This And That

If you are an ESPN+ subscriber or live outside the reach of NESN (the New England Sports Network ) you can skip down to the next note. But if you don't get "plus" and do get NESN, listen up.

Dartmouth's Oct. 5 game against Penn and the Nov. 23 finale against Brown will both be broadcast from Memorial Field on NESN. Find a brief story HERE.

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The American Press out of Lake Charles, La., has a story about grad transfer linebacker Marques White '23. Here's the lede to the story (LINK):

Most Ivy League students look for new challenges after graduation in the usual places.  Some take a big-money job on Wall Street or head off for more schooling in the medical or legal directions.  Marques White isn’t like most of those Ivy Leaguers. He prefers hitting runners more than hitting the books.

More from the story:

“He is a special type of player,” said McNeese head coach Gary Goff. “He has come back from a lot of adversity in his career. 

“Marques makes big plays and can do a lot of things. And he can get after the quarterback. He is a big addition for us.”

Find White's McNeese bio HERE and his final Dartmouth bio HERE. 

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Grad transfer Tyron Herring '23 is included in a story out of Delaware headlined, As Blue Hens begin preseason drills, these are 6 players to watch when 2024 season starts. From the story (LINK):

Herring was Delaware's only defensive player to make first-team preseason All-CAA after a solid 2023 season that followed his transfer from Dartmouth. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Herring brings good size, experience and coverage and playmaking ability to the Hens' secondary. His 42 tackles last year were most among cornerbacks and he also tied for the team lead with three interceptions, broke up five passes, forced a fumble and recovered one.

Defensive coordinator Manny Rojas said: "The great thing about Ty is, he's a long, athletic corner, Having him in that room gives that room a voice that he can bring those guys together. I feel as good about our corner room as I ever have . . . Ty taken the lead in there and has been great for us."

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A story out of Charlottesville asks, How much progress has Virginia made in the trenches? From the answer (LINK):

On the offensive line, Virginia brings back a few players who have some experience under their belt and who showed flashes of quality during the 2023 season. Brian Stevens, McKale Boley, Noah Josey, and Blake Steen are likely to be part of UVA's starting five with that last spot going to Ty Furnish or Dartmouth transfer Ethan Sipe.

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And speaking of offensive linemen, John Paul Flores '22 was named to the All-CUSA Athlon Sports Preseason fourth team ahead of Liberty's season. (LINK)

Flores, who first lettered at Dartmouth in 2018, grad transferred to Virginia, then moved on for a year to Louisville and is in his first season at Liberty after a mid-year transfer. Find his Liberty bio HERE.

Flores' younger brother Michael '23, who spent last year on the Old Dominion roster without seeing action, will be in his second season as a grad transfer at ODU this fall. 

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FootballScoop has a story that may be of interest to Ivy League fans. Headlined, Fresh Faces, FCS Places: Andrew Aurich brings Ivy background, Greg Schiano approach to Harvard, it suggests the new Crimson coach is taking a different approach to recruiting by personally making all offers to prospects rather than sharing the responsibility with assistants. (LINK)

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Dartmouth will face three players this season on the initial 2024 Walter Payton Award preseason watch list for the outstanding offensive player in the FCS. Named from the Ivy League were (LINK):

• Brown quarterback Jake Willcox, a 2023 Payton finalist

• Penn wide receiver Jared Richardson

And from the Big Green's nonconference schedule:

• Fordham quarterback CJ Montes, a 2023 finalist

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Perhaps the video highlight of the summer Olympics to date is the length-of-the-field try that tied the United States' rugby sevens game with Australia and set up the bronze-medal clinching conversion. Making the final pass that set up the sprint to the first rugby medal for the United States since the sport was added to the Olympics in 2016 was Dartmouth product Ariana Ramsey. She's wearing No 1 in this clip of the winning play:

  THE MOST CLUTCH TRY IN @USARugby HISTORY 😱

Spiff Sedrick wins it for Team USA in the final seconds!#ParisOlympicspic.twitter.com/lml8fLVmsn

— Team USA (@TeamUSA) July 30, 2024

Find Ramsey's Dartmouth bio HERE and her Wikipedia page that already has been updated to include the key play HERE.

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EXTRA POINT
Perhaps you saw network news reports about the flooding in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom. (Find a video report and story HERE.) Per the National Weather Service the storm stalled over St. Johnsbury and dropped 7.89 inches of rain on the town in a tremendously localized event.

How localized was it? As the crow flies it's just 25 miles from our Vermont hillside home to St. J and we barely had any rain at all. In fact, I didn't even know there had been a storm at all until getting an email asking if we were OK, and then seeing reports on the news. 

Zalc Honored

Dartmouth sophomore Owen Zalc has been named to the STATS PERFORM FCS Preseason All-America third team. As a freshman last fall he hit on 17-of-21 field goal attempts. Find a story from Dartmouth sports publicity HERE and Zalc's Dartmouth freshman bio HERE.

