How About That!

Former Dartmouth offensive lineman Delby Lemieux is already up on the Minnesota Vikings' roster page (LINK).

Green Alert Take: While Lemieux is on the Vikes' page, former Dartmouth defensive tackle Josiah Green hasn't yet been added to the Tampa Bay Bucs' page. You can bet after "College" for Green it will say Duke, although I'm sure he would prefer Duke/Dartmouth.

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HERO Sports has a ranking of what it calls the top 25 returning quarterbacks in the FCS this fall. The good news is that Dartmouth's Grayson Saunier comes in at No. 18. The Big Green will face four quarterbacks who are ranked, with three ahead of Saunier.

Because lists that go from 25 to 1 can be annoying, I've flipped it so the No. 1 returning QB is at the top and No. 25 is at the bottom. Find the original list HERE if you prefer.

1. Beau Brungard, Youngstown State
2. Justin Lamson, Montana State
3. Keali’i Ah Yat, Montana
4. Chris Parson, Austin Peay
5. Devin Farrell, Rhode Island
6. DJ Williams, Southern Illinois
7. Chase Mason, South Dakota State
8. Andrew Body, Alabama State
9. Jordan Cooke, Idaho State
10. Hayden Johnson, LEHIGH
11. Ty Pennington, Northern Arizona
*t12. Pat McQuaide, Villanova
t12. Collin Hurst, West Georgia (transfer from Presbyterian)
13. Jerry Kaminski, North Dakota
14. James Murphy, BROWN
15. Andrew Indorf, Towson
16. Dante Reno, YALE
17. Cason Carswell, Western Illinois
18. Grayson Saunier, DARTMOUTH
19. Gunnar Smith, Fordham
20. Joshua Wood, Idaho
21. Jake Stearney, Colgate
22. Frankie Weaver, MONMOUTH
23. Bryce Schondelmyer, Dayton
24. Jared Lockhart, Jackson State
25. Sonny Mannino, Marist

*McQuaide could potentially get one more year of eligibility

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HERO earlier had a ranking of the top 25 returning running backs in the FCS. Dartmouth will see three of the ranked players this fall (LINK):

4. Luke Yoder, LEHIGH
15. Xaviah Bascon, HARVARD
21. Matt Childs, BROWN

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EXTRA POINT
With the weather improving (not today ;-) we've gotten a bit lax about shutting our garage doors. As a result, they've sometimes been open all day, and the occasional sparrow has found its way inside. When that happens it's not unusual to head out and find a scared bird crashing into the six windows in the garage before finally escaping through the open doors.

In the garage several days ago I found, uh, "reminders" that at least one bird had been spending time on the steering wheel of my electric tractor. Directly under where it apparently perched were four or five telltale white circles. That evidence was a reminder we have to be better about keeping the doors shut.

We've been good about it ever since, but because there's loft in the garage I worry we may have trapped one of the birds nesting inside and, sadly, discover that when it's too late.

The Call Of The Woods

A 6-foot-2, 190-pound wide receiver prospect named Omarian Sanders posted short videos from his "official visit" recruiting trip to Dartmouth from his home in Lehi, Utah, midway between Salt Lake and Provo. This will give you an idea of the social media aspect of recruiting in 2026.

Here the high school junior is setting up for his photo shoot:

My @DartmouthFTBL 🏈 OFFICIAL VISIT PHOTO SHOOT 📸 was 🔥🔥 @Coach_McCorkle @_CoachWilks @CoachBelfiori @QuentinJones_ @luke_seale @CoachRocket73
… #SlideToTheWoods #GBG 🌲 #TheWoods #IvyLeague @skyridgefb @coachjhemm @Tannarrehrer #AthleticIntelligence pic.twitter.com/yd5Yq7n9JS

— Omarian Sanders (@OmarianSanders) April 16, 2026

Here's part of the shoot itself:

PT1 Official Visit @DartmouthFTBL 🏈📸Photo Shoot Hype Video🔥‼️ MUST SEE TV I promise you and Coach as the “HYPE MAN” you gotta see it for yourself 👀👏🏾.… #SlideToTheWoods #GBG 🌲 #TheWoods Athletic_Intelligence #BooksNBall @skyridgefb pic.twitter.com/nbot7A5cIW

— Omarian Sanders (@OmarianSanders) April 28, 2026

And here are a couple of posts from that shoot:

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I asked Sammy McCorkle for last night's BGA Overtime for thoughts regarding graduating offensive lineman Delby Lemieux not being chosen in the NFL Draft and instead signing with the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent. From the post:

If (Sammy) McCorkle was surprised that former offensive tackle Delby Lemieux was not picked in the NFL Draft, he is one of many who think there was a bright side for the graduating senior not having his name called.

