When it comes to Ivy League athletics the ante was just upped in a big way -- by Columbia of all schools. From a press release announcing the Columbia Campaign for Athletics: Achieving Excellence.
"An unprecedented $100 million initiative, it reflects a deep and shared commitment among the University community. We are committed to building world-class facilities that foster championship performances. We are committed to attracting and retaining outstanding coaches and providing them with the resources they need to be successful. And we are committed to providing an environment that will make Columbia the first choice for the best student-athletes."The AP reports seed money in the amount of $5 million came from New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft. ... The official Columbia release on that gift is here. ... The football field down there will now be named after the Pats' owner. If I've got this right, when Dartmouth players at Columbia next year it will be playing on the Robert. K. Kraft Field in Lawrence A. Wien Stadium at Baker Field. That's a mouthful, but good for Columbia.
Too bad Kraft didn't go to Georgetown. The Hoya program could use some help, as this New York Times story reports. Former Dartmouth assistant Kevin Kelly's team is 0-6 this year with losses to Holy Cross by a 55-0 score and to Cornell by 45-7. ... Dartmouth coach Buddy Teevens would love to schedule a game down there. Ya think?
The NYT story says Georgetown's wonderfully named Multi-Sport Facility, which seats about 3,000, is "scheduled for a much-discussed and delayed upgrade, including a 50 percent expansion of seating." The story reports that Athletic Director Bernard Muir, "predicted that the new, bowl-like stadium would be 'one of the best game-day environments in our league.' ”
Let's see. A 50-percent increase will get the "stadium" to all of 4,500 capacity. I've been to games at Bucknell, Colgate, Fordham, Holy Cross, Lafayette and Lehigh. Georgetown may eventually have a very nice game-day environment, but the only Patriot League stadium that a 4,500-seat facility could possibly outclass is Fordham's.
Missed this the first time. Dartmouth's Tuesday assembly meeting had an unannounced visit by the Dartmoose. To see a picture, click here. Apparently the potential mascot "experienced difficulty seeing and had to be escorted up and down the stairs."
The New York Times has a profile of Yale running back Mike McLeod. According to the story, Penn State had expressed some interest in the Ivy League's leading rusher, who is set to challenge the conference's career rushing record. Fresh off a game against Yale and McLeod, Dartmouth coach Buddy Teevens is quoted:
“He’s a fun guy to watch, but not to play against. He’s got such subtle quickness. You think you have an angle on him, then you don’t. To me, he’s such a complete back. His vision is just extraordinary. He plays at the same pace from start to finish. You don’t see that too often.”Stanford is in Buddy Teevens' rear view mirror and he is in Stanford's. But some of his recruits are still out there and one who had a memorable game last week against USC, Mark Bradford, is an incredible story of perseverance and survival. Read the story here.
A final note ... Last week at Yale the temperature challenged 85 degrees in the Bowl. When I went out to get the newspaper this morning I almost slipped on a patch of ice. ... It was 29 degrees! What a difference a week can make -- at least Dartmouth hopes so.
Look for the Holy Cross-Dartmouth game story relatively early tonight on Green Alert Premium. The sidebar will come later in the night.
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