Big OL Headed To Hanover

One who is coming, who who might be coming and one who got away lead today's blog.

Coming to Dartmouth is 6-foot-4, 300-pound offensive lineman John Hanna of San Diego's Torrey Pines High School. From a story in the North County Times:

Offensive lineman John Hanna of Torrey Pines High has verbally committed to play football next season at Dartmouth, according to Falcons head coach Scott Ashby.

The 6-foot-4, 300-pounder, who played left tackle for the Falcons this season, cancelled a recruiting trip to Brown after his visit to Dartmouth.

Hanna is expected to start out playing either guard or center.

Hanna was an All-Avocado League honorable mention pick this year.

To see video of Hanna in action, check out this link from when he was inducted into something called "Shack's Pig Pen," a TV commentator's collection of the best interior linemen in San Diego County.

The one who might be coming is Bo Snelson, a 5-9, 180 running back from Houston-area Pasadena Memorial, who ran for about 2,000 yards and 24 touchdowns this fall while also passing for 714 yards while being pressed into service as a quarterback.

Snelson is reported to have been in Hanover for a Jan. 16 visit. His coach, who happens to be his father John, said in a Nov. 3 story:

“He really likes the Naval Academy and Dartmouth. Someone is going to get a heck of a football player. He’s a prideful guy and wants to go somewhere that wants him.”

That story went on to say: "The entire Ivy League has offered him, while Air Force, Army, Houston and Rice are also sincerely recruiting him."

From a recent Scout.com posting:

I spoke with the Snelson's recently (Bo and dad John) and Bo has visited Colombia and Dartmouth recently. He does still hold the offer from Navy, and will also visit Texas Tech this coming weekend and Northwester State over in Louisiana the following weekend.

Bo says Tech has been talking a lot to him recently but are talking more about a preferred walk-on than a free ride.

He will likely wait just about to the end to sign.

Snelson was chosen to the All-Greater Houston football first team offense and named the District 22-5A MVP. He ran for 2,134 yards and 31 touchdowns as a junior when he was one of 50 national finalists for the Old Spice Red Zone Player of the Year. (link) ... This scout.com story says he runs a 4.5 40, benches 300 ounds, squats 460 and has a 34-inch vertical. ... He run track and also pole vaults in the spring.

The one who got away is 6-4, 233 tight end Cameron Moss, another San Diegan who is headed to Colorado State. The Denver Post reports that he, "picked the Rams from a top three that included Dartmouth and Cal Poly."

Today's Boston Globe has a lengthy story about new Yale football coach Tom Williams. (In newspaperese, I'm going to "bury the lede," on this story, so stick with me.) The Globe writes that:

... (I)f the school's tradition is any guide, Williams's first head coaching job will be his last. Since 1952, there have been 11 US presidents, six popes, and 17 Red Sox managers (not counting multiple interims) but only four Yale football coaches. "The decision to come to Yale is not a four-year decision," says athletic director Tom Beckett. "It's a lifetime decision."

Green Alert Take: Only time will tell. Then again, I think times are changing, or have changed. I can remember an athletic director who said the coach he wanted is one who has goals and aspirations beyond the Ivy League, because that's the coach who will be most driven. The guess here is that if Williams has success at Yale, there will be people beating down his door that are very hard to say no to.

Also from the story:

The Bulldogs have won 23 of their last 30 games, including a 9-1 record and an Ivy crown. Last season, they shut out Princeton for the first time in more than 70 years and handed cochampion Brown its only league loss. Yet that didn't keep Old Blues, disgruntled by seven losses in eight years to archrival Harvard, from calling for Siedlecki's scalp. Winning nine games matters little if you lose The Game. "It's our bowl game," says Harvard coach Tim Murphy, who's won 10 of 15. "End of sentence."

Green Alert Take: Williams has gone from the Big Game to The Game. He's good with words. It will be interesting to hear him finesse the differences in the two ;-)

And buried within the Globe piece this mention of Dartmouth coach Buddy Teevens: "Teevens, who hired Williams when he was at Stanford, wouldn't comment on him for this story."

Green Alert Take: Hmmm.

Off the gridiron, terrific news for the Dartmouth men's basketball team, which rode 30 points from forward Alex Barnett to a 75-66 win over Harvard and coach Tommy Amaker last night in Cambridge. (For a story I freelanced on Barnett, who might just be the best player in the Ivy League, click here.)

And finally, we are off to UNH shortly for another indoor track meet. That certain Hanover High junior will be running the 3,000 on the school's renovated track. She's hoping for a PR with two weeks to go until states.