
4. Granville, Ohio
5. Athens Ohio
6. Annapolis, Md.
7. HANOVER
8. Williamsburg, Va.
9. Charlottesville, Va.
10. Saratoga Springs

Boston.com has a story about Hanover making the cut HERE.

Green Alert Take: I'll say it again. There's no way that list could leave out Princeton, Ithaca and State College, Pa., and I'd be tempted to include Burlington, Vt.

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EXTRA POINT
My car is a hatchback, which is a good thing . . . until the hatch doesn't close properly, which is a bad thing. I wrote about the car's hatchback issue in this space last week after the dealer hooked up an electronic thingie to send the mileage to Detroit and unfortunately inform us we were several hundred miles past the warranty period for fixing the latch for free.

Today the car goes in a second time to have the exact problem diagnosed with another electronic thingie, and we've been told it very well may have to go in a third time to have the electronics that control the latch mechanism replaced.

Three trips to the dealer and who knows how many hundreds of dollars? For a latch.

I can't help but think about trunk issues before cars got so fancy. I'm pretty sure I could have pulled in unannounced to the neighborhood garage we always used in Lebanon, the mechanic would have put aside what he was working on to come outside with a pair of pliers, a screw driver and some lubricant, and in five minutes he'd have the thing working perfectly. Better yet, when I'd ask him how much we owed him, his answer would be, "Have a good day."

And yes, I walked to school every day, uphill both ways. ;-)

Looking Ahead

A little housekeeping to start the morning off.

As promised a second story on spring practice will go up tomorrow. I think you'll find it interesting and informative. The final spring story won't be posted until late May, after Mrs. BGA and I return from our upcoming trip. (More about that below.)

For what it's worth, I've been experimenting with another web platform to host BGA – The Sequel and if I have it working properly that's where tomorrow's story and other future pieces will be posted. A reminder that access to the new site will be free and available to everyone. Check back tomorrow for a link.

While I'm at it, I'm currently working on my plans for the fall and while I won't be covering practice or in the press box on Saturday afternoons, there will probably be game coverage – of a sort. Stay tuned for more information as I finalize what I hope to be doing.

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The other news I should mention is that Mrs. BGA and I will be hopping on the train in Boston this Monday as we begin a month-long rail trip around the country. We'll be heading first to Chicago, where we will have a day and a half to explore. Then we are on to Seattle, where we'll have three days to see friends and enjoy the PNW.

Next we head down the coast to Los Angeles and then back up to the San Francisco Bay Area, each with a full day to do fun things.

The next leg of our trip brings us to Utah (to spend a week with That Certain Dartmouth '16 at Bryce Canyon) and eventually Colorado (for a few days with my sister). Then it's back to Chicago for a day, (probably) down to Washington, D.C., and finally back home.

We're hoping to get to Wrigley Field to see the Cubs-Astros game at Wrigley Field on the evening of April 23. If anyone has "local knowledge" about the best cheap to moderate-priced seats in the house, send 'em along!

It has been suggested I keep this site going while we are gone but change BGA from Big Green Alert  to Bruce's Great Adventure. We'll see.

Now what you came here for . . .

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Following up on Monday's listing of starters returning and moving on from Dartmouth football (LINK), today a look at the final two-deep from last fall. The first player listed is the starter. Departing players have a strike through their names.*

OFFENSE
Quarterback
Nick Howard
Jackson Proctor

Tailback
Q Jones
Tevita Moimoi

Wide Receiver
Paxton Scott
Jarmone Sutherland

Wide Receiver
Isaac Boston
Jackson Gerard

Wide Receiver
Daniel Haughton
Painter Richards Baker

Tight End
Jace Henry
Nic Sani

Center
Thomas Hartnett
Nick Marinaro

Left Guard
Nick Schwitzgebel
Max Wentz

Right Guard
Kyle Brown
Tristan Holmbeck

Left Tackle
Delby Lemieux
Vasean Washington

Right Tackle
Kontantin Spörk
Ethan Sipe

DEFENSE
End
Charlie Looes
Joe Onuwabhagbe

End
Hank Knez
Dakota Quiñonez

Nose Guard
Josiah Green
Jaylin Rainey

Sam Linebacker
Teddy Gianaris
Marques White

Mike Linebacker
Danny Cronin
Micah Green

Will Linebacker
Macklin Ayers
John Ballowe

Nickel
Tyson McCloud
Tyson Grimm

Corner
Jordan Washington
Zach Faris

Corner
Leonard St. Gourdin
Patrick Campbell

Strong Safety
Sean Williams
Vachon Raye

Free Safety
Cam Maddox
Sam Koscho

*Keep in mind this is just the final two-deep and does not include some players who were regular starters such as safety Quinten Arello, and those who might have slid down to a backup role because of injury.

