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JJ Jones, Dartmouth's 6-foot-2, 230-pound tight end from Tracy, Calif., is the subject of a story in the Navajo Times spun out of the Ivy League decision not to play football this fall. From the story (LINK):
“As a senior I was hoping to be a bigger contributor on offense and special teams,” said Jones, who is half Navajo and half Anglo. “I think my coaches were looking for me to do that and I was hoping to follow through with that.”
(Diné, used in the story headline, is the word for how the Navajo refer to themselves.)
More from the story regarding Jone's progress in the five-year engineering program:
... (W)hile the upcoming football season is in limbo, Jones said he still needs two more years to complete his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.
And this:
“Even if we don’t have a season I still have a fifth year of eligibility,” Jones said. “I’m looking at this as a blessing to where I can take more time to develop physically and keep working on my game by watching film and studying the playbook.”
And finally, it's hardly the first time Dartmouth has been referred to as the "Mean Green." The "Green Wave" is another name that pops up on occasion ;-)
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This seems kind of random but Tennessee's VolsWire has a podcast featuring Dartmouth wide receivers coach David Shula. Per the description, "Shula joined the show “Tennessee Two-A-Days” to discuss returning to coaching and winning the 2019 Ivy League championship at Dartmouth."
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The local Valley News has a good news story about the recovery from knee surgery of Tom Bissaillon, who tore his ACL last fall playing on the Woodstock (Vt.) soccer team. Why mention that here?
The last name might be familiar to more than a few Dartmouth football players. From the story headlined, Rising Woodstock senior overcomes injury to secure spot on summer baseball squad (LINK):
His father Mike’s job as an equipment manager for Dartmouth College athletics led to consultations with Charlie Carr, the Big Green football program’s team doctor, which helped set a course for surgery and rehabilitation.
Mike Bissaillon has been the head equipment manager at Dartmouth since the 1998 football season. While Steve Ward has headed up the football equipment room, Mike is a regular and calming presence around the program.
Editor's Note: I've been at Dartmouth football practices when all Mike could do between tightening chin straps and shoulder pads is sneak an occasional peek at his phone for reports on how his son's games were going. I know how hard that can be. It's wonderful to learn Tommy will be back in action for his senior athletic seasons this year.
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Under an SI AllBucs headline reading Lori Locust Paving the Way for Next Generation of Women in NFL Coaching is a story about the assistant defensive line coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who spent a little time on the field observing Dartmouth preseason back when Callie Brownson was first in Hanover. Dartmouth gets a little mention in the story HERE.
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This is from the "You are judged by the company you keep" department and it's hardly a secret that the Ivy League has a growing relationship with the Pioneer Football League.
Commissioner Patty Viverito had the following to say in a Star Tribune story (LINK) regarding the move of the University of St. Thomas from Division III to the non-scholarship PFL:
I got my first phone call from a skeptical person in our league who said, ‘Now, wait a minute, I have a hard enough time competing in the current Pioneer Football League lineup. How am I going to compete against St. Thomas? They’re too good.’
To her credit, this was Viverito's response in the newspaper:
"Whenever you can find a member who will make your league better, you act,” she said. St. Thomas, with its 126-21 record under longtime coach Glenn Caruso — including two NCAA championship appearances the past eight seasons — just seemed to fit.
Green Alert Take: It will certainly be interesting to see how the Tommies fare when they begin PFL play. On the one hand, it will be good if they come in and raise the level of play in the Pioneer. On the other hand, if a team from DIII raises the level, what does it say about the league the Ivies are starting to schedule, and how much the Ivy League is willing to challenge itself?
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Apparently the rule referenced below has been on the books for a while, but it is getting new currency as college football wrestles how to progress in a pandemic. From FootballScoop:
If a coach gets sick during the season, NCAA has approved ability for teams to use an interim from analysts/GAs to replace them while quarantined.
How timely. Toledo head football coach Jason Candle announced yesterday he has tested positive for COVID-19 although he's not experiencing any significant symptoms.
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It's Division III but another league has announced it is going to spring football. The Northwest Conference, whose members include Linfield (which leads all of college football with 64 consecutive winning seasons along with four national championships) made the announcement this week. (LINK)
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The NCAA Board of Governors is scheduled to meet tomorrow and could elect to cancel all fall championships – including in the FCS. Although the organization would not be empowered to cancel the FBS postseason (because it is not under the NCAA auspices) what it decides could have a domino effect. But that decision might not be coming. The AP reports (LINK):
The NCAA football oversight committee is asking the association’s Board of Governors to avoid making a decision soon on whether to conduct fall championships as college sports tries to find a path to play through the pandemic.
A letter dated July 21 was sent by committee chairman Shane Lyons, the West Virginia athletic director, to the board before it meets Friday. . .
“We acknowledge that the path forward will be challenging, and that the virus may ultimately dictate outcomes,” the letter says. “We are simply requesting that the Board of Governors not make an immediate decision on the outcome of fall championships, so that conferences and schools may have ample latitude to continue to evaluate the viability of playing football this fall.”
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The Dartmouth has a story spun from the latest “Community Conversations” livestream with Provost Joseph Helble that reveals all winter study abroad programs have been called off. (LINK)
Also from the story:
At this time, Dartmouth will be able to accommodate all transfer students, ’22s and ’24s who requested on-campus residence for the fall, according to Helble.
And:
Helble said that the College experienced a “substantial” operating loss of $36 million for the fiscal year 2020, a number that amounts to about 40 percent of the College’s original estimate of $83 million during the spring. He cited the improved investment market, support from the Dartmouth College Fund and efforts to reduce “non-compensation expenses” as factors that contributed to the reduced budget deficit.
More from the story:
According to Helble, the College currently estimates an $100 million loss in revenue for fiscal year 2021 against the annual operating budget of approximately $1.1 billion.
And:
(Chief financial officer Mike) Wagner said that under the hybrid model in which half of the undergraduate student body will be in residence, the room and board fees will likely contribute a loss in revenue of $32 million out of the $100 million estimate. He added that testing, health management and purchase of personal protective equipment is projected to cost about $15 million in fiscal year 2021.
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The website Dartmo., The Buildings of Dartmouth College – which always does a thorough and professional job looking at Dartmouth's facilities – offers thoughts about what to do with the "land bank" north of campus under the headline, The end of the Hanover Country Club. (LINK)
Green Alert Take: Selfishly I wish the five points that are listed had a sixth: Preserve the land for future return as a golf course.
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EXTRA POINT
I was in downtown Hanover yesterday for just the second time in more than four months and I snapped this picture:
As tempting as it is, and trust me, it's REALLY tempting sometimes, I try to keep BGA Daily from being political outside of sports. That said, I was pleased to see so many masks worn by people young and old in town. I fully expected not to see a single person without one. Granted, we've been relatively isolated in the Upper Valley from what is happening nationally – Vermont hasn't added to its 56 COVID deaths in more than a month and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center has been very quiet – but still I was saddened to see the number of people who were not wearing masks. I'm sure I am a little naive but if everyone in a town like Hanover isn't taking things seriously . . .
