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Football
vs New Hampshire
Football Heads to Penn for Ivy Opener
10/1/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
HANOVER, N.H. ? Looking to erase the memory of a home-opening 42-6 defeat against New Hampshire ? currently ranked fifth nationally ? Dartmouth hits the road this week, having the distinction of playing against Penn in the Quakers' 800th game at historic Franklin Field on Saturday at noon. Both teams are attempting to break into the win column for the first time this year as they enter their first Ivy League game with identical 0-2 marks.
“Franklin Field has such tremendous history,” stated Dartmouth Head Coach Buddy Teevens, who has played and coached at the venue. “Some of the greatest games in Ivy League history have occurred there. It truly is a special experience and wonderful opportunity to participate in the tradition of this league, and Franklin Field is a big part of that tradition.”
The Big Green have an opportunity to begin a personal winning streak against Penn following a 21-13 victory in Hanover last year, ending a nine-game losing streak to the Quakers. In the 75 games played in the series thus far, Penn holds a 41-32-2 advantage, and Dartmouth has not won consecutive games since 1996-97. At Franklin Field, the Big Green is 15-29-1 all-time with their last triumph more than a decade ago, a 23-15 triumph in 1997.
For Dartmouth to succeed this week, it will need to shore up some defensive deficiencies. The Big Green are last among 118 FCS teams in rushing defense (298.5 yds/game), next to last in total defense (488.0 yds/game), and only six teams have yielded more points. Those figures are a bit misleading, however, as Dartmouth has had the task of trying to contain the all-time FCS leading rusher in Jordan Scott of Colgate to start the season, as well as a top-10 team in New Hampshire last week.
While the offense was stymied against Dartmouth's in-state rival, junior quarterback Alex Jenny (Wayland, Mass.) has impressed the coaching staff with his poise and decision-making. In two games, he has completed 58.7 percent of his passes for 473 yards with a pair of touchdowns and two interceptions, one of which came on a circus catch after the ball was tipped several times.
Jenny was without one of his best targets against New Hampshire, senior Philip Galligan (Moraga, Calif.), who sat the game out with an injury a week after catching 10 passes for 146 yards at Colgate. Between Galligan, fellow senior Eric Paul (The Woodlands, Texas), who has 10 receptions for 120 yards in his two games, and sophomore Tim McManus (St. Paul, Minn.), Jenny has a trio of wide receivers to whom he can spread around his passes.
The running game is led by senior Milan Williams (Mobile, Ala.), averaging 4.5 yards on his 31 carries this year. At his current pace of 69 yards per game, Williams would finish his career with 1,700 yards, which would rank seventh all-time at Dartmouth.
Penn has come up just short in both of its efforts this year, falling 20-14 in overtime to Villanova ? which beat top-ranked Richmond last week ? and 24-17 to Lafayette after trailing 24-0 at the half. Quarterback Robert Irvin guides the offense, averaging just over 200 yards through the air in his first two games. Brad Blackmon and Mike DiMaggio share the rushing workload as the two combine to run for nearly 100 yards a game. Blackmon is also a viable receiver out of the backfield with five receptions, including a 42-yard touchdown catch, the longest play of the season for the Quakers. The defense has been opportunistic, forcing seven turnovers with five interceptions.
“Penn is a very good football team and always very well coached,” Teevens commented. “Coach Bagnoli will have his team ready, you can be sure of that. Penn is always known for its physical play, and they do some nice things on offense. Yards won't come easy against that defense, either. Simply put, we need to play well against a good football team.”
Last year, the Quakers trailed by 15 late in the fourth quarter before reaching the end zone with 2:17 to play. They recovered an onside kick and advanced to the Dartmouth six, only to have a fourth-down pass fall incomplete with 22 seconds on the clock.
The game will be televised by Comcast CN8 regionally, featuring Jeff Rickard and Scott Zolak with Jeff Shurilla as the sideline reporter. Big Green fans can also listen to the Dartmouth Radio Network on 99.3 FM WFRD with Bob Lipman and Wayne Young '72 calling the action, plus Andy Sloan on the sidelines. To listen over the internet, log on to www.DartmouthSportsRadio.net. Sirius Satellite Radio is also providing the broadcast on channel 130.
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