Dartmouth Football Takes on Brown in Last Home Game

HANOVER, N.H. – The Dartmouth football team, after an agonizing, 28-25, loss to Cornell last weekend, will host the Brown Bears on Saturday in its last home contest of the season.

Last Saturday, the Big Green traveled to Cornell University for the annual match-up against the Big Red. More than 400 yards of total offense couldn't produce a win for the Big Green who fell by a close three-point margin to Ivy League competitor Cornell.

A career-high performance by senior quarterback Mike Fritz (Houston, Texas), who threw for 298 yards against the Big Red, couldn't keep the Cornell offense from jumping out to a 21-0 lead in the first half.

“It was a slow start by us, as opposed to a rapid start by them,” said head coach Buddy Teevens. “They scored quickly, then it stopped. But by then we were playing catch-up football.”

The Big Green is going to have to start fast against a Brown team that is averaging more than 350 yards of total offense each game. The Bears rely on their senior QB, Joseph DiGiacomo, who racks up an average of 227 yards a game, and has put up 12 touchdowns in their eight games thus far.

“They're explosive offensively. They're putting the points on the board,” Teevens said of the Brown squad. “Their quarterback is quite productive, and he has two real gifted receivers who can run with the ball after contact. Their multiplicity is the concern. They're effective on the ground and in the air.”

The Bears leading rusher is senior Akin Oyalowo, who has played in seven of the team's eight games and carried the ball 93 times for 350 yards and six scores.

Dartmouth is 4-7 when taking on Brown in their last home game of the season. The last time that occurred was in 2004 when the Big Green knocked off the Bears, 20-7.

“To end on a note against a good football team - who were Ivy League champions a year ago - would certainly be a nice message,” Teevens concluded.

Fritz has stepped up for the Big Green ever since taking over the starting job in week two, as he's completed 117-of-191 pass attempts for 1,351 yards and six touchdowns. His favorite receiver has been senior Ryan Fuselier (Escondido, Calif.) who has caught 44 balls for 547 yards and two touchdowns.

Saturday's game can be heard live in Hanover on radio stations WDCR-AM (1340) and WFRD-FM (99.3) with Bob Lipman handling play-by-play and Wayne Young doing color commentary, or via the internet www.DartmouthSportsRadio.net.

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