Zalc is one of three Ivy Leaguers to earn Stats All-America honors with Penn wide receiver Jared Richardson and Brown defensive back Isaiah Reed both being named to the second team. Find the full STATS PERFORM release HERE and the full preseason All-America team below:

Stats Perform FCS Preseason All-American Team

FIRST TEAM

OFFENSE

QB – Mark Gronowski, South Dakota State, Sr., 6-3, 225

RB – Kayvon Britten, Tarleton State, Sr., 5-7, 195

RB – Jamar Curtis, Lafayette, Jr., 5-8, 164

RB – Lan Larison, UC Davis, Sr., 6-0, 195

WR – Efton Chism III, Eastern Washington, Sr., 5-11, 200

WR – Nick DeGennaro, Richmond, R-Sr., 6-1, 190

TE – Carter Runyon, Towson, R-Sr., 6-6, 235

OL – Zack Gieg, Southeast Missouri, Sr., 6-1, 290

OL – Charles Grant, William & Mary, Sr., 6-4, 280

OL – Jared Penning, Northern Iowa, R-Sr.., 6-6, 338

OL – Jackson Slater, Sacramento State, Sr., 6-4, 316

OL – Marcus Wehr, Montana State, Sr., 6-4, 292

DEFENSE

DL – Brody Grebe, Montana State, Sr., 6-2, 248 

DL – Eli Mostaert, North Dakota State, Sr., 6-3, 287

DL – Elijah Ponder, Cal Poly, R-Sr., 6-3, 245

DL – Josiah Silver, New Hampshire, Sr., 6-2, 243

DL – David Walker, Central Arkansas, Sr., 6-3, 260 

LB – Amir Abdullah, Illinois State, Sr., 6-3, 215 

LB – Adam Bock, South Dakota State, Sr., 6-1, 225

LB – Micah Davey, McNeese, R-Jr., 6-2, 239

LB – Erick Hunter, Morgan State, Sr., 6-4, 210

LB – Noah Martin, Samford, Sr., 6-1, 232

DB – Caleb Curtain, Elon, R-Jr., 6-1, 191

DB – Kenny Gallop Jr., Howard, Grad, 6-0, 214

DB – Tyler Morton, Nicholls, Sr., 5-10, 165

DB – TaMuarion Wilson, Central Arkansas, Sr., 6-2, 205

DB – Cole Wisniewski, North Dakota State, Sr., 6-4, 217

SPECIAL TEAMS

PK – Chris Campos, Stephen F. Austin, Sr., 5-11, 255

P – Aaron Trusler, Richmond, Grad, 5-8, 168

LS – Hunter Brozio, North Dakota State, R-Sr., 6-1, 233

KR – Donovan Wadley, Merrimack, Jr., 5-9, 180

PR – Junior Bergen, Montana, Sr., 5-11, 180

AP – ShunDerrick Powell, Central Arkansas, Sr., 5-9, 180

 