"To tell you the truth, it's almost better if you don't get picked late, because then you can kind of pick where you want to go," he said. "You can look at rosters and see what the depth chart looks like. It's my opinion, but I just have always felt that way. You're better off going free agent than late.

Regarding another issue in the news, McCorkle gave a big thumbs up to the NCAA's five-for-five eligibility proposal.

Find last night's BGA Overtime practice recap HERE.

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FCS Football Central on SI has a piece headlined Which FCS Playoff Contenders Have the Most Returning Experience in 2026? that is a first step toward quantifying talent on 2026 teams. An explanation from that posting: 

We selected programs that are expected to compete for a spot in the FCS Playoffs, or even a possible Celebration Bowl appearance. Teams that were in the FCS Playoffs last season were also included. We excluded a few programs (South Carolina State, Yale, etc.) due to these teams not having updated rosters.

More details:

Each team was assigned a percentage of returning contributors on offense and defense. ... A "returning contributor" is defined as a player who played a significant amount of snaps for their team in 2025 (Roughly 200 or more snaps). We also included players who missed last season with injury, but were projected to be starters before being sidelined. This was adjusted for positions that can make a bigger statistical impact on lower snap counts.

Click HERE to see how 2026 Dartmouth opponents Harvard, Lehigh and Monmouth stack up among the 42 teams listed. (Dartmouth could not be included because its 2026 roster has not yet been posted.)

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Dartmouth has announced its commencement speaker and it's a familiar name:

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EXTRA POINT
Yesterday was Griff the Wonder Dog's 12th birthday and we celebrated with two of his favorite things. First, a hike up the mountain:

And then his favorite canned dinner (and no, he didn't blow out the candle ;-).

This And That

A reminder that Dartmouth will be back on the field late this afternoon to kick off the final two weeks of spring football. BGA Overtime will be there and have a story from practice on the site tonight.

The Green-White spring  game will be one week from Saturday – as Dartmouth's social media reminds us:

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Minnesota Vikings on SI has a piece headlined 7 UDFAs With the Best Chance to Make the Vikings' 53-Man Roster that includes soon-to-be Dartmouth graduate Delby Lemieux. From the story (LINK):

Lemieux is an interesting addition because the only center the Vikings drafted was seventh-rounder Gavin Gerhardt, who ranked lower than him on the consensus board. Lemieux was a left tackle at Dartmouth who was a first team FCS All-American last season but doesn't have the arm length to stick at tackle in the NFL. He transitioned to center this offseason and held up against power competition at the Senior Bowl.

It's not out of the question that Lemieux could beat out Gerhardt and Michael Jurgens to be the Vikings' backup center, although a practice squad spot is more likely.

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The Vikings Territory has a post under the headline Vikings Finalize 2026 UDFA Class. Get to Know ‘Em that includes this (LINK):

Dartmouth product Lemieux played tackle in college, but got some reps at center at the Senior Bowl. He’s another good athlete with the requisite movement skills, but needs to add weight to have a chance at the next level.

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There had been a lot of hand wringing among Yale fans because the football schedule until this week listed just nine games. Bulldog fans can relax with the announcement yesterday that Merrimack has been added to the schedule. (LINK)

Here's the interesting thing. Merrimack had to drop a game against the University of New Haven on Sept. 26 to pick up an Oct. 3 game in New Haven, but this time against Yale.

