Friday, April 24, 2015

So That's How They Do It

How do you practice tackling without tackling? Here's a quick iPod video I shot yesterday showing one of the numerous drills that have helped Dartmouth increase its tackling efficiency on Saturdays without tackling during the week. Defensive coordinator Don Dobes runs the drill:


The Columbia Spectator section The Eye has a well-researched and written 5,000-word story that takes a look at the Lion program from the end of Norries Wilson's tenure, through Pete Mangurian's struggles and right up to the arrival of Al Bagnoli. The story is headlined, Dropping the Ball; The Story of How Pete Mangurian Lost the Football Team.

The story includes excerpts from "a 10-page written response" to Spec questions that Mangurian shared with the school paper. It ends this way:
“We didn’t fail,” Mangurian says. “We just didn’t get a chance to finish.”
Find the Spec story HERE.

There's also a Mangurian interview in the Spectator HERE.
Did you see the video or a still shot of 2004 Olympic silver medalist Meb Keflezighi holding a woman runner's hand in the air as they finished the Boston Marathon? Turns out the woman was Hilary Dionne '07, one of the top woman marathoners in the country. There's a story about the Dartmouth grad's memorable finish HERE.

Speaking of the Marathon, the event includes a 5K on the weekend before Patriot's Day and the winner for the second year in a row was Ben True '08. True set an American 5K road record of 13:22.

True's win in a field of 10,000 broke the American record set in Carlsbad, Calif., in 1996 and earned the Hanover resident $12,500 for winning and a $5,000 bonus for setting the event record. (LINK)
The mystery of the possible mini-portal in the new grandstand at Memorial Field (see yesterday's photo) has been resolved. It's, well, a mini-portal:

Compare with yesterday's photo to see the progress in a day.
They haven't been properly installed yet but the first railings have made an appearance at Memorial Field. They mark an important upgrade in the new facility.

And finally, That Certain Nittany Lion junior is in a car on his way to North Carolina (as this is being written) to represent Penn State in the collegiate club golf national championships this weekend. With final exams less than two weeks away he wasn't sure he could spare the time, but how many of us have ever been to nationals in anything? Upwards of 300 players from around the nation are competing. The Penn State team earned an at-large bid with a couple of strong finishes this spring, including a win in a tournament in Canton, Ohio.