Wednesday, March 18, 2020

A Little Football

Next in a series of glimpses at statistical leaders returning next fall is the quarterback class. Again, returnees are bold-faced and color-coded. The QBs are ranked by yards passing but because NCAA and Ivy League statistics rankings require a player to appear in 75 percent of his games compiling this chart was a little tricky because not everyone made the cutoff. That being the case, this was worked up using individual statistics from each school. It includes only quarterbacks and not running backs or receivers who threw passes last fall.



Comp
Att
Yds
PCT
TD
INT
1
Kurt Rawlings (Yale)
201
324
2,999
0.620
26
6
2
EJ Perry (Brown)
251
418
2,948
0.600
22
13
3
Kevin Davidson (Princeton)
209
313
2,569
0.668
20
6
4
Nick Robinson (Penn)
196
329
2,331
0.596
16
5
5
Jake Smith (Harvard)
167
278
2,233
0.601
19
9
6
Richie Kenney (Cornell)
154
271
2,069
0.568
9
12
7
Ty Lenhart (Columbia)
127
211
1,288
0.602
8
6
8
Derek Kyler (Dartmouth)
71
106
1,075
0.670
12
3
9
Josh Bean (Columbia)
56
98
534
0.571
3
4
10
Jared Gerbino (Dartmouth)
70
102
940
0.686
9
2
11
Mike Catanese (Cornell)
30
42
242
0.714
0
1
12
Griffin O’Connor (Yale)
16
30
197
0.533
0
0
13
Luke Emge (Harvard)
6
12
110
0.500
0
1
14
Jake Pallotta (Dartmouth)
16
22
105
0.727
1
0
15
John Foreback (Columbia)
4
8
70
0.500
0
1
16
Michael McGovern (Brown )
6
11
63
0.545
0
1
17
Dez’Mond Brinson (Cornell)
3
5
16
0.600
0
0
18
Owen Goldsberry (Penn)
1
2
80
0.500
1
0
19
Nolan Grooms (Yale)
5
5
44
1.000
0
0

Worth noting is that returning quarterbacks like Yale's Griffin O'Connor and Penn's Ryan Glover had big numbers in 2018 but saw minimal action last year. O'Connor threw for 1,229 yards and eight touchdowns in just three games in 2018 and while Glover threw for 1,482 yards and seven touchdowns that season. Also of note is that with Cornell's Mike Catanese appearing in just two games last fall as a senior it's possible he would be eligible for a fifth year in 2020.
After sending students home with the understanding it would re-evaluate "remote learning" in five weeks, Dartmouth has officially closed the school down for the rest of the spring. (LINK)

Dartmouth's athletic facilities (gym, weight room, coaching offices) are now shuttered as well. (LINK)
Big Green strength and conditioning coach Spencer Brown has a message for his players via YouTube HERE.
And finally, the time has come to resurrect an old BGA Daily feature I used to call Extra Point. Today's is personal . . .

EXTRA POINT – After 911 and not infrequently in the years since Mrs. BGA made a habit when we were in airports of going up to military members in uniform and thanking them for their service. Although my grandfather was a Naval Academy graduate and my father a Navy veteran, I always felt a little sheepish in that regard, probably because I didn't serve.

Given the pandemic, maybe the time has come for the rest of us to look at doctors – and nurses like Mrs. BGA – and thank them for their service. While a lot of us can "shelter in place" in these difficult times each day the health care professionals step up to take care of the rest of us, putting their own health at risk. Would it ease my steadily growing anxiety if Mrs. BGA stayed here in our rural home on a quiet Vermont hillside far from any crowds each day? Absolutely. But like so many others, she is doing her part. So to all who are on the front lines of this pandemic, a heartfelt thank you.