Dartmouth will open the 2024 season against the best quarterback in the Patriot League and finish it against the best QB in the Ivy League if HERO Sports has it right.
Per HERO, when Fordham invades Memorial Field on Sept. 21 Dartmouth's biggest challenge may be to slow down CJ Montes, who threw for 3,000 yards, 26 touchdowns and just one interception a year ago. He also ran for three scores. From the HERO story (LINK):
In his first year at Fordham after transferring from New Mexico, Montes was a 2023 Walter Payton Award finalist. With recent Patriot League power Holy Cross going through some transition with a coaching change and some key players moving on, Montes might be the kind of talent that pushes Fordham to the past levels of the Chase Edmonds days.
The season will finish on Memorial Field with Brown being led by fifth-year senior Jake Willcox, who passes for 2,924 yards, 18 touchdowns and nine interceptions a year ago. The quarterback labeled the best in the Ivies went 20-for-37 for 198 yards, one touchdown and one interception last fall in a 38-13 loss to Dartmouth. From HERO:
Willcox couldn’t participate in spring drills as a fifth-year player, but is expected to be under center this fall – the top QB returner in the Ivy League in 2024. Another good candidate is Cornell’s Jameson Wang.
Dartmouth will face Wang and Cornell one week before Brown comes to town.
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While The Hampshire Honor Society was announced in April (BGA link) a release out of West Virginia regarding the Mountaineers' honorees includes this mention of Dartmouth that might have been overlooked:
"23 colleges and universities who have had at least one player in all 18 years of the NFF Hampshire Honor Society (2007-24), including BYU, Brown, Bucknell, Columbia, Dartmouth, Dayton, Iowa, Johns Hopkins (Maryland), Kentucky, Lafayette, Minnesota, North Dakota, North Dakota State, Penn State, Redlands (California), Saint John’s (Minnesota), SMU, South Dakota State, Wayne State (Michigan), Wingate (North Carolina), Yale and Youngstown State."
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The National Football Foundation 2025 College Football Hall of Fame ballot is out (LINK) and features four Ivy Leaguers. Here are their bios:
Keith Elias, Princeton-Running Back-Two-time First Team All-American (1992-93) and 1993 Ivy League Player of the Year…Princeton's all-time leader in rushing yards (4,208) and rushing touchdowns (49)…Three-time All-Ivy performer who helped the Tigers to the 1992 conference title.
Carl Morris, Harvard-Wide Receiver-2002 First Team All-American who holds virtually every Harvard receiving record, including career receptions (245) and TD receptions (28)…Ranks third all-time in Ivy history with 3,508 career receiving yards…Holds Ivy record for career 100-yard games (15) and 200-yard games (3).
Martin Peterson, Pennsylvania-Offensive Tackle-Named First Team All-America, First Team All-Conference and First Team All-ECAC in 1986…His teams won three conference titles.
John Zanieski, Yale-Middle Guard-Named First Team All-American and First Team All-Ivy League in 1984…Selected as the team's MVP in 1984…Finished second on school's quarterback sack list with 21.
Green Alert Take: I mention this every year, but having to be a first-team All-American to be on the ballot is very limiting. It's hard to see Keith Elias on the list when Jay Fiedler, who had epic battles with Elias in the Dartmouth-Princeton games, is not.
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For those of you who might tune in to the UFL semifinals tomorrow at 3 p.m. on ABC, here's a two-deep for the Birmingham Stallions with left tackle Matt Kaskey '19 and the Michigan Panthers. Click the graphic to enlarge:
If the NCAA disappeared tomorrow, it might disrupt a couple seasons, but the Conferences could quickly fill the void. If one of the major banks had collapsed in 2008, the fear was that the global financial system itself would have disintegrated. That’s why the government stepped in and every step was taken to protect the banks. We’re treating the NCAA the same way now. But does anyone really believe it’s impossible to hold a basketball tournament or a bowl game without the NCAA? Why go to such lengths to protect it?
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Another Sign of the Apocalypse: Ohio State is offering 750 fans a day the opportunity to watch a practice between Aug. 1 and Aug. 4. But hey, you get a pair of commemorative "training camp sunglasses" and an invitation to the "family-friendly Fanfest." (LINK)
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EXTRA POINT
With yesterday being the 80th anniversary of D-Day we rented Saving Private Ryan last night. It's just a movie but it helped put the day in perspective. From Wikipedia: "WWII veterans described the combat scenes as the most realistic portrayal of their own experiences they had seen; some said they had been unable to watch it due to their traumatic memories."
