Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Quakertown QB Concern

Given the challenge sometimes finding material for you to read with your morning coffee, I like to squirrel away good nuggets when I stumble across them and hold 'em for the next day. But sometimes it's hard to sit on something, and that's the case right now.

Phillysportsdaily.com writes that Penn starting quarterback Keiffer Garton's status for the early season is in doubt because of the ACL injury he suffered in the spring. He's practicing, and these things have a way of clearing up by the Ivy League season, but given that Dartmouth is the Quakers' first game it's something folks in Hanover might find interesting. From the story:
Good news for the Penn football team and Garton is that he’s fully cleared and ready to go. But there’s no assurance that he’ll be ready to go for the Quakers’ season opener Sept. 18 vs. Lafayette, providing a major question mark for the defending Ivy League champions.
The story says sophomore Billy Ragone, who broke his collarbone against Dartmouth last year, would be the likely starter if Garton isn't ready.
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In case you missed it, the incumbent Bucknell starting quarterback has left the Patriot League school. Given the switch to a pro style offense it's uncertain what the option QB's role in the attack might have been. That's QB questions already for two of the Big Green's first three opponents.
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The Boston Globe writes that Harvard may have Dartmouth (and Columbia) to thank for All-America safety Colin Zych.
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Forgot to mention this morning that I had a bear scoot across the road in front of my car on the drive home from practice last night. It was about three miles from campus ;-)

Tuesday Potpourri

The official Dartmouth website has a quick video interview with coach Buddy Teevens filmed between yesterday's double sessions. Access the report here.
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The Boston Globe has a short look at the Ivy League race based on the finish predicted in the media day poll. Of Dartmouth it offers this:
With 19 returning starters, including 10 on defense, Buddy Teevens knows his team has the potential to far exceed its low preseason pick. The Big Green have plenty to prove.
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The Daily Pennsylvanian blog The Buzz has a comment from Penn coach Al Bagnoli about being picked a close second in the Ivy League race by the conference media. Said the dean of Ivy League coaches:
It’s good. Obviously that’s a good thing. The Harvard thing I think will serve as good motivation when the time comes. We take it as a little bit of a slight, and Harvard had nothing to do with it… But when you’re the defending champ in and you beat them at their place, you’ve got 15 starters back, which is the most, and you’re still picked second, obviously there’s something wrong here. We’ll use it.
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Week 2 opponent Sacred Heart opens Friday evening against Marist but there still has been nothing on the school website even about practice having started. Nor has much has been written anywhere about the Pioneers, although there is a Q&A with record-setting quarterback Dale Fink in the Stamford Advocate. The QB who has had two shoulder surgeries tells the paper he's "100 percent."

In addition to Sacred Heart, two other Dartmouth opponents open this weekend. Holy Cross will play host to Howard at 1 p.m. Saturday and Bucknell will be in action at Duquesne at 6 that evening.

If you are curious what the Big Green is missing, New Hampshire will entertain Central Connecticut at noon Saturday and Colgate will be home for Monmouth the same day at 6 p.m.

Green Alert Premium will kick off the weekly feature Fearful Forecast on Friday with a look at the Sacred Heart and Bucknell games and predictions on how the two opponents will fare in their openers.
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Dartmouth has a single practice late this afternoon. Check out BGA tonight for a full recap. Last night's feature was built around precautions Big Green coach Buddy Teevens has been taking to reduce the chances of problems with the heat during practice. From the story:
When Teevens was an assistant coach at Florida days like Monday were the norm. He has brought some of the Gator approach to dealing with extreme heat to Hanover.

“I talked to (players and coaches) specifically about that,” he said. “One thing, (at Florida) we knew how to practice in this. You can’t scream and yell and jump around and all that. You are burning up stuff that you don’t have enough of in your tank.

“At Florida guys would lock in. They would have their helmets off and take a knee and it was not a problem. When they came back out they were ready to play. It is a learned process.”

Monday, August 30, 2010

Fourth-Place Prediction

No one who covers the Ivy League for a national outlet knows more about the conference than Craig Haley, who covered Princeton for many years for a Trenton newspaper while also contributing Ivy League conference previews to several magazines.

So when Craig predicts a fourth-place finish for Dartmouth in this year's Ivy League race it means something. Find The Sports Network's prediction – the highest so far this year – here.

The Sports Network prediction:
1. Penn
2. Harvard
3. Brown
4. Dartmouth
5. Yale
6. Princeton
7. Columbia
8. Cornell
Interestingly, the prediction for player of the year in the conference is a Harvard quarterback who may be fighting just to keep his job:

  • Offensive Player of the Year: Collier Winters, QB, Harvard
  • Defensive Player of the Year: Collin Zych, FS, Harvard
There's a generally well-done look at Dartmouth that ends this way:
This will be at least the Big Green's best season since going 5-5 overall and 4-3 in the league in 2003.

Passing Fancy

From left, quarterbacks Cole Marcoux, Andy Gay, Conner Kempe and Dan Rooney worked on their setup during Sunday's first full-pads practice at Blackman Fields. (click photos to enlarge)
Sam McCorkle gives pointers on protecting the punter to Justin Foley (88) and Elliot Kastner (93).

The punt protection team puts the pointers to work. Practice resumes with the first double-sessions of the preseason. Full reports will be posted on Green Alert Premium with the first going up well before the second practice begins.

Doubles are slated for today, Wednesday and Friday with single sessions Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, when a scrimmage is tentatively set for 2 p.m. (Note the word tentatively ;-) The team will have its first "off" day of the camp on Sunday after 14 practices.



Inside Higher Ed is not a normal visiting place for the blog but a new story that looks at financial aid packages and discrepancies in the Ivy League carries a mention of Dartmouth football. From the story:
Last year, (Bob Ceplikas, Dartmouth's) acting athletics director sent a letter to football supporters (a group generally not thrilled with the team's recent performance) outlining various ways the college was trying to be more competitive. The letter stated that "in any instance where a recruit receives a more favorable projection from an Ivy competitor, our financial aid colleagues have responded swiftly and competitively to eliminate the differential."

(Robin) Harris, the Ivy League executive director, said she was familiar with the letter. Asked whether Dartmouth had faced scrutiny over publicly stating that football players' aid packages were always being adjusted to match those offered by other Ivies, Harris said that Dartmouth officials had assured the league that football players weren't getting special treatment and that the college was treating all accepted applicants the same. She said Dartmouth's policy was actually "very similar to what Cornell is doing now," even if the public knowledge of it may relate to a letter about football recruits.
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The local daily has a story today about Muhammed Abdul-Shakoor, the Dartmouth corner who did not play last year but has returned to the team this fall as a wide receiver. An accomplished sprinter, Shakoor is a Big Green track captain. Find his junior year football bio here and his track bio here. He adds speed to the receiving corps with PRs of 6.46 at 55 meters and 10.88 in the 100 meters.