SECOND TEAM

OFFENSE

QB – Tommy Mellott, Montana State, Sr., 6-0, 209

QB – Cam Miller, North Dakota State, Sr., 6-1, 213 

RB – Jordan Fuller, Holy Cross, Sr., 6-0, 231

RB – Bronson Yoder, William & Mary, Sr., 5-11, 210

WR – Bo Belquist, North Dakota, Fifth Year, 6-1, 185

WR – JARED RICHARDSON, PENN, JR., 6-2, 215

WR – Javin Whatley, Chattanooga, Jr., 5-10, 170

TE – Cole Grossman, Montana, Sr., 6-4, 225

OL – Brandon Casey, Montana, Sr., 6-5, 305

OL – Payton Collins, Eastern Kentucky, Grad, 6-7, 301

OL – Gus Miller, South Dakota State, Sr., 6-3, 290

OL – Evan Roussel, Nicholls, Sr., 6-2, 290

OL – Grey Zabel, North Dakota State, Sr., 6-6, 301

DEFENSE

DL – Finn Claypool, Drake, R-Jr., 6-1, 232 

DL – Ckelby Givens, Southern, Jr., 6-2, 230

DL – Dylan Hendricks, North Dakota State, Sr., 6-3, 247 

DL – Marlon Taylor, Chattanooga, R-Sr., 6-2, 322

DL – Zach Kennedy, UC Davis, Sr., 6-6, 251 

LB – James Conway, Fordham, Sr., 6-2, 225

LB – Logan Kopp, North Dakota State, Jr., 6-1, 217

LB – Bryce Norman, Southeast Missouri, Sr., 6-0, 220

LB – Ken Standley, Mercer, Sr., 5-11, 225

LB – Riley Wilson, Montana, Jr., 6-2, 224

DB – Oshae Baker, UT Martin, Sr., 5-10, 200

DB – Kendall Bohler, Florida A&M, R-Sr., 6-0, 193

DB – Rex Connors, UC Davis, Jr., 6-1, 203

DB – ISAIAH REED, BROWN, SR., 6-0, 180

DB – Isas Waxter, Villanova, Sr., 6-2, 215

SPECIAL TEAMS

PK – Will Leyland, South Dakota, Jr., 5-11, 205

PK – Patrick Nations, Eastern Kentucky, R-Sr., 6-0, 202

P – Brendan Hall, Montana State, Sr., 6-9, 232

LS – Caden Bolz, Missouri State, Sr., 6-0, 210

KR – Abraham Williams, Idaho, Sr., 6-1, 180

PR – Tucker Large, South Dakota State, Jr., 5-10, 180

AP – Jaylon Spears, Nicholls, Jr., 5-10, 200

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THIRD TEAM

OFFENSE

QB – Cole Gonzales, Western Carolina, Jr., 6-0, 195

QB – CJ Montes, Fordham, Jr., 6-2, 205

RB – Eli Gillman, Montana, R-So., 6-0, 206

RB – Mason King, Illinois State, Sr., 6-2, 215

RB – Marcus Yarns, Delaware, Grad, 5-11, 183

WR – Carter Bell, South Dakota, Sr., 5-11, 180

WR – Darius Cooper, Tarleton State, Sr., 6-0, 190

TE – JJ Galbreath, South Dakota, Sr., 6-4, 240

OL – Chandler Kirton, Austin Peay, R-Jr., 6-0, 291

OL – Ryder Langsdale, Lafayette, Sr., 6-7, 287

OL – Justus Perkins, Montana State, Sr., 6-0, 282

OL – Nick Taiste, South Carolina State, R-Sr., 6-2, 300

OL – Jaison Williams, Youngstown State, Sr., 6-4, 315

DEFENSE

DL – Malachi Bailey, Alcorn State, Sr., 6-2, 260 

DL – Matt Jaworski, Fordham, Sr., 6-5, 260

DL – Caleb Williams, Lamar, Sr., 5-11, 290

DL – Elijah Williams, Morgan State, Sr., 6-3, 270

DL – Brayden Wilson, Weber State, Jr., 6-5, 260

LB – Luke Clark, Furman, Sr., 6-3, 250

LB – Isaac Dowling, Mercer, Sr., 5-9, 225

LB – Rico Dozier, Alabama State, Sr., 6-0, 221

LB – Shane Hartzell, Villanova, Jr., 6-0, 225

LB – William McRainey, ETSU, R-Sr., 6-0, 228

LB – Elijawah Tolbert, Eastern Illinois, Sr., 6-1, 240

DB – Dalys Beanum, South Dakota State, Sr., 6-1, 195 

DB – Tim Coutras, Tennessee Tech, Sr., 6-0, 198

DB – Max Epps, Texas A&M-Commerce, R-Sr., 5-11, 182

DB – Trevin Gradney, Montana, R-Sr., 6-0, 188

DB – Saiku White, Lafayette, Sr., 6-0, 201

DB – Edwin White Schultz, North Alabama, R-Jr., 6-1, 205

SPECIAL TEAMS

PK – Griffin Crosa, North Dakota State, Sr., 6-1, 179

PK – OWEN ZALC, DARTMOUTH, SO., 5-10, 160

P – Grant Burkett, Missouri State, Sr., 6-1, 180

LS – Bobby Cleary, Campbell, Sr., 6-1, 250

KR – Michael Wortham, Eastern Washington, Sr., 5-9, 177

PR – Robert McMinn, Alabama State, Jr., 5-9, 176

AP – Tyvon Edmonds Jr., Robert Morris, Sr., 5-8, 180

AP – Amar Johnson, South Dakota State, Sr., 5-10, 205

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EXTRA POINT
You saw a picture HERE last week that showed how out-of-control our field had become with our lawn tractor on the PUP list.

With the tractor back in good health, here's how our lawn and field look this gray morning:

Tiger Cat(o)

From a St. Louis Post-Dispatch story about the opening of Missouri football training camp (LINK):

Derham Cato, who had been a senior offensive analyst, is now the Tigers’ tight ends coach. He previously held that role at Washington, leading the development of NFL tight end Cade Otton, who led the Huskies in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns while in college in 2020.

Cato has also worked as an offensive coordinator at Davidson. He played at Dartmouth before professional stints in the Canadian Football and Arena Football leagues.

Cato '05, who served as Dartmouth tight ends coach in 2010 after his playing career ended, was a graduate assistant at Vanderbilt from 2011-13, then spent two years on staff at Davidson before moving on to the University of Washington in 2016 as an offensive analyst. He took over as tight ends coach at Washington in 2020.

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EXTRA POINT
Mowing around our apple trees yesterday gave another indication that football season isn't all that far away:

Our trees seem to produce a good yield every other year, and after an abundant crop last fall this is a down year. It will be a few weeks before we're ready to pick but the color is coming along nicely.

Take A Look

It's a "Video Sunday."  First, a look at one way quarterback Jackson Proctor has prepared for his senior season at Dartmouth College:

   

And second, is Q Jones the "scariest RB in the Ivy League?" That's the premise of this video. You can decide for yourself but you have to admit the "thumbnail" for this video is kinda scary ;-)

 

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EXTRA POINT
Thumbs up to the Paris Olympics for its opening ceremonies boat parade on the Seine. 

Thumbs down to NBC for abandoning some of the boats in favor of the absurd fashion show, filmed segments that had no place in a live broadcast, and other equally strange "entertainment." If they'd stuck with the boats and the athletes, I might have stayed with the broadcast.

They didn't . . . and I didn't.

Brave New World

Why did so many Ivy League football players opt to graduate and play their COVID bonus season elsewhere? As this space noted yesterday, forcing a fumbe in front of more than 100,000 fans or lining up in the FCS playoffs are opportunities Ancient Eight athletes cannot enjoy.

Former Big Green lineman Shane Cokes '23 probably could have posted a Xweet like this before graduating from Dartmouth, but you decide if it would bear the kind of fruit it will in his second year playing for Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes:

This season is going to be a great one so why not make it great together! @5430alliance #skobuffs pic.twitter.com/h2upML5C8A

— Shane Cokes (@ShaneCokes) July 27, 2024

And speaking of Cokes, this video went up several days ago: 

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EXTRA POINT
If you've been following along, you are probably as tired of reading about our issues getting the electric lawn tractor back from the shop as I have gotten writing about it. Barring something untoward, that chapter is over.

The tractor was returned to us yesterday and I've already cut down about half of our field with the deck raised as high as possible. I hope to finish the second half today. In another couple of days I'll lower the deck and cut the entire field down to lawn length. Given how deep the stuff has gotten, there's no way to clean it up in just one pass.

Between the two sessions on the field, I'll have attack the actual lawn. If I'm going to be honest, it's looking a little, uh, shaggy.