Merrimack, who Dartmouth will play host to on Oct. 17, now has a bizarre schedule with five consecutive road games, just four home games and seven road contests:

2026 Merrimack Schedule
Friday, Aug. 28 vs. Rhode Island
Thursday, Sept. 3 at Delaware
Saturday, Sept. 12 at Maine
Saturday, Sept. 19 at Tarleton State
Saturday, Sept. 26, Bye
Saturday, Oct. 3 at Yale
Saturday, Oct. 10 Bye
Saturday, Oct. 17 at Dartmouth
Saturday, Oct. 24 vs. New Hampshire
Saturday, Oct. 31 vs. Wagner
Saturday, Nov. 7 at Wake Forest
Saturday, Nov. 14 at Monmouth
Saturday, Nov. 21 vs. Sacred Heart

Green Alert Take: Maybe they should change their name to Road Warriors. 

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Green Alert Take I: If you don't follow hockey all that closely and skimmed over the text to focus on the graphic, you might miss the fact that we're talking about the national coach of the year.

Green Alert Take II: If there was a story about the honor on the Dartmouth site already, I missed it. The USCHO has a story HERE. From that story:

A native of Red Wing, Minn., Cashman was also named ECAC Coach of the Year for the second time in three seasons. He and his staff earned Ivy League Coaching Staff of the Year honors for the second consecutive year.

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EXTRA POINT
Trimming back some pretty nasty sticker bushes yesterday, the electric hedge clippers I was using suddenly stopped working. I know what you are probably thinking, and you are right. I had cut right through the extension cord without realizing it.

If I did something else that careless, I would have been really annoyed with myself. Trust me, I wasn't thrilled. But it did bring a smile because it reminded me that in our basement we have another orange extension cord that someone else cut through and then repaired years ago. My mother was pretty handy that way.

When I told Mrs. BGA what happened she reminded me that when my mother's old electric knife comes out for carving the Thanksgiving turkey you can see where my mother once sliced through the cord and spliced it neatly back together. It's been years and it still works like new.

Let's hope the extension cord I repaired last night lasts as long.

More NFL News

Duke sports information has a story about defensive lineman Josiah Green heading to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent. Green followed a standout career at Dartmouth with a productive grad transfer season in Durham. From the story (LINK):

With the Blue Devils, Green was the defensive recipient of the team's Hard Hitter Award, presented to the hardest-hitting and most physical players on the team. He started all 14 games and ended the campaign with 37 tackles, 7.0 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, three pass breakups and two quarterback pressures. He booked two or more tackles in nine contests, five or more in four and a season-high seven versus NC State.

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The Patriot Ledger had a story about local product Delby Lemieux signing with the Minnesota Vikings, but it was behind a paywall. MSN picked the story up and now it's available to the rest of us HERE.

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One more addition to the list of Ivy Leaguers getting an NFL look with the conclusion of the draft. Here's what has gone public so far:

DARTMOUTH
• OL Delby Lemieux - Vikings
• DL Josiah Green (Duke) – Bucs
• S Sean Williams – Titans (minicamp) 

BROWN
• WR Ty Pezza – Ravens
• DB Elias Archie – Chargers (minicamp) 

HARVARD
• OL Jacob Ritzy (Florida State) – Patriots 

YALE
• TB Josh Pitsenberger – Texans. 
• LS Ben Mann (Boston College) – Giants

Expect a few more names to surface in coming days. 

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Former Dartmouth quarterback Jackson Proctor '25 is in a three-way battle to start at quarterback for South Dakota after spending the early part of last fall as a grad transfer at Northern Illinois. From a story in the Mitchell, S.D., Daily Republic headlined USD quarterback race remains open at close of spring football (LINK):

Proctor arrives with perhaps the most varied career. After four seasons in the Ivy League at Dartmouth and a stop at Northern Illinois last year, he enters his final collegiate season with experience in multiple systems. That experience has translated into flashes of poise, though consistency has been a work in progress as he adapts to the Coyotes' offensive scheme, according to head coach Matt Vitzthum.

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A reminder that after a "bye" week, Dartmouth football will be back on the field for spring practice tomorrow, and BGA Overtime will be there. A huge thank you to those who have sent along encouragement to keep BGA at it for another year.