Shakoor's brother Ahmed started 10 games on the corner as a sophomore at Marshall last fall. Find his bio here.
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The CHaD (Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth-Hitchcock) Half Marathon raised more than $430,000 and yesterday indeed reclaimed its Guinness World Record for the most people dressed as superheroes in one place. (link) Among the 1,500 were That Certain Hanover Grad, who ran two legs of a relay, and her mom, who didn't run but donned a cape.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Times Chimes in on the Ivy Race

The Sunday New York Times has a brief look at the Ivy League race under the headline ...
Harvard Is Favored; Penn Likes Its Odds
The story includes this line, which my grad school professors would have circled in red:
Columbia, which won three league games last year, and Dartmouth, which won two, are hoping to improve.
No kidding. They hoping to improve, huh?
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Peter Gammons has a story on MLB.com about Oakland A's pitcher Trevor Cahill, a star in the making. Or maybe a star already. From the story:
If it hadn't happened the way it did, Trevor Cahill would have graduated from Dartmouth College this June and would now be out in Tri-City, State College or Lowell, getting ready for the Instructional League.
Eye-popping stats from the story:
So here we are in the final weekend of August, and the 22-year-old Cahill is 14-5 with a 2.43 ERA that is the second-best in the American League, behind Red Sox youngster Clay Buchholz. Cahill had a run of 20 consecutive starts in which he allowed six or fewer hits, a feat matched only by Nolan Ryan over the past 30 years.
The final line:
If the A's can find a kid to turn down a Dartmouth education and four years later be in the Cy Young discussion, they may be able to do most anything.

Schweiger Featured in Boston Globe

The Boston Globe has a story about Dartmouth's Nick Schwieger, the Ivy League's leading rusher last fall as a sophomore. Coach Buddy Teevens tells the paper how his standout back has changed:
“If there was a brick wall in front of him, he was going to try and run through it. Now he’s matured. He is still physical. An arm tackle or a bump isn’t going to disrupt him. But now he can dip or cut and make someone miss as well.’’
What's interesting is the paper says Schweiger was named to "the preseason All-Ivy first team," without mentioning whose preseason All-Ivy first team. It's a well-deserved honor but the Ivy League doesn't name one ;-)
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The first Sagarin Ratings are in and once again Dartmouth isn't getting much respect. Keeping in mind Sagarin ranks all Division I teams together (FBS and FCS) here's how the Ivy League looks:
130. Harvard
136. Penn
159. Yale
160. Brown
188. Princeton
200. Columbia
202. Cornell
212. Dartmouth
Dartmouth's non-league opponents:
148. Holy Cross
214. Bucknell
231. Sacred Heart
Green Alert Take: If Sagarin has it right that Bucknell game should be a doozy.

The Big Green's recent past and future opponents:
88. UNH
154. Colgate
227. Butler
236. Georgetown
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The New Haven Register's Portal 31 blog has a look at the Bulldogs' first intrasquad scrimmage. From the story:
Just call it retribution after the offense not only took it to the defense during Yale's spring game, but also dominated a red-zone drill during Thursday's practice.

At Saturday's scrimmage at Clint Frank Field, the defense clearly had the upper hand.
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Holy Cross coach Tom Gilmore has annointed senior Ryan Taggart the successor to Dominic Randolph as the Crusaders' starting quarterback after a spirited, three-way battle according to the Worcester Telegram.

While the Cross has been best known for its offense in recent years, Gilmore told the Telegram:
“For the first time we have no weaknesses in the depth chart on the defensive side. The expectations on defense have never been higher.”
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That Certain Hanover High Grad is running the first leg in the CHaD Half Marathon & Relay today as the first part of her long run of the weekend. The race benefits the Children's Hospital at Dartmouth and it should be quite a site. From the race web page:
BE A SUPERHERO - Help break a Guinness World Record!
In 2009, 1,016 of you helped CHaD set a Guinness World Record for the most superheroes gathered in one place (not Gotham). Our record was recently surpassed by 1,245 caped crusaders gathered at Federation Square in Melbourne, Australia. In the spirit of all those we honor on this great day, come dressed as your favorite superhero and HELP RECLAIM OUR RECORD.
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We had the awards picnic for our 16-0 Hanover Green Machine Little League baseball team last night and I found myself thinking about what it is like for a college coach graduating a class of very special student-athletes. We said goodbye to six players who were with us for three years and I'm not ashamed to say it was difficult. The kids listened and learned and wonderfully represented themselves, their families and a great game. Not only did they win three championships this spring, but they also won their league sportsmanship trophy, which made us proudest of all.
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Dartmouth will have its first full-pad practice this afternoon and it will include some live scrimmage action. Check Green Alert Premium tonight for full coverage.

Saturday, August 28, 2010

On Time

Have you noticed that Dartmouth's 1:30 kickoff for home games is just about the latest (regular) start for any of the Big Green opponents? Dartmouth scheduled home games for a 12:30 kickoff until last year.

Here are the starting times for most Saturday afternoon games:
Brown – 12:30
Columbia – 12:30
Cornell – 12:30
Harvard – noon
Penn various, with two at 1:30
Princeton – 1
Yale – noon.

Bucknell – 1
Holy Cross – 1
Sacred Heart – 1

Colgate – 1
New Hampshire – noon
Green Alert Take – Word was the decision to move the games later in the day was made to give students who sleep in on Saturday mornings the chance to get over to the stadium. It didn't work. Without canvassing the players, the hunch here is they choose to see gametime moved back up next year. The waiting is hard.
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A quick spin around the Ivy League before heading out to Saturday's practice on Memorial Field ...

There's a season preview posted on the Brown site. From the story:
While the Bears' offense graduated two of the finest wide receivers in Ivy football history in Buddy Farnham and Bobby Sewall, along with three All-Ivy linemen, (coach Phil) Estes returns first team All-Ivy quarterback Kyle Newhall-Caballero ...
Columbia has a Q&A with the Lion captains. Alex Gross says:
As a team I think we are leaps and bounds ahead of where we have been in the past at this point. That is definitely a testament to the work everyone put in this off-season - we were together in the weight room and in the gym.
Harvard has a 47-second video look at practice No. 8 that shows some excitement.

Penn's quarterback coach looks at the Quaker QB situation in a video accompanied by a very thorough synopsis of the position. Penn already has lost one quarterback for the season – but not one of the frontline pair.

Princeton coach Bob Surace talks about the start of practice in another video.
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Week One opponent Bucknell staged a mock game. There's a story and video.
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Yalies and visitors to New Haven will be glad to know that Mory's has reopened. There's a Yale Daily News story. Not gonna tell you what Mory's is. If you know, you are smiling. If you don't know, you don't care ;-)

Friday, August 27, 2010

Poll Position

Last week's poll question:

How do you feel about Dartmouth once again playing Harvard in a preseason "game?" (a scrimmage against an FCS team outside of the Ivy is unworkable.)


