Pierre, Gay Chosen as Ivy Football Players of the Week

HANOVER, N.H. — Dartmouth junior Dominick Pierre and senior Miles Gay today were selected as the Ivy League's co-Offensive Player of the Week and Special Teams Player of the Week, respectively. Pierre ran for two touchdowns among his 26 carries, amassing a career-high 170 yards on the ground, while Gay earned his award for returning the season's opening kick 85 yards for a touchdown in a 35-7 victory over Butler on Saturday night at Memorial Field.

Gay was also named one of five Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) Kickoff Returners of the Week by the College Football Performance Awards, while Pierre earned honorable mention for the FCS running backs.

Pierre, a 5-11, 215-pound native of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., started for just the second time in his career — topping 100 yards both times — after spending his first two seasons as an understudy to All-American Nick Schwieger, Dartmouth's all-time leading rusher. A consistent force out of the backfield that was never stopped behind the line of scrimmage on Saturday, Pierre took the ball 13 times in the first half for 86 yards and a touchdown, then 13 more times in the second half for 84 yards and another score. He capped the Big Green's first offensive possession with a sweep around the left side for a seven-yard touchdown run and a 14-0 lead. In the fourth quarter, Pierre put the finishing touch on the victory with a one-yard dive into the end zone. The Calvary Christian Academy product also caught a pair of passes for four yards, giving him 174 all-purpose yards on the night.

Pierre's only other start came in the second game of his freshman campaign in 2010 against Sacred Heart. He posted 110 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 25 carries in the 21-19 victory.

Gay, a 5-11, 215-pound linebacker, was lined up as an upback for the opening kickoff formation, but ended up fielding the line-drive kick on a bounce at the 15-yard line. A running back in high school in Friendswood, Texas, he put his old skills to good use as he broke one tackle at the 27, then bounded to the left sideline and turned upfield. At the 40, Gay juked his way past the kicker and sprinted the final 60 yards for the score. The return is the first and only time Gay has had possession of the football in his career. Later in the contest, he contributed a pair of tackles from his usual linebacking spot.

It was the first touchdown on a kickoff return for Dartmouth since Pete Pidermann brought one back 85 yards at Princeton in the final game of the 2008 season.

Dartmouth (1-0) hits the road this Saturday to play at Holy Cross (0-2), which fell in its home opener to Brown this past weekend, 24-21. Last year the Crusaders were able to fend off the Big Green, 25-17, to take the all-time series lead at 36-35-4.

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