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EXTRA POINT
We haven't had any really surprising visitors to the video bird feeder since my sister gave it to us for Christmas. This guy, which the camera's AI told us is an American goldfinch, is about as colorful as we've had:

Ah, but the bird feeder has come in handy and will come in handy in ways that have nothing to do with birds. The "has" part was Mrs. BGA accessing the live picture from Florida during the eclipse to see how dark it got in this part of Vermont. (Answer: Not very.) The "will" part will be our ability watch That Certain Nittany Lion '16 taking Griff the Wonder Dog for his daily constitutional around our property while we are away.

Catch This

Former safety Quinten Arello, a two-time Dartmouth captain, is the subject of a Q&A HERE in advance of the NFL Draft.

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This is cool. In recognition of Jackie Robinson Day, the Chicago White Sox piorneering former Dartmouth football assistant Jennifer King throw out the first pitch:

Paving the way for those who come next. Shoutout to Jennifer King for pulling up on Jackie Robinson Day! 💙 pic.twitter.com/7G7WORunxv

— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) April 16, 2024

Click HERE to read King's bio as assistant running backs coach with the Chicago Bears. Unfortunately, no mention of her year in Hanover with the Big Green.

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With the retirement of Yankees' radio announcer John Sterling (LINK) it's a chance to revisit his call of The Catch by Dartmouth's Andrew Hall in the Big Green's win over future NFL QB Ryan Fitzpatrick and Harvard in 2003:

Here's the story I wrote a few days later about The Catch, now immortalized in a photo by former SID Kathy Slattery on a column just inside the main gate of Memorial Field:

Catch As Catch Can 

Hall's Haul in Win Over Harvard Was The Talk Of The Ivy League

HANOVER – Brett Hoover of the Ivy League office is home in Plainsboro, N.J., watching the YES Network broadcast of the Dartmouth-Harvard football game, laptop computer at his side, online.

Two-hundred, sixty-one miles to the northeast, Big Green coach John Lyons has called timeout, a decision longtime voice of Dartmouth football Rick Adams reports from his sunny radio cubby high above Harvard Stadium.

Taking advantage of the break in play to make her way from the end zone back to the 20-yard line is Dartmouth sports information director Kathy Slattery, shooting digital pictures on this day with a spanking new 300mm, f/4 lens.

It is Saturday, Nov. 1, 2003. There are 12 minutes, 58 seconds remaining in the game between undefeated and nationally ranked Harvard and the underdog Big Green.

Less than two minutes have elapsed since Crimson quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick hit Rodney Byrnes with a 55-yard lightning strike to slice Dartmouth's lead from 23-9 to one touchdown in one fell swoop.

The Big Green is in a third-and-28 hole at the Harvard 40-yard line because quarterback Charlie Rittgers collided with the referee for a bizarre 18-yard loss on the last play. It is crunch time.

For everyone.

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Lyons is hoping a long pass will bring a first down, but is thinking that an interception would be as good as a punt.

On the Crimson sideline, coach Tim Murphy has sent in another defensive back and is feeling confident that the numbers are in his team's favor.

Near the painted H in the middle of the field, Rittgers huddles his troops and calls the play: 79 Trade.

Junior wide receiver Andrew Hall and senior wide receiver Jay Barnard will line up left. Senior tight end Casey Cramer will be on the right side of the line.

Hall, the 6-foot-3 Rick Fox lookalike who is enjoying a big game, reviews the play as he heads to the line. He and Barnard will be running "jet" routes, straight up the field, crossing along the way. He knows how big the moment is.

"We need the momentum back," he says later of his thinking. "I'm telling myself you have to do everything you can to get the first down the way I always do on third down."

In the YES booth, John Sterling, he of the "Yankees win, thuuuuuuh Yankees win," fame, sets the scene.