A whopping 61 percent liked playing Harvard. The next choice was playing a DIII school (22 percent) followed by playing a different Ivy (9 percent). Six percent preferred no outside scrimmage.

Since I've been on the scene Dartmouth has scrimmaged Columbia, Brown and Plymouth State. Selfishly, I like the Harvard preseason action because it is played as a game instead of a scrimmage with different "situations."

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Wednesday's BGA blog had a note about former linebacker Matt Royer '93 and his wife teaming up on a children's book called Nightbear & Lambie. Today we go a little farther afield.

Carl Romero '90 – AKA Cha-Cha – was a placekicker for the Big Green. His wife is Cathy Carter-Romero. And her brother-in-law (are you following all this?) is Tom Earle, a former Dartmouth hockey player. Well, Tom has written a young adult novel called The Hat Trick. Find information about it on Amazon.ca.
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The Sports Network has a look at the Patriot League up. TSN has capsules on each team and predicts the race will go this way (Dartmouth opponents in italics):
1. Colgate
2. Lehigh
3. Holy Cross
4. Lafayette
5. Bucknell
6. Georgetown
7. Fordham (ineligible)
TSN picks Holy Cross safety Anthony DiMichele as the league's defensive player of the year.
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Speaking of Holy Cross, the Boston Globe has a story about 6-foot-3, 245-pound Crusader defensive end Mude Ohimor, the preseason PL Defensive Player of the Year as named by the conference coaches. (The photo accompanying the story is from the Dartmouth game.)
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Back to The Sports Network, columnist Craig Haley writes about the return of Princeton tailback Jordan Culbreath and Grambling defensive lineman Christian Anthony who is now facing his own frightening illness.
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We'll be at the Manchester Fisher Cats (Class AA ) minor league baseball game tonight where the Green Machine Little League team I helped coach is being honored after a 16-0 championship season. Fun stuff for the kids, who will walk out to their positions for the National Anthem with the players. Our fireballing reliever will throw out the ceremonial first pitch. Should be fun.
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I wasn't sure I would be able to make it to Manchester tonight before the Dartmouth practice schedule came out. Fortunately, the team will be on Memorial Field this morning, so I'll be zipping off to practice No. 3 shortly. Check BGA Premium later this afternoon for a look at how it went. And while you are at the main site, do look back over the opponent previews if you haven't already. A ton of work went into them and there's some interesting thoughts about the teams standing between Dartmouth and its goals.

Thursday, August 26, 2010

More From Day One

Dartmouth coach Buddy Teevens addresses the team at the end of the first split-squad practice.
The hitting won't start for a few days, but the action started yesterday.
Freshman quarterback Andy Gay delivers a pass.The award for Brothers With the Most Interesting Hairstyles was won going away by Zach Wodka (50) and a newly colorful Alex Wodka (71). The trophy has now been retired.

In case you aren't a subscriber to the BGA Premium site, perhaps the most interesting news reported yesterday is that Greg Patton, who set the school single-game rushing record of 243 yards last fall as a freshman quarterback in his first-ever varsity appearance, has been switched to running back. ... Returning to action after a year away from the game is senior linebacker Marlon Alebiosu. ... Also returning this fall will be Muhammed Abdul-Shakoor, a cornerback for three years who missed last season. One of the best sprinters in Dartmouth history, he is being projected this year as a wide receiver. ... Receiver Niles Murphy, meanwhile, was getting some work at corner as well as catching passes.
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Helping out as sort of a strength coach/trainer hybrid for the Big Green is former Alabama linebacker Darren Mustin. Find his Crimson Tide bio here and a feature story from the Tuscaloosa News about his journey from walk-on to starter here.
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Do check out the TigerBlog column headlined Miracles, One Yard At A Time on the return of Princeton running back Jordan Culbreath. The Ivy League's top rusher as a junior when he torched Dartmouth for 276 yards, Culbreath was fighting for his life last fall after being diagnosed with aplastic anemia. While the Culbreath's return may make Dartmouth's final game of the year that much more of a challenge, Dartmouth coach Buddy Teevens was beaming after practice yesterday that Culbreath has beaten the odds.
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Two Ivy Leaguers and two other players Dartmouth will face this fall have been named to the College Sporting News preseason All-America team.

Named to the second team was Holy Cross defensive lineman Mude Ohimor. Chosen to the third team were Penn center Joe D'Orazio, Princeton linebacker Steven Cody and Holy Cross receiver Bill Edgar.
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Missing from the Bucknell roster page is quarterback CJ Hopson, the leading Bison rusher last year. While the option-oriented Hopson might not returned as starter this fall with the switch to a pro-style attack, the loss is still a blow. Hopson has transferred to Fairmount State according to a line in a college notes column story in the Daily Item.
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Check Green Alert Premium later today for a complete look at Day 2 of the Dartmouth preseason. Now it's off to practice.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Conditioning Test

"Work so hard that whether you win or not you deserve to win."

Harry Sheehy, new Dartmouth Director of Athletics
Addressing the team after the conditioning test

On a cool, wet Wednesday the Dartmouth players who had not yet done their conditioning test were put through their paces. Lots of new faces including a few who distinguished themselves – in a good way ;-). A full story naming names tonight when Big Green Alert Premium begins blanket coverage of Dartmouth preseason football practice.

The official Dartmouth football site has a 3-minute video interview with coach Buddy Teevens looked ahead to camp now posted. Find it here.

GREAT News

Best news of the preseason by far and it's not from Hanover.

Senior Jordan Culbreath, whose well-documented diagnosis of aplastic anemia cost him the majority of the 2009 season, has been medically cleared to return to the Princeton football team for the 2010 season. He will join his teammates this afternoon for the first practice of the preseason. (link)

Are You Ready For Some Football?

Or at least practice?

Condition testing will take place this morning for those who haven't yet been put through their paces. The first practice is slated for this afternoon. Unfortunately, the forecast suggests we might have rain.

Look for a little something here on the blog during the day and an in depth story on the start of practice tonight on Green Alert Premium.
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Speaking of which, the 10 opponent previews wrapped up on BGA yesterday with a look at a Sacred Heart team that may be a bit of a surprise this fall. Check out the Connecticut Post for a story on the Pioneers' 215-pound running back who had a pretty good game against an SEC opponent as a freshman before transferring to Sacred Heart last year.
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The first FCS Coaches Poll is out. Ranked teams of some interest to Dartmouth fans:
9. UNH
22. Colgate
T-25 Holy Cross
26. Penn
47. Harvard
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Former linebacker Matt Royer '93 has teamed up with wife Kerry on children's book called Nightbear and Lambie. Matt, now an attorney, studied biology and painting at Dartmouth and did the illustrations for the book written by his wife. Check out the Nightbear and Lambie website.
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The Philadelphia Sports Daily writes about Penn football having to deal with the deaths of Dan Staffieri – the legendary Coach Lake – and defensive end Owen Thomas.
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I got a sneak peek at the yet-to-be unveiled new Dartmouth athletics website yesterday and you'll like what you see. Barring hiccups, look for it toward the second half of next month.
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His only pass went for a one-yard touchdown and his long run is just three yards (also for a touchdown). New Hampshire's Ricky Santos had better quarters than that against Dartmouth but hey, he's hanging in there with the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL. Find his stat page here.
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That Certain Hanover High Grad is filling out the Dartmouth freshman athlete information questionnaire this morning and the irony is rich. As the beat writer covering Dartmouth sports for a long time, I probably made more use of those questionnaires than anyone. In fact, I know I did.