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EXTRA POINT
If you've been visiting this electronic precinct for a while, you've seen plenty of pictures of the White Mountain views we have from our house. On maybe the most beautiful chamber of commerce day of the year so far, here's a look back toward our Vermont hillside home from our "back 40." Now maybe you understand why we're bringing in a little help keeping the field cut down this year. ;-)

On The Big Stage

Delby Lemieux did not have his name called in the NFL Draft Saturday, but another former Dartmouth standout did. Linebacker Zack Walz, '98, himself a sixth-round pick in 1998, was brought on stage in Pittsburgh yesterday to honor former Arizona Cardinals teammate and roommate Pat Tillman by announcing the 226th pick to his year's draft in Tillman's honor. Fittingly, the pick by the Bengals was Landon Robinson, a defensive tackle from Navy.

Click HERE to watch and listen to a video where Walz talks about the close friend, who lost his life in Afghanistan after walking away from pro football to become an Army Ranger after the 9/11 attacks.

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Courtesy of Dartmouth social media

Green Alert Take I: It's every football player's dream to be chosen in the NFL Draft, but a lot of people around the game think it might actually better to be an undrafted free agent. That offers the chance to pore over rosters to see what team might need what you bring to the field, rather than be chosen by the wrong team in the final round. Rest assured, going to Minnesota wasn't a random decision by Lemieux and his advisors.

Green Alert Take II: The guess here is that Lemieux has a ready-made friend on the Vikings' offensive line to help him learn the ropes. Brian O'Neill, Minnesota's standout right tackle, played at Pitt but he has deep Dartmouth roots. His father, Brendan '72, was a Dartmouth running back, and his uncle John Carney '78, who would go on to serve as governor of Delaware, also played for the Big Green.

Also from Dartmouth social media:

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Among other Ivy Leaguers who are getting a shot:

• Yale tailback Josh Pitsenberger is going to the Texans.

• Yale long snapper Ben Mann, who did a grad transfer season at Boston College, is headed to the Giants.

• Brown wide receiver Ty Pezza is joining the Ravens.

• Harvard offensive lineman Jacob Rizy is headed to the Patriots.

The Ivy League products are not alone in going the free agent route. Just eight former FCS players were chosen in the draft, with four coming out of the FBS ranks and the other four coming straight from the FCS.

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EXTRA POINT
The "paper clip" solution to keep birds off our driveway alarm has been largely successful, but not perfect. It turned out there was just enough room left for them to perch on the sides of the board holding the alarm. I thought that might be the case, but didn't think their tail fathers would reach the sensor. A few false alarms informed me I was wrong, so out came the drill again and in went several more paper clips. As we speak, the birds are being kept at bay, but stay tuned for an update. ;-)

Lemieux Chooses Vikings

Former Dartmouth offensive lineman Delby Lemieux didn't hear his name called in the NFL Draft but when the call came from the Minnesota Vikings he agreed to terms as a UDFA (undrafted free agent).

Per Vikings.com he is one of 19 players who have agreed to terms with the team. (LINK)

More to come when it becomes available.

'D' Day For Delby?

The final four rounds of the NFL Draft will be televised on ESPN today from noon Eastern until 7 p.m.

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If nothing else, this Patriot Ledger photo essay of NFL Draft hopeful Delby Lemieux is a reminder that he wore a "block D" well before arriving at Dartmouth. (LINK) 

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From an SB Nation tory about the Cincinnati Bengals' draft prospects headlined Best available players for Day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft, under the subhed Potential Round 6 and 7 targets (LINK):

Of course, the entire Brown family went to Dartmouth, so the pick very well could be Delby Lemieux. He played tackle in college, and with an Ivy League education, he should be able to handle the transition.

Green Alert Take I: For those who might not be aware, the Bengals are owned and run by a three-generation Dartmouth family.

Green Alert Take II: You can be equally sure the Los Angeles Rams are familiar with Lemieux given the team's president is Dartmouth alum Kevin Demoff – a former football writer for The D – and the team's COO is former Big Green player Tony Pastoors.