"Here it is, third-and-28," he tells his audience. "A big play for Dartmouth."

Slattery hoists her Canon EOS-1D digital SLR camera and looks through the viewfinder.

Across the Dartmouth offensive line, senior tackle Courtney Wuistinger, senior guard Chris Mathewson, senior center Luke Catenacci, sophomore guard Mike Shannon and junior tackle Vik Tiku gird for a hard rush.

Rittgers takes the snap. Wuistinger rides Harvard defensive end Matt Farbotko around the left of Rittgers, who steps up into the pocket at just the right time. Mathewson is a wall in the middle that Harvard defensive tackle David Kunst can't budge. Catenacci, Tiku and Shannon team up on the right side to hold off a bull rush by tackle Jon Berrier and defensive end Eric Grimm.

Just as Berrier breaks through, Sterling makes the call in the TV booth. "Rittgers, deep downfield, over the middle for Hall ..."

On the home sideline, Slattery has her camera poised as Rittgers lets fly from the 47. "I had been in the end zone waiting patiently for what I was convinced was going to be a touchdown the play before," she says. "When I saw Rittgers roll out and go down, I was mad. So I went stomping back to about the 20-yard line, thinking, 'Now what's going to happen?' The camera just happened to sight on Andrew Hall when he was at about the 10 and I knew Rittgers had thrown it."

Hall is on the left hash, around the 25, when the ball leaves Rittgers' strong right arm. Free safety Chris Raftery is close on his heels. Linebacker Dante Balestracci is tearing straight toward his own goal line -- and Hall -- in a race with the tight spiral. Corner Rick Williamson is sprinting in from the right.

As Hall reaches the 6-yard line, he leaves his feet, his long left arm reaching straight up, a black sweat band just below his elbow. Like a dance partner, Raftery goes up with him, pinning Hall's stronger hand to his side.

Hall's gray-gloved left hand palms the ball and he pulls it into his body as he bounces. Sterling's call continues, the excitement in his voice rising to a fevered pitch: 

"... and he made a catch. That's as good a catch as you'll see. Andrew Hall. Oh, what a catch!"

Adams and color commentator Wayne Young send the same word back to radio listeners in the Upper Valley.

"Did he catch it?" Adams shouts. "What a catch at the 2-yard line! Andrew Hall gives Dartmouth a first-and-goal. ... My goodness, what a catch! Wow!"

Adds Young: "As long as they play football at Dartmouth, that's going to be one of the greatest catches you'll ever see. I wish our audience could have seen it."

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Slattery has seen it, through the lens of her camera.

"My concern was I might have sighted on it, but did I have it in focus?" she says. "I could see the ball on Hall's fingertips, and I said, 'Ooh, I think I have it.'"

Down in New Jersey, the Ivy League's Hoover can't believe what he has just seen until YES replays the catch two times. Hoover's mind is already racing as Hall rolls onto his feet and Cramer rushes over, signaling the touchdown that will come on the next play.

Slattery thinks of checking her camera to see if the picture she wants is preserved on its one-gigabyte compact flash card, but thinks better of it.

"Part of it is I'm new to digital photography, and I'm afraid I'm going to push the wrong button," she admits.

Hoover, who knows he will have to try to describe the indescribable on the Ivy League's Web page, has no idea that Slattery shot the picture. But he does have an idea.

"Immediately when I saw it, I would say within 20 minutes, I e-mailed the people at YES saying, 'This catch is unbelievable. If you can turn it into an MPEG (Internet movie file), we'll gladly put it online, " he says. "I certainly can't do that thing justice by writing about it."

One play after Hall's grab, Rittgers sneaks in for the touchdown that closes the books on a 30-16 Dartmouth win.

***

Slattery finally gets a peak at her picture a day later. It is better than she could have imagined.

On Sunday, Hall sees the still photo and catch for the first time on the coaching study tape. It's not a YES Network closeup, but his teammates hoot and holler for more. "Everybody wanted to see it a couple times," he says. "I think people were in kind of disbelief. I know I was."

On Monday, it is Hoover's turn to be in disbelief when he sees the picture Slattery e-mailed his way. He quickly puts it on the Ivy League website with the words "The Catch 2003" superimposed across the bottom.