To give you an idea about how the field grew up in the 37 days the little tractor was on the disabled list, here it is in part of the field I haven't gotten to yet. Within a few days that will look a lot more like a lawn.

This And That

 As most of you probably know by now, BGA Premium has shut down after 18 seasons (and 19 years) of providing in-person coverage of Dartmouth football seven days a week from the start of preseason through the final game. After much thought, I've elected to continue a slimmed down version of BGA this year.

Originally going by the name BGA - The Sequel, the new site has been rebranded with a more suitable name: BGA Overtime. It will be available free of charge to everyone this fall, without a paywall –  although once the season starts and you see what's on the site you can decide it you want to kick something in to make the time I put into it worth the while.

For a look at the BGA Overtime coverage of spring football, click HERE.

Exactly what will appear on the new site is yet to be determined, but at the very least there will be a season preview, weekly game previews, game stories and some sort of analysis each week.

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A look at the Delaware football season includes this (LINK):

"It's about getting guys who want to win, no matter if there's a championship or whether it's not," said Tyron Herring, who excelled at cornerback last year after his transfer from Dartmouth. "As individuals, getting guys who want to compete at a high level every week, put their plays on film."

Herring could have played for the Big Green last fall and grad transferred for this season, but graduating from Dartmouth and playing two years at Delaware allowed him opportunities that are not available to an Ivy League football player.

Last year he posted six tackles and forced a fumble playing in front of 108,575 fans at Penn State. And he capped his season with six tackles, a sack and an interception against Montana in the second round of the FCS Championships, which do not include Ivy League teams.

Herring was chosen to the preseason All-CAA honorable mention team heading into the 2024 season (LINK) and is one of the top 30 corners in the nation per HERO Sports. (LINK)

Find his Delaware bio HERE and his final Dartmouth bio HERE.

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Cease and Desist.

For months now when I visit Dartmouth athletics websites I get the same pop-up and have to click the little X in the corner to mercifully send it on its way. It's no great hassle dismissing the pop-up but it is getting annoying.

Even if I had any interest in their newsletter, I wouldn't get it now out of spite for the intrusion. Please stop spamming my computer with this:

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EXTRA POINT

This is a view of part of our lawn and field this morning. If you look closely, you can see an arc starting at the lower right corner and working its way left. That marks the end of the lawn. Beyond that is the field.

The lawn is long, but manageable. You can't tell from this shot, but the field is out of control. All totaled, we have a little over six acres.

I'm more than happy to say that both the lawn and the field should look a lot different by the end of day today and a lot better tomorrow if the repair shop that called and promised a certain delivery today comes through!

P.T. Barnum Would Be Proud

As is the case every year, online ticket resellers will be more than happy to take your money in exchange for Ivy League football ducats. A word to the wise:

Don't give it to them.

Barring Caitlin Clark quitting the WNBA to play Ivy League football, tickets will be available at face value on game day for every game in the Ivy League except the little one in Cambridge on the final Saturday of the season.

For grins, check out these screen grabs for Dartmouth's home opener against Fordham from online sites:

In case the text highlighted in pink is hard to read, it says: "Don't miss out! Less than 1% of tickets left."

Green Alert Take: And can I interest you in purchasing the Ledyard Bridge while we're at it?

Check out this one from ticketsales.com:

Green Alert Take: That's right. You can pay $87 apiece for tickets in Section 7. Or you can buy a couple of general admission tickets at the trailer outside the main entrance to Memorial Field five minutes before kickoff and assign yourself a seat in Section 7.

And for the record, the game is not at 11:59 p.m..

This is from the Ticketsmarter.com website:

How much are Dartmouth Big Green Football tickets?

The cheapest seats at a Dartmouth Big Green Football home game can be around $25 for lesser matchups to get into the stadium. Seats at the fifty-yard line will come at a premium and can cost at least $50 in the upper levels and more than $100 in the lower levels. Rivalry games will typically see an increase in Dartmouth Big Green Football ticket prices by at least 25-50%. Throughout the season, the average price of Dartmouth Big Green Football tickets will be around $27.81, while the lowest price is $15.30 and the highest price is $41.40.

Don't miss out on the next game! Fordham Rams at Dartmouth Big Green Football tickets will start as low as $17.32, while the best seats will top out at $29.70. There are 32 football tickets left for the Fordham Rams at Dartmouth Big Green Football game at Memorial Field, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH on September 21st, 2024 at 12:00am, so be sure to secure your seats as soon as possible.

Green Alert Take: What it says is, "There are 32 football tickets left for the Fordham Rams at Dartmouth Big Green Football game." What it means is, "We have 32 tickets we're hoping not to get stuck with for the game."

Elsewhere . . ..

If you want to go to the Dartmouth game at Yale on Oct. 12? Gametime.co will gladly sit you in the Yale Bowl end zone for the bargain price of $73.

Green Alert Take: I have no words . . .

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The start of preseason is still almost a month away but the preparation continues as this posting on Dartmouth's social media sites reminds us:

Focused on the process🌲#TheWoods pic.twitter.com/cArATiL4yZ

— Dartmouth Football (@DartmouthFTBL) July 24, 2024

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Back to Fordham. Dartmouth's Week One opponent was picked third in the Patriot League preseason poll and has the conference's preseason defensive player of the year. The poll:

1-Lafayette, 72 points (12 first-place votes)
2-Holy Cross, 56
3-Fordham, 53 (1)
4-Colgate, 46 (1)
5-Georgetown, 27
6-Lehigh, 24
7-Bucknell, 16

Off POY Lafayette RB Jamar Curtis
Def POY: Fordham DL Matt Jaworski

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EXTRA POINT
Still waiting . . . 