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From a Sports Illustrated piece headlined 2026 NFL draft prospect rankings: Best available players for rounds 4-7 (LINK):

235. Delby Lemieux, C, Dartmouth A college tackle who will kick inside at the next level, the 6' 5", 305- pound Lemieux is a solid athlete with good technique and enough strength to translate. Position and competition adjustments will give Lemieux a steep development curve, but he has the tools to warrant optimism.

Editor's Note: That 235 represents where SI had Lemieux ranked coming into the draft.

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EXTRA POINT
As you might expect, our electric lawn tractor has several huge batteries. Because removing them unfortunately requires disassembling the back of the machine, the manual suggests leaving them in place during the winter, but making sure the tractor remains plugged in. With an unheated garage and temperatures that can drop to the teens-below-zero, that's a scary proposition. I was pleased a couple of weeks ago when I first brought the tractor out to haul a little yard waste that it seemed to be running just fine.

Yesterday came the big test as a mower. Although much of our lawn has yet to come out of hibernation, some of it was getting pretty shaggy and I had my fingers crossed when I switched on the motor that runs the cutting mechanism. Yes! I'm happy to report the shaggy parts of our lawn may not look quite like Augusta National, but at least they are no longer shaggy.

Closing In On It

The first night of the NFL Draft is behind us . Rounds 2 and 3 are set for tonight, but things will get interesting tomorrow for those keeping an ear out hoping to hear Dartmouth offensive lineman Delby Lemieux's name called.

In case you are wondering, rounds 4-7 take place Saturday beginning at noon. Teams will have five minutes to make their selections in rounds 4-6, and four minutes in the final round.

FCS Football Central on SI includes Lemieux in its list of the top five offensive prospects from the FCS ranks. From that posting (LINK):

1. Bryce Lance, North Dakota State wide receiver

2. Daniel Sobkowicz, Illinois State wide receiver

3. Rodney Hammond, Sacramento State running back

4. Cole Payton, North Dakota State quarterback

And . . . 

5. Delby Lemieux | IOL | Dartmouth Lemieux is a fringe NFL roster prospect with upside as he transitions from offensive tackle to interior offensive line. Though the transition from tackle to interior can be difficult, Lemieux is poised for a smoother one thanks to his best trait: technical soundness. He had a solid week down in Mobile, Alabama, for the Senior Bowl and helped his stock rise significantly. Teams willing to take a swing on a versatile and technically sound offensive lineman as a preferred free agent will get a hidden gem. He has upside to be a potential adequate starter.

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The New Orleans NBC TV station WDSU, has the Saints taking Lemieux in the sixth round at No. 172 overall. (LINK)

The Silver and Black Pride Las Vegas Raiders site has its own Top 300 Big Board with Lemieux coming in at No. 217. (LINK)

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Lemieux isn't the only former Dartmouth player looking to continue his career. Senior Sean Williams and fellow defensive back Onye Onuoha, who grad transferred to Butler, showed their stuff at the Big Green's pro day..

Green Alert Take: While every player would love to hear his name called even at the tail end of the draft, coaches will tell you that for some it's actually better not to be taken at that point. That allows the player and his agent the opportunity to pore over rosters and pick the best landing spot as an undrafted free agent.

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A story about the Monmouth football team Dartmouth will play in its Sept. 26 home opener revealed that the Hawks have brought in no fewer than 16 players from the transfer portal (LINK). Among those players are an offensive lineman from Penn State, a defensive lineman from Syracuse, and a linebacker from UMass. Returning on the roster from a year ago are an offensive lineman who transferred from Illinois, a linebacker from Rutgers and a handful of other transfers.

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EXTRA POINT
Remember that Extra Point a little while back about our new driveway alarm that plays the Addams Family theme? (LINK) The best part, even better than the tune, is that it almost never issued false alarms, a real flaw in our old alarm.

But that changed.

As it turned out, our feathered friends discovered they really enjoy perching on the alarm. And when bird visitors sit facing away from the driveway, their tail feathers hang over the sensor, triggering the Addams Family music. That started to get really old.

It's not the most sightly thing, but I've come up with a solution that keeps the birds and the Addams Family at bay, while allowing the solar panel atop the alarm to keep charging the internal batteries. The solution: paper clips!