Anyway, I used to complain (nicely, I hope ;-) about the forms not having enough room for all the honors and accomplishments of the incoming student-athletes. After tiring of my (nice, I hope ;-) complaints, the late SID Kathy Slattery Phillips called me in one day and suggested, in her own inimitable style, that if I didn't like the *&%+ form, why don't I redesign it? So I did.

Little did it occur to me that a few years later someone in my own home would be filling one out. I have a tear in my eye right now because I know Kathy would be so very proud of her little friend.
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Speaking of which, thanks to Dartmouth women's basketball coach Chris Wielgus for a "shoutout," to that Certain Hanover High Grad.
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By the way, my favorite part of the questionnaire is the request for "Something that might surprise people about me (I'm a twin, I've been on a game show, I bicycled across the country, etc.)"

Although it's the last line of the questionnaire, it's one of the first things I read and it can be gold for a writer.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Let the Games Begin (Or Practices)

At the recent Fieldstock celebration on campus, a team of Dartmouth football players took part in the chariot races. From left to right, Michael Reilly, Brendan Murray, Alex Shulman and Shawn Abuhoff. The lucky passenger: Chad Hollis. Gotta love the helmets. (click photo to enlarge)

The wait is almost over. For Dartmouth football players who have yet to take the conditioning test, it will take place tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. on Memorial Field. The first practice is slated for the stadium at 2 p.m.

In a new wrinkle, Dartmouth will split the squad and have "Green" and "White" practices for the first four days. Half of the team will be on Memorial Field tomorrow at 2 and the other half at 3:25.

The schedule for the rest of this week, keeping in mind that changes aren't just possible, they are expected:

Thursday
8:30 a.m. White practice (Memorial Field)
9:55 a.m. Green practice (Memorial Field)

Friday
8:30 a.m. Green practice (Memorial Field)
9:55 a.m. White practice (Memorial Field)

Saturday
8:30 a.m. White practice (Memorial Field)
9:55 a.m. Green practice (Memorial Field)

Sunday
2:45 p.m. Full team practice (Blackman Fields)

Monday (Double sessions begin)
8:15 a.m. First practice (Memorial Field)
3:45 p.m. Second practice (Blackman Fields)

A reminder: I'll be at every practice and have a full story after each practice on Green Alert Premium, including two stories on days of double sessions. The goal is to have each story posted on the site within three hours of the end of practice.
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I wandered through Floren Varsity House and up to the football offices yesterday and there were a lot of big, maybe slightly nervous and confused young men in the lobby of the building. Yesterday was early check-in for players from "away." Players from less-distant locales will be arriving today.
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Former Dartmouth safety Matt Burke is in his second year as linebackers coach for the Detroit Lions. His 440-foot bungee jump in New Zealand got his players' attention according to a story in the Detroit Free Press.
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Touching Associated Press story about two-sport Villanova star Matt Szczur (Most Outstanding Player in the FCS National Championship game) who was a 1-in-80,000 match for bone marrow. All he knows at this point is that his marrow was donated to a girl between the age of 1 and 2 years old and that he'd do it again.
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The final tally is in and I can't say I disagree with the outcome. While a few Dartmouth fans complain each year that other schools kick off practice as much as a week or more earlier than the Big Green, practicing without classes is regarded as being of more benefit. In some regards, it's an NFL camp.

Monday, August 23, 2010

Getting Ready


With a good number of players back on campus and the first on-field practice set for Wednesday, time for some school spirit ;-)

Dartmouth Night & Homecoming this year will be Oct. 29-30 when Harvard comes to town. Check out the website here.


After a decade of playing the most difficult non-conference schedule in the Ivy League, Dartmouth has replaced Colgate with Bucknell and New Hampshire with Sacred Heart this fall. Spun out of the opponent previews on Green Alert Premium here are the ...

Non-league records for Ivy League teams since 2005:
Cornell 10-5
Harvard 10-5
Yale 9-6
Princeton 8-7
Brown 7-8
Columbia 7-8
Penn 7-8
Dartmouth 1-14
Dartmouth's lone win was a 26-21 victory over Colgate on Sept. 17, 2005.
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Week One opponent Bucknell held its second scrimmage and named captains. Find a story and a video report here.
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Holy Cross held its media day and head coach Tim Gilmore is interviewed in this video. Hard to believe the former Dartmouth defensive coordinator is in his seventh year with the Crusaders.
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The Green Alert Premium previews continue today with Holy Cross and finish up tomorrow with a look at first-time opponent Sacred Heart.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Point Taken

Quick. Against which Ivy League team has Dartmouth had its highest scoring average over the past five years? And which Ivy League team has scored the most against the Big Green during the same span?

Numbers drawn from the Green Alert Premium opponent previews (that resume Monday with a look at Holy Cross):

Average Dartmouth Points, 2005-09
vs. Cornell 25.6
vs. Columbia 23.0
vs. Brown 18.2
vs. Penn 14.8
vs. Harvard 12.6
vs. Princeton 10.4
vs. Yale 7.6
Average Dartmouth Points Against, 2005-09
Harvard 35.0
Yale 32.2
Brown 30.4
Cornell 26.8
Princeton 25.0
Penn 21.8
Columbia 15.4
Record vs. Opponents, 2005-09
vs. Columbia 4-1
vs. Cornell 2-3
vs. Brown 1-4
vs. Penn 1-4
vs. Harvard 0-5
vs. Princeton 0-5
vs. Yale 0-5
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The Charlotte Observer has a wonderful love story about a father and son. The son: Russell Wilson, starting quarterback at North Carolina State and minor league farmhand in the Colorado Rockies organization. The father? Harrison Wilson III '77, the former Dartmouth receiver and two-sport standout who died at age 55 in June.
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Dartmouth's 14-7 overtime loss at Brown last year was full of drama. Thanks to Brown's B2 Network for $19.95 you can download a copy of the online broadcast of the game. To find the game, click here and then scroll to the the bottom four windows where you ...
Select Sport: Football
Select League: NCAA
Select Division:Ivy
Select Team: Brown
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Harvard joined several other Ivy schools by starting practice Friday. Click here for links to several reports.
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It's no secret that I'm not a big fan of Ivy League bands and their "comedy" shows, but speaking of Harvard, I imagine there could be a few funny lines come out of this. Did you know that Harvard is running a mini-golf course? True story. Find it in the Boston Globe.
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OK, it's another video from that school in State College, Pa., but listen up. Although I suppose this 2 minute video is intended for fans, it's really, really powerful stuff. It poses questions that every football player – every athlete – should be asking. A few of the questions:
Last year, Could You Have Done More?

