Thursday, August 27, 2015

Pay Attention

When it comes to predictions, this is the one that deserves a little extra attention.

The STATS FCS page used to be part of The Sports Network where it was edited and largely written by Craig Haley. As a former beat writer covering Princeton, Craig knows the Ivy League and has good contacts around the league and the East. When he writes about the Ivies he knows what he's talking about.

STATS has been posting its conference roundups/predictions and now it's the Ivy League's turn. The headline on its Ivy story: Ivy Preview: Dartmouth sets sights on Harvard in title race.

Haley points out that Dartmouth once had an overwhelming lead over the rest of the Ivies in terms of championships won. He notes that with Penn having won nine titles and Harvard eight since the last time the Big Green won it all (1996) the honor of having the most championships is up for grabs. Dartmouth has won 17 titles while Harvard and Penn have won 16 apiece.

So who does Haley have winning it all this  year? After writing, "This year's race figures to go to the end again," he posts his prediction:
1. Harvard2. Dartmouth3. Yale4. Brown 5. Princeton6. Penn7. Cornell8. Columbia

Find the full report HERE.

The NBC affiliate in Burlington, Vt./Plattsburgh, N.Y., reports on Dartmouth's MVP in a video report you can watch HERE.
The MVP is showing up everywhere. Venerable US News & World Report picked up the AP story HERE and AOL.com has it HERE.
A quick bit from last night's BGA Premium:
Joining the Dartmouth coaching staff this fall are three quality control assistants. Former Westfield State standout running back Don Jones will work on the offensive side, former Arkansas Razorback safety Matt Hewitt will be on the defensive side and Danny O’Dea, a former head coach at The Lawrenceville School in New Jersey, will be quality control for special teams.
Also new to the program is Joe Gilfedder, a former Springfield College graduate assistant who will help Spencer Brown with football strength and conditioning.
Coaches are always looking for different ways of livening up the preseason when practice starts to drag. At Holy Cross, former Dartmouth assistant Steve Cully took part in a WWE-type wrestling match. Check out the story and video at this LINK:

Click HERE to watch the video.
Speaking of former Dartmouth assistants . . .


Don Farnham, who coached at Dartmouth in the late 1980s and went on to spend 13 years as the head coach at Maine's Brewer High School, has joined the staff at Division III Husson in Maine. (LINK)
Rolling Stone has a lengthy look at Super Bowl quarterback Russell Wilson that includes this:
Harrison Wilson III, a Dartmouth football star and a UVA law graduate, is central to his son's creation myth. Harrison waited until after law school to try out for the San Diego Chargers and still almost made the team. He played catch with his son on mornings before school and made it to nearly every one of his games. "Harrison Wilson could do no wrong" has always been the narrative. His son's image is just as carefully burnished, with only a hint of imperfection . . . 
Find the full story HERE.