Mini-Me From Dartmouth

Matt Burke '98, the former Dartmouth defensive back who had been on the Tennessee Titans staff, gets the following mention in a story about the new coaching staff of the Detroit Lions:

Don't expect to see the same with (Jim) Schwartz and the linebackers—he trusts and respects (Gunther) Cunningham and linebackers coach, Matt Burke. Burke, a graduate of Dartmouth, is considered the mini-me to Schwartz' Dr. Evil—a brilliant stats junkie.

Dartmouth grad Mike Slive, the commissioner of the SEC since 2002, is the subject of a story in the Utica Observer-Dispatch.

Dartmouth gets a mention in a story about a high school wide receiver in Oklahoma. Junior Roman Wilson of Lincoln Christian School in Tulsa led the state with 93 catches for 1,531 yards and two touchdowns. Asked about how recruiting is going, he told the Tulsa World:

Great — TU, SMU, Arkansas State, Harvard, Dartmouth and Brown are showing interest.

The 2009 Sporting News College Football Annual is out with a top-25 that features two Dartmouth opponents. New Hampshire comes in at No. 8 while Colgate is at No. 22. (Elon, in a fast rebuilding project under former Dartmouth assistant Pete Lembo, is at No. 9.)

Green Alert Take: Preseason polls are fun to look at and discuss, but to give them much weight is silly. To a great extent they are based on reputation. Given that both UNH and Colgate have to almost completely rebuild their offensive lines, it's surprising they are ranked as high as they are. It's equally interesting that Holy Cross, which returns four of five starters on the O-line, record-setting quarterback Dominic Randolph and nine defensive starters, is absent from the poll.

Dartmouth graduate Chad Gaudet's run as a graduate student with the Virginia lacrosse team came to a close Saturday as the top-ranked Cavaliers were ousted by upstart Cornell in the NCAA semifinals, 15-6. Gaudet was the subject of this Q&A on the Virginia website. He finishes his lone year at Virginia holding the school record for most faceoffs taken in one season.

And finally, that certain Hanover High School junior is in Burlington, Vt., this morning running a 6-mile leg in the Vermont City Marathon and Relay. She was pretty excited when yesterday's mail brought a letter from the head track coach of a Division I college she likes inviting her for an overnight visit next fall.