Could You Have Been Stronger?

Could You Have Worked Harder?
The answer to those questions and several more:
Only You Know
The kicker line of the video:
What Will We Say To Ourselves Next Year?
A great question that should inspire.

Saturday, August 21, 2010

Critical Mass-ey



In this wonderfully done promo for FCS football the narrator says, "But in the FCS it's not always about the outcome," and as he continues, "it's also about how you play the game," you see a slide of three Penn Quakers hoisting the Ivy League championship trophy. Coincidence or did they plan it that way? The Penn players holding the trophy are visible from the 11-14 second mark.
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Well, it was fun while it lasted.

The Massey Rankings are in and Dartmouth is back again to being the seventh-ranked team in the Ivy League:
Massey Ivy Ratings
15. Penn
23. Harvard
46. Brown
59. Yale
72. Columbia
74. Princeton
86. Dartmouth
96. Cornell

Current, recent past and future opponents:
9. New Hampshire
27. Holy Cross
30. Colgate
81. Butler
91. Bucknell
111. Sacred Heart
117. Georgetown
Massey has the Ivy League as the 7th-ranked conference, slotted between No. 6 Patriot League and No. 8 Southland.
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Maybe John Belushi was right ...

Hard as it is to believe, there's still one player left at Stanford who was recruited by Buddy Teevens, now beginning the sixth year of his second stint in Hanover. A San Francisco Chronicle story begins this way:
Teammates call James McGillicuddy "The Old Man" and "Godfather." It's only a matter of time before they start asking him what it was like playing for Pop Warner.
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With the unfortunate demise of the printed media guide, schools are moving much of their football information to the web. Check out the recently debuted Harvard Crimson Football Media Center. The Cornell Football Information Center has been up for a while. Other schools will no doubt be following suit.

Green Alert Take: Hopefully the new Ivy League football website will eventually include a direct link to each school's version of an online media guide.
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Did you know that it was football that brought TJ Rodgers – Dartmouth trusteee and founder/CEO of Cypress Semiconductor – to Dartmouth? The San Jose Mercury news has a story about Rodgers, a nose guard at Dartmouth for one year. For a laugh, be sure to check out No. 4 in the Five Things About TJ Rodgers piece at the bottom.

If the name TJ Rodgers isn't familiar, to read this 2007 Wall Street Journal piece about Rodgers and his return to Dartmouth as a trustee.
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If I'm reading things right, Week Two opponent Sacred Heart is in at least its second week of practice. Sorry, but there's been nothing on the school website and I haven't seen anything in the press since the NEC media day.

Friday, August 20, 2010

Averaging Out

How do the Ivy League football programs stack up over the past five years? They can be judged on championships won, overall record, Ivy League record or a few other ways.

One of the charts that has accompanied the preview series on the Green Alert Premium site includes Ivy League records and finish in the standings the past five years for each team.

Here are the teams starting with the best average finish in the Ivy standings over the last five years. (The numbers in parentheses are their finishes from 2005-2009.) Any surprises?

  1. Harvard 1.8 (2, t-1, 1, 3, t-2)
  2. Brown 2.8 (3, t-1, 3, t-6, 1)
  3. Princeton 3.2 (t-4, 5, t-4, t-1, t-2)
  4. Yale 3.4 (t-6, 4, 2, t-1, t-4)
  5. Penn 3.6 (1, 3, t-4, t-4, 6)
  6. Cornell 5.8 (8, t-6, 7, t-4, t-4)
  7. Dartmouth 6.2 (7, t-6, t-4, 8, t-6)
  8. Columbia 6.4 (t-4, t-6, 8, t-6, 8)
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Dartmouth senior tailback TJ Cameron is the subject of a story in the Greenwich Post. Listed at 5-foot-11, 200 pounds but looking significantly bigger than that, Cameron is a tantalizing talent who suffered a nasty ankle fracture as a high school senior that forced him to shut down early in his freshman season. The ankle and other health concerns slowed him as a sophomore as well. Although he carried just 10 times for 18 yards last fall playing behind Ivy League rushing leader Nick Schwieger, the flashy Cameron opened eyes in the spring game this year when he ran for 44 yards on 11 carries.

Cameron's high school coach, Rich Albonzio, thinks the time has come for his former player to finally shine on the college gridiron. He told the Greenwich paper:
“He’s going to have a phenomenal season. He’s got so much inside of him that wants to come out because all the frustration he’s had. He’s finally healthy and he’s running really well. I heard he’s gotten bigger, stronger and faster than ever. He’s going to let it all out on the field this year.”
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A Yale offensive lineman from California had a pretty darn good excuse – and a good story to share – if he showed up a little late for preseason check-in. Read the San Francisco Chronicle story down.
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The Ivy League sent out an announcement late yesterday on the web redesign mentioned in yesterday's blog. Find the announcement here.
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Former Holy Cross quarterback Dominic Randolph, who tortured Dartmouth for four years, has been re-signed by the New York Giants as The Sports Network reports.
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And finally, Florida high school player James Wilder, Jr. – ranked the nation's No. 1 recruit by MaxPreps – committed yesterday to play for Florida State. The son of the former Tampa Bay Buc star is quoted this way in an NCAA Fanhouse story (italics added):
"They say the best athletes come out of the SEC, but just because I'm in the SEC it's not going to make me a better athlete. Even though it's the ACC, I'm going to 'ball out' regardless no matter where I'm at – even if I'm at the Ivy League."
Gee, I wonder how close that came to happening?

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Dartmouth Picked Third in Ivy

Keeper's Football national FCS rankings:
16. Penn
21. Harvard
57. Dartmouth
76. Brown
78. Yale
94. Columbia
104. Princeton
114. Cornell
Rankings of other current and future opponents:
35. New Hampshire
44. Colgate
65. Holy Cross
84. Sacred Heart
98. Bucknell
79. Butler
112. Georgetown
A total of 124 FCS teams were ranked. The conference preview rankings are here. They have Dartmouth finishing 5-2, 7-3.

The Ivy League was ranked 8th of 16 conferences (including "Independents").

The Keeper's Football index page for the FCS is here.

Green Alert Take: OK what, I'm sure you are wondering, is Keeper's Football? Even after looking over their web pages I have no clue, although frankly, the photo on Keeper's home page doesn't exactly inspire confidence. But like they used to say in WWII, "Smoke 'em if you got 'em." If there's a poll giving Dartmouth some love, I'm guessing you aren't going to be too particular about who is giving it, now are you?
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The Ivy League has debuted its much-awaited new web page. Find the football page here. There's even an Ivy League TV link, although right now there's only a PSA on it.