One Month Away

Are you ready for some football? Dartmouth kicks off preseason practice one month from today, at 8:45 a.m. on Aug. 24!

The season-opener is Sept. 21 when Fordham comes to town.

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Dartmouth announced yesterday (LINK) that in advance of the opening of training camp, the Big Green will once again hold its annual Football 101 celebration for children 12-and-under and their parents. The Aug. 14 event  featuring on-field skill stations, photo opportunities and free food, is slated for 5:30-7 p.m. on Memorial Field.

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Several grad transfers from Dartmouth are in the news as the opening of training camps nears.

From a story headlined Rice ready for leap in 2024 as steady progress under Mike Bloomgren continues comes this (LINK):

Florida receiver Thai Chiaokhiao-Bowman and Brown tight end Graham Walker offer fresh targets in the passing game, while Dartmouth defensive end Charlie Looes and Utah cornerback Faybian Marks could become impactful pieces on defense.  

A story about McNeese State headlined Things to watch at Cowboy camp includes this (LINK):

Micah Davey returns for his junior season after setting records and being named All-American last year. This season he won’t have to do so much if things go right.  Two transfers, Marques White from Dartmouth and Tristan Driggers out of Louisiana-Monroe should give Davey needed help in stopping opponents. 

And while Ethan Sipe is still listed on the Dartmouth roster, he shows up this way in a story headlined Virginia Football: Projecting UVA's Depth Chart Ahead of Fall Camp (LINK):

(W)ith UCF transfer Drake Metcalf expecting to miss a lot of time with an Achilles injury, late transfer addition Ethan Sipe (Dartmouth) could slide into the starting lineup at right tackle.

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EXTRA POINT
I'm almost afraid to jinx it, but The Great Electric Tractor Saga of 2024 could be coming to an end.

I picked up the new blades yesterday and delivered them to the repair shop where I gave the clerk my best pleading look while explaining how much my field has grown in the past month. He confirmed what I'd heard before about how quickly they can get the blades on the repaired tractor and said the only issue is when they have a trailer available to get it back to me.

I'm going to be out of town today but I'll be leaving the garage door up. Nothing short of winning Megabucks would bring a bigger smile than getting back home and finding the tractor in our garage tonight. Stay tuned.

The Official List

There are no positions, heights, weights, hometowns or high schools listed, but Dartmouth has finally announced its freshman class with a photo spread HERE.

All the names previously reported on BGA show up in the graphic along with two previously unknown names, and one who BGA kept waiting to announce.

New names to the class are:

• Christian Harris, a 5-foot-11, 155-pound athlete from Inderkum High School in Sacramento. He was the defensive player of the year in the Capitol Valley Conference this year with Six interceptions and the assumption is he'll play on that side of the ball.

* Aidan White, a 6-1, 225 defensive end from Forsyth Central High School and Cummin, Ga.. He was a  6-7A All-Region and all-county selection.

•  Thai Brown, a 5-10, 170 safety from McDonogh High School in New Orleans. He was unofficially reported as heading to Dartmouth but made the announcement official only after the last BGA posting of the class. His social media reports a Georgia Tech offer.

Here's the class list from Dartmouth's official social media with expected positions. Corrections and clarifications are not just welcomed, but encouraged. ;-)

QUARTERBACK
Noah Trigueros, 6-2, 180, Notre Dame Prep/Scottsdale, Ariz.
Kyle Meier, 6-3, 225, Whitesboro HS/Whitesboro, N.Y.

RUNNING BACK
Dylan Elder, 5-10, 185, Grayson HS/Longville, Ga.

WIDE RECEIVER
Luke Rives, 6-0, 170, Stratford HS/Houston
Jordan Leslie, 6-1, 180, Mullen HS/Denver, Colo.
Ky'Dric Fisher, 5-11, 165, Jacksonville HS/ Jacksonville, Ala.
James Elliott, 6-2, 195, Williston-Northampton/Leeds, Mass.

TIGHT END
Gergely Hudák, 6-6, 225, Kenston Forest/Hungary
Kristian Strong, 6-4, 225, Avon Old Farms/Avon, Conn.

OFFENSIVE LINE
Anthony Ndika, 6-4, 290, Loomis Chaffee/Nigeria
Julian Sutton, 6-4, 306, Loomis Chaffee/Hamden, Conn.
Ryan Turk, 6-4, 280, Loyola HS/Los Angeles

DEFENSIVE LINE
Jackson Ashford, 6-2, 250, IMG Academy/Bradenton, Fla.
Ben Devall, 6-3, 262, Ouachita Christian/Monroe, La.
Taylor Faalele, 6-2, 325, IMG Academy/Plymouth, Minn.
Khari Mayeux, 6-3, 245, Wisdom HS/Houston
Aidan White, 6-1, 225, Forsyth Central/Cumming, Ga.

LINEBACKER
Sean Chester, 6-3, 215, Prestonwood Academy/Frisco, Texas
Tyler Kessel, 6-1 ½, 215 Summit HS/Summit, N.J.
Johnny Riley, 6-3, 210, Delbarton/Morristown, N.J.

