Green-White Scrimmage Allows Players to Showcase Their Skills

Nick Howard football action versus Cornell

Sophomore Nick Howard

Photo by: Doug Austin

Green-White Scrimmage Allows Players to Showcase Their Skills

5/24/2021 11:00:00 AM | Football

QB Nick Howard had a busy day in the annual spring event

By: Bruce Wood of Big Green Alert and Rick Bender

HANOVER, N.H. — Second-team quarterback Nick Howard was the most active player on the offense with 13 completions in 18 attempts for 93 yards and one touchdown while rushing 11 times for 39 yards as Dartmouth held its annual Green-White scrimmage Saturday on Memorial Field.

"It was good to get on the field and play about three-quarters of a game," said Buddy Teevens, the Robert L. Blackman Head Football Coach. "We don't have a complete roster on campus, so we didn't want to go with a full game. But to have a game environment after going a year-plus without one was very productive for us."

Starting quarterback Derek Kyler completed 5-of-8 throws for 65 yards with one throw-away and one clear drop. Freshman QB Devon Lingle was 4-of-9 for 28 yards and should have had a touchdown pass only to see it dropped.

Jamal Cooney led the receiving corps with five catches for 59 yards while Paxton Scott grabbed three balls for 45 yards and Jarmone Sutherland three for 23 with an 11-yard TD from Howard.

Noah Roper had 48 yards on five carries to pace the ground attack with a 38-yard burst on his first run. Keegan McHugh ran six times for 23 yards, Joey Richmond four times for 21 yards, Tyler Green four gaining 17 and Tevita Moimoi three times for 19 yards.

"We certainly got a lot of reps for a number of younger players," Teevens continued. "The positional work prior to spring practice really helped the younger receivers. Behind center, Kyler is simply an unflappable, seasoned player and gives us a great veteran presence back there. Howard is a very physical guy, and the reps he got this spring have helped him progress quite a bit. He's become more comfortable with the offense and his passing accuracy continues to improve, probably ahead of where Gerbino was at the same stage."

Connor Davis hit field goals of 38, 34 and 35 yards before coming up short from 50 at the end of the scrimmage. Ryan Bloch added a 20-yarder.

Cameron Baller averaged 37 yards on punts with Davis' only punt traveling the same distance and having the best hang time. After a short kickoff on his first attempt, Davis' other kicks went into the end zone with the last one high and eight yards deep.

"The kickers are getting used to a new holder, but Davis is solid. Baller has made great strides with his punting, and while Bloch may not quite have the range of Davis, he is accurate," Teevens noted. "Josh Greene has done a real nice job taking over long-snapping duties and is playing with a lot of confidence, too."

With plays ended by whistles and everyone still upright — most of the time — defensive stats were almost impossible to compile but Jalen Mackie had at least two tackles for loss with Dylan Lacroix collecting a sack and a tackle for loss. Isaiah Johnson had two clear pass breakups, Onye Onuoha and Niko Mermigas one apiece, and Cam Maddox had what would have been an interception if the officials hadn't blown the quarterback down before he threw the ball.

"I thought the fundamentals displayed by our defensive players — footwork, strategic and technical awareness with the play calling — was really good," Teevens commented. "We have some experience in the secondary in particular, but there is good competition. We are missing a number of linebackers and linemen, so a bunch of guys that have not had a lot of snaps got a bunch of them and showed what they can do. Overall I was very pleased not only with the effort but the execution."

Dartmouth will conclude spring practice with sessions Tuesday and Thursday.