Green Alert Take: The look is certainly a lot cleaner than the old page. As with any updated site it is always a shakedown cruise at the start so we'll have a better idea how the page works as more information is moved over. One immediate concern: I haven't found a "search" box yet. Perhaps I'm just looking in the wrong place. Maybe it was just me, but even after trading a couple of emails with the Ivy office I never really understood how the search mechanism on the old site worked. I'd find myself actually leaving the Ivy page and using Google search just to find what I was looking for back on the Ivy site.
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Dartmouth could be debuting a reworked site before long. Stay tuned.
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Speaking of new, Cornell will have a new helmet design this fall. You can check it out in this picture from the second day of Big Red practice.
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Brown opens practice Friday, the same as Yale.
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Rutgers coach Greg Schiano did a radio interview in Florida – a recruiting hotbed for the former Miami assistant – in which he called his strength coach the best in America. That strength coach is none other than Jay Butler, who was at Dartmouth from 1996-2000. Butler, who stands about 6-foot-7 and played around 300 pounds or so, was fondly referred to by his many friends in these parts as, "The Big Bopper." Find his Rutgers bio here. Still hard to believe anyone that big could be such a good golfer ;-)
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A 6-4, 290 high school lineman from San Marino, Calif., named Alan Felix attended Dartmouth football camp and has his heart set on playing for the Big Green according to a story in the Pasadena News. ... Check out this story and video about another Southern Californian who is getting steered toward the Ivy League. (Thanks for the link.)
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Week One opponent Bucknell scrimmaged with officials yesterday. Find a video report here.
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New Hampshire's game against UMass at Gillette Stadium is going by the contrived name, The Colonial Clash.

If you are curious what Dartmouth is missing when it plays Sacred Heart on Sept. 25, here's a UNH preview from the school's media day.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Penn and Harvard, Harvard and Penn

No real surprise in the BGA readership poll asking which of the Ivy League teams not named Dartmouth should be favored to win the title this fall. If you've read the Green Alert Premium previews, it's clear why Penn and Harvard are the favorites in virtually all the preseason polls.


The Ivy League preseason kicked off yesterday in Ithaca as Cornell hit the field for the first time.

Every year a few people dash off emails wondering why it is that Cornell is allowed to start practice before Dartmouth, and suggesting it gives the Big Red an advantage.

Put simply, Cornell starts practice ahead of Dartmouth because it starts classes before Dartmouth. Cornell classes begin Aug. 25. Dartmouth doesn't start until Sept. 22.

The bottom line is both schools will hold the same number of practices. They will just be distributed differently.

Dartmouth will hold five double-session practices. Cornell will not hold any because it is prohibited for the first five days by NCAA decree. Then, with the start of classes next week it would be impossible.

The question: Who has the actual advantage? Cornell because it is practicing over a longer period of time? Or Dartmouth, because there are no distractions (read: classes) through the entire preseason and it's virtually all football, all the time?

Vote in the poll over there on the left.

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In case you are wondering, non-league opponents Bucknell started practice on Aug. 7, and Holy Cross about the same time. (No word on Sacred Heart yet.) Yale kicks off Friday and the other Ivies all start about the same time.

Dartmouth's first on-field practice is slated for one week from today and the first of the every-other-day double sessions on Aug. 30. (The NCAA does not allow double sessions on consecutive days.)
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Speaking of Week Two opponent Sacred Heart, the Pioneers game the week before they head up to Dartmouth against St. Francis will be broadcast on Fox College Sports, the Connecticut Sports Network and WATM-ABC 23 in Western Pennsylvania according to this release. Just a guess, but I wouldn't be surprised if a recording of that game finds its way to Hanover ;-)
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Philadelphia Inquirer Daily Magazine has a story about the new Penn fitness center and varsity strength and performance center. The facility arms race heats up yet again.

The Columbia Spectator has a video look at the Columbia sports scene that it reports was done by a "prefrosh."
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How long will it take students to stop saying "Thayer," and refer to the dining hall as the "Class of 1953 Commons?" A while, you can be sure.

I hadn't realized until I read this story that Thayer hadn't been renovated since 1976. To put that in perspective, 1976 is when the New York Giants opened their stadium in the Meadowlands. That would be the last Giants Stadium, which was demolished in the spring.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

"A Motivating Factor"

The Daily Dartmouth caught up with tri-captain Charles Bay to ask him about the Big Green being chosen seventh in the Ivy League media day preseason poll. Said the big defensive end:
“To be honest, I think the majority of the guys on the team don’t even pay attention to (the poll) because we can do a lot better than the rest of the league is predicting. While we have knowledge of it, we don’t really agree with it. It’s a motivating factor but it’s not where we’re going to end up.”
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Speaking of polls, The Sports Network/Fathead.com FCS Top-25 College Football Poll is in and one Ivy and one other opponent make the top 25. No fewer than five Ivy League teams collected votes including surprises Princeton and Cornell. Yes, I'm a voter, but no, I didn't put include either Princeton or Cornell in my top 25 and I'd like to see the SATs of the people who did. I'll bet they are pretty high, if you catch my drift.

No. 1 is defending national champion Villanova. Of particular interest to Dartmouth followers:
10. UNH
22. Colgate
23. Penn
25. Holy Cross
35. Harvard
50. Princeton
73. Butler
77. Brown
79. Cornell
In case you are wondering (you are wondering, aren't you?) the NCAA had 118 full FCS members last year. That means Dartmouth is one of 39 teams that did not receive votes.
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As long as we are on the subject of votes and polls and the like ...

The U.S. News & World Report rankings are in and Dartmouth is ranked No. 9 (tied with Duke and the University of Chicago) among Best National Universities. The college has a release here. To go directly to the U.S. News & World Report index of rankings, click here. A few rankings you might find interesting:
Best National Universities
1. Harvard
2. Princeton
3. Yale
4. Columbia
5. Stanford
5. Penn
7. Cal Tech
7. MIT
9. Dartmouth
9. Duke
9. Chicago
15. Brown
15. Cornell
(You had to know I'd point out that Penn State was No. 47 of the 191 ranked schools ;-)

Among Dartmouth opponents of the recent past and near future, New Hampshire was No. 104 on the Best National Universities list.

As for past/future opponents showing up among the National Liberal Arts Colleges:
21. Colgate
30. Bucknell
32. Holy Cross
(Probably to the surprise of no one, new Dartmouth Athletic Director Harry Sheehy's school topped the National Liberal Arts Colleges list. The top five overall:
1. Williams
2. Amherst
3. Swarthmore
4. Middlebury
4. Wellesley
Past/future opponents who are in the rankings for Regional Universities:
2. Butler in the Midwest
33. Sacred Heart in the North
In case you missed it, the Forbes rankings came out last week. You can find a BGA look at those rankings if you click here and scroll down.
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Dartmouth is a still a week away from opening practice and Bucknell has already finished its third two-a-day. For a look at how things are going for Dartmouth's Week One opponent, click here.
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A Daily Dartmouth story about Fieldstock, the summer event started as a replacement of sorts for Tubestock, quotes a couple of Dartmouth football players. One is summer Student Body President (and linebacker) Aaron Limonthas. The other is Fieldstock chair for Gamma Delta Chi and corner back Chad Hollis.
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From a story in the Boston Herald:
As respectful as he is of every opponent, coach Sean McDonnell nevertheless knew what it meant for the University of New Hampshire football team when Northeastern and Hofstra dropped the sport and Dartmouth suspended the series with its intra-state rival -- a more challenging schedule.
Ouch.

