Thursday, September 26, 2019

Well-Deserved


Dartmouth linebacker and co-captain Jack Traynor is one of 185 semifinalists for the 2019 Campbell Trophy, the academic Heisman. From a Dartmouth release:
Traynor, a senior engineering major from Lake Forest, Illinois, entered his senior year with a 3.68 GPA. He is a two-time, unanimous All-Ivy League First Team selection and twice been named to both the Division I All-New England Team and FCS Athletics Directors Association Academic All-Star Team. One of just 13 players in Dartmouth football history to serve as a captain twice, he has 199 tackles in his career, finishing second in the Ivy League with 98 two years ago. He also has 11.5 tackles for a loss, one sack, an interception, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery to his credit for the Big Green.
Ivy League semifinalists in addition to Traynor:
Brown - OL Nicholas Allsop
Columbia - DL Arman Samouk
Cornell - S Jelani Taylor
Harvard - DL Brogan McPartland
Penn -  OL Craig Begnoche
Princeton - WR Andrew Griffin
Yale - OL Sterling Strother

No Ivy Leaguer has ever won the award, which honors former Columbia head coach Bill Campbell. The National Football Foundation & College Football Hall of Fame will announce 12-14 finalists on Oct. 30. Find the full list of semifinalists HERE.
Surprisingly in this age of the internet there have been no "leaks" about the status of Colgate quarterback Grant Breneman and whether he will be playing Saturday at Dartmouth. He was hurt in the first series of the William & Mary game two weeks ago and sat out the rest of that game as well as last week's game against Maine. Craig Haley, the FCS guru for STATS Tweeted this (LINK):
Colgate at Dartmouth on Saturday seemed like a top FCS nonconference game leading into the season, but it may be wise for Colgate to limit or hold out some banged-up players (such as QB Grant Breneman) to be healthy for the Patriot League schedule. It begins Oct. 5.
From the Patriot League website weekly release:
FCS ACTIVE SACKS LEADERS 
1. Jordan Lewis, Southern, 0.90
2. Bryce Sterk, Montana St., 0.89
3. Simeon Page, Bucknell, 0.76
4. Nick Wheeler, Colgate, 0.75 
The Columbia marching band is now essentially the Columbia marching banned as the university will not allow the so-called "scatter band" to perform at athletic events. The Columbia Spectator has a story that includes this:
In lieu of a marching band, Athletics plans to hire community music groups to perform at home events this semester.

Sharp eyes have dug up a story and video about a New Jersey farm situated between Princeton and Rutgers that is celebrating the 150th anniversary of the first football game between the two schools with a corn maze featuring the helmets of both schools. (A video of the corn maze is posted below but because that may not be working, you can access the video directly HERE.)



Find the full story and video on NJ.com HERE.
The San Diego Union-Tribune has a story about former Dartmouth right hander Cole Sulser's breakout debut in the major leagues with Tampa Bay. Find the story HERE.

From the story:
In seven appearances, he has pitched 7 1/3 innings, allowed five hits, walked three, struck out nine and hasn’t give up a run for a Rays team that is battling Cleveland and Oakland for wild-card playoffs spots in the American League.
And . . .
He has a pair of degrees from Dartmouth — one in engineering sciences with public policy, another in mechanical engineering. 

And . . .
Sulser’s brother Beau (Ramona/Dartmouth) was 8-3 with two saves and a 2.71 ERA at Double-A Altoona (Pa.) in the Pirates’ system. That earned him an invitation to the Arizona Fall League, where he’s playing for Peoria. 
Green Alert Take: Dartmouth grad Kyle Hendricks might be the ace of the Chicago Cubs' staff. Cole Sulser is making a name for himself in the majors. It's widely believed that Ducan Robinson would have joined Hendricks on the Cubs' staff at some point this year if not for having Tommy John surgery. (LINK and LINK). And Beau Sulser certainly is bidding to join the others in the Show. That's a remarkable Dartmouth presence and a tribute to Big Green coach Bob Whalen and his staff for bringing talented pitchers to Hanover and putting them in position to success in the pro ranks.
And finally, we're still nowhere near peak foliage but fall is settling in nicely here at our new place north of Hanover. Here's a pic of Moosilauke I took out the window yesterday before heading to practice and another I shot this morning after walking Griff the Wonder Dog II and hustling to get my camera. In case you are wondering, that sunrise picture is exactly how it looked. (Click the photos to enlarge.)