By Wednesday, the YES techies have e-mailed a 48-second video clip to Hoover, who throws that up on the Ivy website, too.

By Wednesday night, Hall has finally seen the YES clip. He's heard Sterling say, "Boy, that's fabulous. That is really fabulous. Well, if Harvard loses today, that will be the catch of the year."

The decathlete from Greene, Maine - who asked Lyons if he might walk on to the football team during his track recruiting visit - has watched the replays and heard his name called. He's getting ready to e-mail a link to his parents so they can see the catch he tried to explain in an excited phone call home.

And still, Hall wonders aloud if it ever really happened.

"It's hard to believe they are talking about me," he said. "Hearing someone say it's a great catch and should be top 10, that's amazing. It's a dream."

No, it's a third-and-8 dream come true.

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For what it's worth, here's The Catch, taken by the late Kathy Slattery (Phillips), the legendary Dartmouth sports information director.

And here is where Andrew Hall is today: LINK. 

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EXTRA POINT
For those of you who recall the PAT a few weeks back about "ice out" on Joe's Pond here in Vermont (LINK) the hard water lasted a good deal longer than expected:

More than 17,000 tickets were sold at $1 apiece in the ice-out contest. The winning pot this year is $6,974. Find a story on the WCAX TV page HERE.

You Make The Call(s)

Listing starters in college football can be a dicey proposition. Is a starter the player who is actually on the field for the first play on his side of the ball even if that's his only play of the game? Or is the starter the player who instead plays the vast majority of snaps on his side? How do you handle determining the starters on defense if you usually play a 3-4 defense and open with a 4-3? Or if you open with two or three tight ends?

Understanding that knowledgeable people can disagree about who is, and who isn't a starter in a game and on a season, here's a reasoned list of Dartmouth starters from last year. Your mileage may vary.

This list was drawn from the Big Green's official statistics. Starts in 2023 are listed after the player's name and players who have moved on  are in italics. 

–OFFENSE–

QUARTERBACK

Nick Howard 8

Jackson Proctor 2

Dylan Cadwallader 1

TAILBACK

Q Jones 10

WIDE RECEIVER

Paxton Scott 10

Isaac Boston 10

Painter Richards Baker 5

Daniel Haughton 4

Jackson Gerard 1

TIGHT END

Jace Henry 8

Nic Sani 2

CENTER

Thomas Hartnett 5

Nick Marinaro 5

LEFT GUARD

Nick Schwitzgebel 10

LEFT TACKLE

Delby Lemieux 7

Kyle Brown 3

RIGHT GUARD

Kyle Brown 7

Tristan Holmbeck 3

RIGHT TACKLE

Konstantin Spörk 10

–DEFENSE–

NOSE GUARD

Josiah Green 10

DEFENSIVE END

Charlie Looes 10

Hank Knez 10

MIKE LINEBACKER

Danny Cronin 8

Micah Green 2

WILL LINEBACKER

Macklin Ayers 10

SAM LINEBACKER

Braden Mullen 5

Teddy Gianaris 4

Micah Green 1

NICKEL

Tyson McCloud 8

Cam Maddox 2

CORNER

Leonard St. Gourdin 10

Jordan Washington 9

Patrick Campbell 1

STRONG SAFETY

Sean Williams 10

FREE SAFETY

Quinten Arello 9

Cam Maddox 1

KICKER

Owen Zalc 10

PUNTER

Davis Golick 10

LONG SNAPPER

Josh Greene 10

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EXTRA POINT
Good thing I got off my back side and got a little exercise hiking early yesterday afternoon because the rest of the day was spent watching the Masters and then the Billy Joel "live" special recorded last month in honor of the 100th show of his soon-to-conclude Madison Square Garden residency.

I find myself wondering this morning, if I had the opportunity to choose to see just one of those two events in person – which would I pick? I've been to the Masters twice (albeit in a working capacity) and I saw Billy Joel in concert shortly after graduating from college, so neither has the edge in that regard. So what would it be?

After thinking it over, I would probably have been at the Garden this year instead of watching Scottie Scheffler win his second green jacket in front of the (faded) azaleas at Augusta National. Not that I could afford either, of course.

Another year, who knows?

And oh by the way, count us among the fortunate who did not have our local station cut away to the news while the Piano Man was performing Piano Man. ;-)