UNH, by the way, is playing twice in NFL stadiums this year. The Wildcats will play Pitt at Heinz Field and UMass at Gillette Stadium. The Wildcats have won five consecutive games against FBS opponents, a streak that will be in major jeopardy in the Steel City.
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And finally, That Certain Hanover High Junior is in his second round of qualifying in preseason practice for the school golf team. His first round put him on the cusp of a varsity spot. What he doesn't understand but I do, having been the primary golf writer for the local daily for 15 years, is that he would be a slam dunk on the varsity at every high school in the area except Hanover and Lebanon. Because those two programs are so dominant, he needs to "go low," to have a shot. And no, he said, he does not miss football. Not doubles, at least.

That Certain '14 has learned she will have to switch out of her DOC trip and into an early trip to clear the way for cross country preseason. She's disappointed about the change but excited about getting her college running career started.

Monday, August 16, 2010

Preview of Previews


Dartmouth opponent previews began last week on Big Green Alert Premium with detailed looks at Brown, Columbia and Cornell. Previews on tap this week:
  • Today – Harvard
  • Tomorrow – Penn
  • Wednesday – Princeton
  • Thursday – Yale
  • Friday – Bucknell
Previews will wrap up just in time for the start of Big Green practice next week. Dartmouth will hold its first official on-field practice Aug. 25.


Dartmouth will play its first intersectional game in many years when Butler University visits Hanover on Sept. 15, 2012. The Big Green then travels to Indianapolis to face the Bulldogs on Sept. 21, 2013. While it's safe to say Butler Bowl won't be confused any time soon with Franklin Field or Harvard Stadium or Princeton Stadium, it won't look like this when Dartmouth visits.

Check out a video from the start of Butler practice that touches on the work being done on the facility. For a video illustration of how the stadium is supposed to look when it is finished, click here. Photos of the work finished as of late July can be found here.
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The hot topic in the Patriot League is scholarships and the Chu Chu Rah Rah Holy Cross blog has posted a commentary that is serving as a petition for reinstallment of scholarships at the school. (And in case you were wondering, Chu, Chu, Rah, Rah! is a Holy Cross fight song.)
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EphBlog, "Your UNofficial source for All Things Eph!" takes a look at new Dartmouth Athletic Director Harry Sheehy. Lots to digest in the posting before reaching the conclusion:
... I think that President Kim had certain priorities in mind when he picked Sheehy. I suspect he will be pleased with the result.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Quick Hits

Southern California's Del Mar Times writes about incoming freshman Robbie Rodgriguez and his 2006 Torrey Pines Pop Warner Midgets hold a reunion before heading off to college.

About playing football with the Pop Warner team, Rodriguez told the paper:
"It 100 percent changed my life. I couldn't even do a push up when I started, now I'm going to play college football at Dartmouth."
Rodriguez is a 6-foot-4, 220-pound defensive end. Also a talented hurdler, he was the Torrey Pines player of the year and an All-Palomar League selection.
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George Landis joined the Dartmouth football coaching staff in 1978 and eventually served as defensive coordinator before taking over as head coach at Bloomsburg University in 1982. After a 12-1 record at Bloomsburg in 1985 he moved on to Bucknell, serving as head coach for three years at the Big Green's Week One opponent.

Landis is the subject of a story in the Press and Journal after accepting a position as running backs and defensive backs coach at Middletown High School just outside of Harrisburg, Pa.
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Watched former linebacker Gordy Quist '02 and The Band of Heathens on Austin City Limits last night. Here's a clip from the show. Gordy is in the middle with the vest. These guys are good!

I've blogged before that I particularly like his sweet ballad, Green and Blue. You can hear a bit of it here.
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Have you voted in this week's poll yet? Just a couple of days left to pick the team you think will win the Ivy League title if it's not Dartmouth ;-)
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And in case you are wondering, Dartmouth's first day of on-field practice is one week from Wednesday.

Saturday, August 14, 2010

QB2

They come from opposite coasts and will be competing for playing time but they will also be teammates. On the left, quarterback Cole Marcoux from New York. On the right, quarterback Andy Gay of Washington. The two have been in town getting a jump on the preseason.

And in case you are wondering, Marcoux is listed on the Dartmouth roster page at 6-foot-5, 230 pounds while Gay is listed at 6-4, 195.


Speaking of quarterbacks, former Dartmouth signalcaller Alex Jenny has been pretty busy and not just in his day job with The Parthenon Group. In addition to that preview of the New England Patriots, he's taking an online course called, "Football GM & Scouting." His full catalogue of NFL season previews on Bleacher Report can be found here.

Jenny also has teamed up with two others to start a football website, The 3-4|Original NFL Analysis and Trends.
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Dartmouth sports publicity has a story about the Ivy League media poll, which predicted a seventh-place finish for the Big Green. Click here.
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By now you've heard about the red turf going in at Eastern Washington University. Now you can see some pictures of the installation here.

This might be a bit over the top, but there's also a turf-cam that you can access here.

If turf in your school color is as much news as they make it out to be at Eastern Washington and Boise State, how come no one made a fuss when Dartmouth did the same thing? Oh, yeah.
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And just because with DSL I was able to watch this again, here's video of one of the craziest plays in college football history.

Friday, August 13, 2010

Here They Come

Among the incoming freshmen who have been working out on Memorial Field this month have been quarterbacks Cole Marcoux and Andy Gay as well as defensive back/wide receiver Clay Robbins. The Daily Dartmouth has a story.