NICKEL
Lou Lamar, 6-2, 185, Concordia Lutheran/Magnolia, Texas

DEFENSIVE BACK
Thai Brown, 5-10, 170, McDonogh HS/New Orleans
Christian Harris, 5-11, 155, Inderkum HS/Sacramento, Calif.
Nokoi Maddox, 6-1, 200, Granite Hills/El Cajon, Calif.
Niquis Ratcliff, 6-2, 180, Picayune HS/Picayune, Miss.

PUNTER
Luke Armistead, 6-1, 193, Brentwood HS/Brentwood, Tenn.

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EXTRA POINT
I'm headed out the door as soon as this is posted to drive 45 minutes north and pick up the much-anticipated blades for my electric tractor. This is the set I ordered in place of the blades the repair shop ordered that were to arrive between July 3 and 9, but seemingly have been lost in transit. I'll drop the new blades off at the shop on my way back home and have been told they will be put on in no time. Then all that will be left is getting the tractor delivered before finally attacking my overgrown field. Fingers crossed there are no more hiccups!

Touchdown Dear Old Dartmouth

This is an oldie-but-goodie posted just two days ago and listed this morning as having had "no views." Gotta love the Walt & Ernie's cover photo choice. ;-)

 

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From Dartmouth football's social media account comes a series of photos of Dartmouth football coach Sammy McCorkle tossing out the first pitch at an Upper Valley Nighthawks summer baseball game. The Nighthawks play in the wood-bat New England Collegiate Baseball League.

All smiles as Robert L. Blackman Head Football Coach Sammy McCorkle threw out the first pitch at @UVNighthawks baseball game last weekend.#TheWoods pic.twitter.com/3knXxQYlvq

— Dartmouth Football (@DartmouthFTBL) July 21, 2024

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Following up on yesterday's posting about Niko Lalos '20, his former teammate Isaiah Johnson '22 – who grad transferred for two years at Syracuse – is on the Miami Dolphins' roster as a corner heading into training camp. The Fins' first practice will be on Sunday.

The website Spotrac describes the contact earned by the former Big Green and Orange standout this way (LINK):

Isaiah Johnson signed a 3 year, $2,847,500 contract with the Miami Dolphins, including $17,500 signing bonus, $50,000 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $949,167. In 2024, Johnson will earn a base salary of $795,000 and a signing bonus of $17,500, while carrying a cap hit of $800,833 and a dead cap value of $50,000.

Keep in mind, he still has to make the team to earn the base salary.

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EXTRA POINT
Watching the Open championship on Saturday I was struck by a bit of a resemblance between pro golfer Justin Rose and Hamilton "Ham" Porter, the catcher in the movie The Sandlot famous for the saying, "You're killing me, Smalls."

OK, Rose is skinny in comparison to the chubby catcher, but hey, even Mrs. BGA could see a hint of a  resemblance when we pulled out the DVD and re-watched the sweet 1993 film. It still makes me laugh even when I know half the lines, like this classic offered by Ham when his rag-tag team was challenged:

57 And Counting

OK, this posting on the New Orleans Saints' USA Today page is based on the former Dartmouth standout's uniform number, I missed it a little over a week ago, and there's a glaring typo in the first line, but it's summer and not much is happening, so cut me a break. ;-)

Find the piece HERE. It ends this way:

 If Tanoh Kpassagnon misses most of the season with his Achilles injury, as is expected, that opens up a slot for someone like Lalos to climb the depth chart. But he’ll have to prove he’s a better option than rookie free agent Trajan Jeffcoat or maybe even Payton Turner. Lalos has the size the Saints covet at the position and more pro experience than other players in the competition. He just needs to put it all together with a strong summer.

Find Lalos' New Orleans Saints bio HERE and his old Dartmouth bio HERE.

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EXTRA POINT
We watch the Nightly News on NBC with Lester Holt most evenings and I think the network generally does a balanced job covering the news. But there's one thing lately that I've found annoying, and that is seeing more and more slotting of "advance" stories on the Paris Olympics as part of the Nightly News broadcast.

I don't mean to be a kvetch. While I'm not a big fan of Synchronized Swimming, Rhythmic Gymnastics, BMX Cycling or, I can't believe I'm writing this, "Breaking," I actually like the Olympics. The problem is NBC Nightly News is supposed to be a news program.

Gee, do you think there's a chance NBC's news judgement might be clouded by the fact that the network owns broadcast rights for the Summer Olympics and that it will be dedicating a record 243.5 hours of time on its basic network to airing the Games over the next few weeks?

In case you are wondering, NBC paid $7.65 billion for the rights to broadcast the Olympics through 2032 – so get ready for lots and lots of advance stories about the Games during the Nightly News in years to come, whether they constitute news or not.

Strong Work

From FootballScoop:

Dartmouth (FCS - NH): Dartmouth College is looking for a volunteer Strength and Conditioning/Sports Science intern for the 2024 Fall term, starting September 16th and completing December 6th. Applicants will have the opportunity to work with 34 sports, including football. This is a curriculum based, experience and education focused internship program. Selected applicants will gain valuable experience coaching. The internship curriculum aims to develop future leaders in the field of athletic performance by educating interns on: developing relationships with athletes and staff, being a member of a performance team, designing training programs, nutrition for sport performance, sport science, and creating professional documents, among other topics. Dartmouth College competes in NCAA Division 1 athletics as a member of the Ivy League. Interested candidates can apply to James.M.Baker@dartmouth.edu.

Find the actual posting HERE.

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EXTRA POINT
If you've been a regular visitor to this site you've seen a good number of photos of the mountain views from our Vermont hillside home. (Newbies might want to scroll down this post to see what I'm talking about.) Today, a look at the view from the top of our hill, looking down at our house and the views to the mountains beyond. That Certain Nittany Lion '16 shot this pic of the full moon last night.

