Gearing Up for Day 2 of Spring Football

NEW LINK: Click here for Harvey Yavener's column on Princeton's new line coach having to completely rebuild the Tiger offensive front. ...

Busy day. I'm trying to wrap up a freelance story this morning, then helping coach my son's Little League team (the Green Machine) through a practice and part of a scrimmage before cutting out for Alumni Gym and a writing assignment covering the opening of Dartmouth's fabulous new fitness facility. Then I'll head out the back door of the gym and catch most of spring football practice on Memorial Field. Check back tonight for a report. ...

The U.S. Mail brought an interesting packet a few days back from Jack DeGange, the former Dartmouth sports information director and unofficial athletic department historian. (See The Green Fields of Autumn, and Dartmouth College Hockey: Northern Ice.) The packet wasn't unexpected because Jack and I had spoken Friday about his idea: to select the All-Dartmouth team representing the 50 years of Ivy League play. (This is the anniversary year.) I've been poring over Dartmouth's All-Ivy representatives, record-holders and award winners. It's an honor to be on the selection panel and it's not an honor I'm taking lightly. I'm not sure if the team will be announced prior to its appearance in the press guide this summer, but when I find out I'll let you know. ... Curious about the first name I put down? Sure, it could have been Reggie Williams or Tom Csatari or Zack Walz, but I went Craig Morton '89 at wide receiver. Craig ran like the wind and was just plain magic to watch. Playing before the game really became wide open, he averaged a whopping 24.2 yards per catch as a sophomore and graduated as the college's all-time receiving leader. He was invited to the NFL Combine but elected to put off pro football before playing in NFL Europe. For all the outstanding receivers the Ivies have had in the past 10 years or so, none of them could fly like Craig. ...

Spring ball and summer camp are going to be a virtual casting call for a new quarterback at Yale, according to this lengthy story in the college paper. ... Yale, by the way, might be breaking new ground with an internet broadcast of its spring game. ... Ah, but if it's new ground, it's just new Ivy ground. Holy Cross is doing the same thing.