The Daily D also has an editorial about school spirit and a perceived lack of it toward Big Green athletic teams. From the story:
... (D)espite our collective affinity for physical activity, many of our varsity teams frequently play to depressingly empty arenas, fields and stadiums. Even high-stakes games for successful programs draw paltry crowds (“Empty stands at Dartmouth: Fan culture stagnates despite teams’ successes,” April 13, 2009). At home games, opposing fans are often louder and more visible than Dartmouth supporters are.
The editorial also includes the following:
Dartmouth students do not lack spirit — they routinely show incredible enthusiasm for the College as an institution in a number of ways. When the athletic department makes no effort to court students, however, their enthusiasm remains detached from athletic programs.
Green Alert Take: One of the facts of life in a college situation is that students graduate and move on, so institutional memory can be lacking. It's fair to say the athletic department doesn't do as much as the students might like. But having been a close observer of the Dartmouth athletic scene for a long time, I can tell you the athletic department has indeed tried a great many initiatives over the years to get students in the stands and is much more active in that regard than it was in the past. In the final analysis, only one thing will be successful: success.
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Anyone who knows me will not be surprised when I admit I'm something of a prude. There, I said it. Maybe that's why the headline for this Columbia Spectator story on the Ivy League football media day bothered me. Maybe it's because I worked as a writer and editor at newspapers for a long time and took my profession seriously. I'm sure the headline was supposed to be funny.
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The once-dormant web site for Week One opponent Bucknell is delivering the goods. Click here for a report on the first Bison two-a-day along with a pretty nice video report.
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The Forbes college rankings are out and Dartmouth sits at No. 30. Here's the top five, all the Ivy League schools and Dartmouth's current and future football opponents:
Top Five
1. Williams
2. Princeton
3. Amherst
4. United States Military Academy
5. MIT

Other Ivies
8. Harvard
10. Yale
13. Columbia
30. Dartmouth
36. Penn
45. Brown
70. Cornell

Football Opponents
28. Colgate
39. Holy Cross
52. Georgetown
56. Bucknell
332. Butler
371. New Hampshire
For some reason, Week Two opponent Sacred Heart is not ranked.

In case you were wondering, the list goes up to No. 610 Coastal Carolina.

And in case you are wondering, given the frequent references here to a certain school in Central PA, the Nittany Lion Nation is No. 192.
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And finally, regarding Big Green Alert Premium – Accounts that have not been renewed have been deactivated automatically. If you already sent payment and your account has been incorrectly deactivated, or you need your password/username sent to you, email me.
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Tonight on BGA: the Cornell preview.

Thursday, August 12, 2010

About That Poll

Once more, with feeling ...

Ivy League Preseason Media Poll

(First place votes) points
1. Harvard (10) 128
2. Penn (6) 124
3. Brown 95
4. Yale (1) 83
5. Columbia 61
6. Princeton 55
7. Dartmouth 39
8. Cornell 27
Each year Dartmouth coach Buddy Teevens looks over the Ivy League preseason media poll and says pretty much the same thing. He understands. His team hasn't won. And it's the standings at the end of the year that matter, not the preseason.

Asked yesterday about this year's poll, Teevens surprised. Being picked seventh rankled him.

"Those things don't usually affect me too much," he admitted, "but I was ticked off when I read it."

With just 10 offensive starters returning, 10 defensive starters back, the Ivy League's leading rusher and potentially the most dominating defensive lineman in the conference, the Big Green coach was surprised his team wasn't given more respect. Granted, last year's 2-8 record wasn't what anyone in Green Nation hoped for, but the second half of the season did see Dartmouth go 2-3 with only an overtime loss at Brown keeping that from being a winning mark.

"With the number of guys we have coming back, the quality of the people who are playing, the development that is ongoing, the experience younger players have earned the last few years, I was surprised," Teevens said of the poll. "People are graduating guys out and we haven't except for one here or one there.

"Either the (voters) have completely ignored all that, and haven't studied anything about our football program, or they just think we aren't very good. We have something to prove."

Added Teevens: "It came out and I spoke to the players and the staff about it. We all feel the same way. It is what it is, but it just adds fuel to the fire. The kids are ticked. It ticked a lot of us off. Guys are working hard. We are making a lot of progress.

"We may be a well-kept secret to most, but it's another source of inspiration. If that's what they think of Dartmouth, it's fine. We won't forget it. My guys are well aware of it."
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Not all former quarterbacks end up as color commentators on ESPN or CBS. Some can actually write. Helps, of course, if they have an Ivy League degree.

If you don't believe it, check out this New England Patriots 2010 Preview and Prediction on Bleacher Report. The writer?

Former Dartmouth quarterback Alex Jenny '10.
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Speaking of quarterbacks, check out this video story on King5.com with incoming Dartmouth quarterback Andy Gay. The Seattle-area product and fellow freshman QB Cole Marcoux have both been in town throwing and working out.
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I saw a Jay Paterno tweet yesterday that boiled coaching down to the basics. Paterno's father – you may have heard of him – told the Penn State coaching staff what Vince Lombardi once told him about their business: "It's about getting the right guy in the right place doing the right things at the right time."

Sounds about right ;-)
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Check Green Alert Premium tonight for an in-depth look at Columbia, the second in a series of previews of Dartmouth opponents.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Special Day

Father of the Bride
Dartmouth coach Buddy Teevens and daughter Lindsay share a moment after her wedding Friday night in Hanover.Smiles abound as father and daughter dance.
Lindsay and new husband Matt Knittle


Now back to our regularly scheduled programming ...

Easily the best look at Ivy League Media Day was done by former Princeton beat writer Craig Haley, now the executive director of FCS football for The Sports Network. Craig headlines his column: It could be an offensive year in Ivy League

In support of his theme, Haley writes:
In the reverse of a year ago, six of the league's eight teams return their top quarterback. Also, the top five rushers are back this season.

Meanwhile, 14 players made an expanded All-Ivy first-team defense last year, and only Harvard safety Colin Zych and Yale cornerback Adam Money are back this season.
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Media day was met with a huge yawn in the league's top markets. If there was a mention in the New York Times online edition it was hard enough to find that I missed it. Ditto for the Daily News, Post and Newsday. Feel free to share links if you find them.

Philly.com gave the event 119 words. The Boston Globe made it the top of a roundup with 166 words but I didn't see anything in the Boston Herald.

The New Haven Register gave the proceedings a little more of a splash as did the Ithaca Journal.

Mention of the teleconference was at the bottom of the Providence Journal college football roundup.

Locally, our daily had a story built around the Dartmouth angle. ... Most, but not all, team web pages had a blurb that summarized the poll.
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If you want to listen to the entire 1 hour, 36 minutes of the media call, click here. If you only want to listen to Dartmouth coach Buddy Teevens, fast forward to 42:35. (I believe I wrote this last year but the Ivy League may want to consider dividing the sound up into more palatable bites – oops bytes – because the guess here is that not many people are going to be interested in listening to the whole thing, or zipping the slider back and forth to find the coach they want to hear.)
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Old friend Tiger Blog takes on the subject of preseason polls here.
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Out of league, Holy Cross has commenced practice. There's a brief mention here along with a video interview with Crusader coach Tom Gilmore, the onetime Dartmouth assistant.
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Former Dartmouth cross country standout (and U.S. Olympian) Jarrod Shoemaker finished third in the London Triathlon. Find a brief here.
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Meant to link to a Dartmouth release yesterday that notes:
Dartmouth College received $153 million in philanthropic support in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2010, an 11 percent increase over 2009 but below the record of $168 million received in 2008.
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Tonight on Green Alert Premium: the first of a series of Dartmouth opponent previews begins with a look at Brown.