Click photo to enlarge.

Mack Tough

Pennsylvania's News Item has a piece about former Dartmouth linebacker Macklin Ayers '24  as he goes through summer drills prior to his grad transfer season at the University of Massachusetts. From the story (LINK):

There is a jump from Football Championship Subdivision (Dartmouth) to the Football Bowl Subdivision, but Ayers said his time at Dartmouth prepared him for the jump.

“I played some great competition and had great teammates at Dartmouth, so I feel it really did prepare me,” Ayers said. “I was ready for it.”

He has noticed differences, though, since joining the highest level of college football.

“I expected it, but the speed is a little faster,” Ayers said. “Guys are flying out there. If you don’t run full speed, you’re going to look slow. You’ve got to run with those guys.”

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From a player his his first year out of Dartmouth to one a year away from suiting up for the Big Green: An SI High School story headlined Top 10 returning South Carolina high school quarterbacks heading into 2024 football season features a Dartmouth commit who listed this way (LINK):

Jaden Cummings, Senior, Summerville
Cummings threw for 2,928 yards and 32 touchdowns with 8 interceptions while completing 68.2 percent of his passes. The Dartmouth commit added four rushing touchdowns.

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The Dartmouth sports publicity football page expands on yesterday's BGA note about linebacker Micah Green being a nominee to the AFCA Good Works Team HERE. 

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The United Football League held its college draft this week and each team could select 10 players. While most players taken were from the FBS ranks, the Memphis Showboats grabbed two FCS wide receivers with one a familiar name

Yale pass catcher Mason Tipton was the lone Ivy League chosen. Interestingly, Memphis also drafted Holy Cross standout Jalen Coker. The other eight Memphis players drafted were all from the FBS. (LINK)

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The Roger Federer-signed football helmet Dartmouth athletics auctioned off now has been followed by a Federer-signed Big Green tennis racket HERE.

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EXTRA POINT
I held off as long as I could in hopes that the AWOL lawn tractor would make an appearance but to paraphrase John Muir, "The grass is calling and I must mow." I put in a few hours yesterday and will get out there again today. I can't do anything about the field but I can at least make the lawn look presentable.

For those keeping score, the replacement blades – the last part of the Great Electric Tractor Rehabilitation of 2024 – were supposed to be delivered to the shop between July 3 and July 9 but they haven't yet arrived and I fear have been lost in transit. That being the case, I ordered a second set Tuesday that was originally supposed to be delivered to the store as early as today. They are now slated to be there "by Wednesday."

Per the repair shop, the tractor will be ready within an hour of the blades arriving – with the last hiccup being to get the thing trailered to our house.

And if the tractor doesn't get here soon? The way our field is growing, I may have to buy a couple of goats.

We Know That Guy!

Former Dartmouth player Jace Henry '24 is one of five "Mountain West TEs to watch" in advance of his first game as a grad transfer at Nevada in a piece out of the Idaho Statesmen. From the story (LINK):

Jace Henry, Nevada — The 6-4, 270-pound fifth-year senior transferred to Nevada this year after four seasons at Dartmouth, where he helped the Big Green win Ivy League titles in 2021 and 2023. He caught 23 passes for 326 yards and scored four touchdowns (two receiving, two rushing) in 25 career games. The former dual-threat quarterback was named the Gatorade Alaska Player of the Year after leading Lathrop High to the state finals as a senior.

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Grad transfer Jamal Cooney '23, who was out of football for a season, gets a quick mention in a look at UAlbany football this fall. From the story (LINK):

Other D1 transfer pass-catchers heading to UAlbany are Dartmouth WR Jamal Cooney, Jackson State WR Seven McGee, and Indiana TE Aaron Steinfeldt.

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Dartmouth linebacker Micah Green '25 is one of a record 178 nominees for the 2024 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team. He's one of three Ivy Leaguers nominated and is joined by Cornell's Maxwell Van Fleet  and Yale's Mason Shipp. (LINK)

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The Ivy League has a story with an alphabetical chart of athletes from the conference competing in the Olympics (LINK). Here's the list reorganized by school:

Name	School	Sports	Nation
Amie Barrow	Brown	Swimming	Gambia
Zehra Bilgin	Brown	Swimming	Turkey
Henry Hollingsworth	Brown	Rowing	USA
Gus Rodriguez	Brown	Rowing	USA
Charlotte Buck	Columbia	Rowing	USA
Anne Cebula	Columbia	Fencing	USA
Jackie Dubrovich	Columbia	Fencing	USA
Evita Griskenas	Columbia	Rhythmic Gym	USA
Bogdan Hamilton	Columbia	Fencing	Canada
Alexander Hedge	Columbia	Rowing	USA
Maodo Lô	Columbia	Basketball	Germany
Kyle Dake	Cornell	Wrestling	USA
Michael Grady	Cornell	Rowing	USA
Taylor Knibb	Cornell	Cycling/Triathlon	USA
Sorin Koszyk	Cornell	Rowing	USA
Rudy WInkler	Cornell	Track	USA
William Bender	Dartmouth	Rowing	USA
Oliver Bub	Dartmouth	Rowing	USA
Madison Hughes	Dartmouth	Rugby	USA
Isalys Quinoñes	Dartmouth	Basketball	Puerto Rico
Ariana Ramsey	Dartmouth	Rugby	USA
Molly Reckford	Dartmouth	Rowing	USA
David Ambler	Harvard	Rowing	Great Britain
Graham Blanks	Harvard	Track	USA
Olivia Coffey	Harvard	Rowing	USA
Liam Corrigan	Harvard	Rowing	USA
Clark Dean	Harvard	Rowing	USA
Eli Dershwitz	Harvard	Fencing	USA
Filip Dolegiewicz	Harvard	Fencing	USA
Kristen Faulkner	Harvard	Cycling	USA
Jessica Guo	Harvard	Fencing	Canada
Colin Heathcock	Harvard	Fencing	USA
Josh Hicks	Harvard	Rowing	Australia
Sophia Montgomery	Harvard	Sailing	Thailand
Hannah Pierce	Harvard	Hockey	South Africa
Pieter Quinton	Harvard	Rowing	USA
Maia Ramsden	Harvard	Track	New Zealand
Stephanie Ratcliffe	Harvard	Track	Australia
Anthony Rincon	Harvard	Swimming	Colombia
Jade Rose	Harvard	Football	Canada
Mitchell Saron	Harvard	Fencing	USA
Lauren Scruggs	Harvard	Fencing	USA
Apostolos Siskos	Harvard	Swimming	Greece
Christian Tabash	Harvard	Rowing	USA
Elizabeth Tartakovsky	Harvard	Fencing	USA
Lisa Tertsch	Harvard	Triathlon	Germany
Gabrielle Thomas	Harvard	Track	USA
Nicholas Zhang	Harvard	Fencing	Canada
Nia Akins	Penn	Track	USA
Dara Alizadeh	Penn	Rowing	Bermuda
Ashley Anumba	Penn	Track	Nigeria
Blake Broszus	Penn	Fencing	Canada
Sunny Choi	Penn	Breaking	USA
Matthew Fallon	Penn	Swimming	USA
Shaul Gordon	Penn	Fencing	Canada
Malak Hamza	Penn	Fencing	Egypt
Sam Mattis	Penn	Track	USA
Samy Morton	Penn	Rowing	Australia
Regina Salmons	Penn	Rowing	USA
Isabella Whittaker	Penn	Track	USA
Isak Žvegelj	Penn	Rowing	Slovenia
Obiageri Amaechi	Princeton	Track	Nigeria
Lizzie Bird	Princeton	Track	Great Britain
Maia Chamberlain	Princeton	Fencing	USA
Claire Collins	Princeton	Rowing	USA
Sabrina Fang	Princeton	Fencing	Canada
Tom George	Princeton	Rowing	Great Britain
Simen Guttormsen	Princeton	Track	Norway
Sondre Guttormsen	Princeton	Track	Norway
Mohamed Hamza	Princeton	Fencing	Egypt
Kat Holmes	Princeton	Fencing	USA
Hadley Husisian	Princeton	Fencing	USA
Ashley Johnson	Princeton	Water Polo	USA
Jonas Juel	Princeton	Rowing	Norway
Emily Kallfelz	Princeton	Rowing	USA
Kareem Maddox	Princeton	Basketball 3x3	USA
Tim Masters	Princeton	Rowing	Australia
Nick Mead	Princeton	Rowing	USA
Tatiana Nazlymov	Princeton	Fencing	USA
Kathleen Noble	Princeton	Rowing	Uganda
Kelsey Reelick	Princeton	Rowing	USA
Adell Sabovic	Princeton	Swimming	Kosovo
Hannah Scott	Princeton	Rowing	Great Britain
Jovana Sekulic	Princeton	Water Polo	USA
Maia Weintraub	Princeton	Fencing	USA
Beth Yeager	Princeton	Hockey	USA
Michelle Alozie	Yale	Football	Nigeria
Ian Barrows	Yale	Sailing	USA
Christina Bourmpou	Yale	Rowing	Greece
Sholto Carnegie	Yale	Rowing	Great Britain
Thomas Digby	Yale	Rowing	Great Britain
Charlie Elwes	Yale	Rowing	Great Britain
Andrin Gulich	Yale	Rowing	Switzerland
Fergus Hamilton	Yale	Rowing	Australia
Margaret Hedeman	Yale	Rowing	USA
Simon Keenan	Yale	Rowing	Australia
Daire Lynch	Yale	Rowing	Ireland
Daisy Mazzio-Manson	Yale	Rowing	USA
Stuart McNay	Yale	Sailing	USA
Maya Meschkuliet	Yale	Rowing	Canada
Sophie Øestergaard	Yale	Rowing	Denmark
Nick Rusher	Yale	Rowing	USA
Kristi Wagner	Yale	Rowing	USA
Dan Williamson	Yale	Rowing	New Zealand
Ollie Wynne-Griffith	Yale	Rowing	Great Britain

Dartmouth also has Casey Ratzlaff representing the United States in wheelchair tennis and coach Wyatt Allen working with rowing.

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EXTRA POINT
Mrs. BGA and I headed up to Vermont's Northeast Kingdom yesterday for a rare opportunity to tour a 21-turbine wind farm. Among other facts we learned at the Kingdom Community Wind farm in Lowell, Vt.: the towers stand 273 feet tall, and from the ground to the tip of an upright blade it is 443 feet. We were informed that the outside tip of the blades can travel 170 miles per hour, that the tower is "intentionally flexible" so it can sway up to 10 feet at the top, and that the turbines have to shut down when the wind speed his 55 mph. The farm can supply a year's worth of electricity to 24,000 homes.

In case you were wondering, standing at the base of the towers the sound was little more than a gentle whoosh and I learned you can get a little disoriented looking straight up one of the towers to shoot photos ;-)