Ivy Play Begins on National TV Friday Night at Penn

Friday, October 1

Philadelphia, Pa. / Franklin Field

7:00 PM

Dartmouth College

Penn

Football team takes the field against Sacred Heart, Sept. 25, 2021

The Big Green invade Franklin Field on Friday night.

Photo by: Gil Talbot

Ivy Play Begins on National TV Friday Night at Penn

9/29/2021 10:00:00 AM | Football

Friday, Oct. 1 Freanklin Field ESPNU Broadcast Audio Broadcast Live Stats Teevens TeleTeaser @DartFootball Dartmouth Notes Penn Notes Series History

Football will start the defense of its conference crown on ESPNU against the Quakers

By: Rick Bender

Dartmouth (2-0, 0-0) at Penn (1-1, 0-0)
Friday, Oct. 1, 2021 | 7 PM | ESPNU
Franklin Field | Philadelphia, Pa.

Ready for Prime Time in Ivy Opener
Dartmouth truly begins the defense of its 2019 Ivy League crown with the conference opener at Penn on Friday night. The game is being televised on ESPNU, one of three times the Big Green will appear on the network this fall. And after sputtering a bit in its season-opening win at Valparaiso, Dartmouth certainly looked ready for this moment thanks to a convincing 41-3 triumph over NEC preseason favorite Sacred Heart this past Saturday.

Where to start with the rundown of the game: offense, defense or special teams? All three were clicking for the Big Green, but we'll go with an offense that racked up 404 yards, 286 on the ground, and featured a pair of 100-yard rushers who helped the team average 8.9 yards per carry, the highest total in at least 50 years.

Nick Howard, the second half of the quarterbacking tandem, proved to be just about unstoppable. The junior barreled over the Pioneer defense for 154 yards and a pair of touchdowns on just nine carries (17.1-yard average) to earn Ivy League Offensive Player of the Week honors. He would rank second in the FCS in rushing average for the season (11.0), but he is one attempt shy of qualifying.

While Howard was topping 100 yards for the first time in his career, so was senior RB Zack Bair. His 47-yard touchdown in the second quarter really got the ground game going, and he finished with 103 yards on 11 carries, "only" a 9.4-yard average.

Dartmouth did utilize the passing game sparingly but effectively as well. Derek Kyler showed off his uber-efficiency by completing all 10 of his throws for 106 yards and two scores. His season passing efficiency of 203.98 is tops among FCS quarterbacks.

And how about that defense? Led by LB Tanner Scott with a career-high 10 tackles and a forced fumble deep in Big Green territory in the first quarter, Dartmouth held Sacred Heart to 274 yards and three points. More than 30 percent of those yards (83) came during the final drive of the game when the outcome was secure.

Both Marques White and Bobby Jefferson had a pair of sacks to contribute to the team's total of seven on the afternoon. And for much of the fourth quarter, head coach Buddy Teevens was able to get a bunch of the younger players some experience as 29 different defenders recorded at least one tackle.

Special teams was just that — special — after some hiccups in the season opener. Jamal Cooney dazzled the crowd with three long punt returns — 22, 64 and 42 yards — to earn Ivy League Special Teams Player of the Week honors. His first return actually went 62 yards for a touchdown only to be shortened due to a penalty. Cameron Baller was called upon to punt only once, but he dropped a 40-yard boot inside the Pioneer 5. Although he did miss a PAT, ending the team's streak of 51 straight made dating back to 2018, he recovered to make his next three before Ryan Bloch subbed in for the final two extra points.

Scouting the Quakers
Penn enters its Ivy League opener reeling a bit from a 24-14 loss at Lafayette last Saturday, which came on the heels of a solid 30-6 victory at Bucknell two weeks ago. But with the Quakers playing in front of their home crowd for the first time since 2019, expect emotions and the adrenaline to be running high Friday night.

Running the offense is quarterback John Quinnelly, who has completed 33-of-56 passes (.589) for 517 yards and three touchdowns. But he was victimized for three interceptions last week as well.

Quinnelly has definitely shown a preference for two of his receivers in Ryan Cragun (14 catches, 206 yards) and Rory Starkey (9 for 234). The rest of the team has caught 10 passes for 77 yards.

The running game looked strong against the Bison in week one, grinding up 210 yards on the ground at an average of 4.7 yards per carry. But then the Leopards held Penn to a paltry 11 yards on 27 attempts, so where does the Quakers' true rushing attack lie? Isaiah Malcome has taken the lead in the backfield with a team-high 25 carries and 102 yards, though Trey Flowers has both scoring runs.

More than likely, this game will be a bit of a defensive struggle as both sides are among the FCS leaders in total defense (Dartmouth 8th, Penn 9th), passing defense (Dartmouth 2nd, Penn 3rd) and scoring defense (Dartmouth 5th, Penn 11th).

Defensive tackle Prince Emili has been a monster up front with three sacks and three quarterback hurries, while linebacker Khalil Lewis and nose guard Micah Morris lead the Quakers with 13 tackles apiece. The top cover man in the secondary is cornerback Jason McCleod Jr. with the team's lone interception and four PBUs.

Daniel Karrash handles the place kicking duties and is 5-for-5 on PATs and 3-for-4 on field goals. Punter Ben Krimm averages 35.1 yards with half of his eight punts ending inside the 20.

Ray Priore (Albany '85), in his seventh year (sixth season) as the George A. Munger Head Coach with a record of 32-20, led the Quakers to a share of the conference crown each of his first two seasons. This is his 35th year on the Penn staff, helping secure 10 Ivy titles in 28 seasons as an assistant with his last 16 as the defensive coordinator and secondary coach.

Series Record
• Dartmouth is 37-48-2 all-time against the Quakers in a series that began in 1896.
• Buddy Teevens is 8-12 against the Quakers overall with a 5-5 mark at Franklin Field.
• Penn coach Ray Priore is 1-4 versus Dartmouth.
• Since Ivy play officially began in 1956, Penn holds a slim 33-31 advantage. Dartmouth won 20 of the first 26 games before Penn took 26 of the next 32, but the Green have since won five of the last six meetings.
• The Quakers own the longest winning streak in the series at 11 games from 1942-56.
• Dartmouth is 18-31-1 at Franklin Field but have won its last three contests at the venue.

Win Streaks Remain Intact
Dartmouth managed to extend its win streak against non-conference opponents to 18 with its 41-3 victory over Sacred Heart on Sept. 25. It is the longest such win streak for the Big Green during the Ivy League era that began in 1956. You would have to go back to the 1922-28 seasons to find a longer win streak against teams that did not eventually form the Ivy league (26).

The week prior, Dartmouth also won its 11th straight season opener (longest since 13 in a row from 1960-72), defeating Valparaiso, 28-18. The triumph was also its seventh straight on the road, matching the streaks from 2011-13 and again from 2014-15 as the longest since a program-record 14-game road win streak during the 1995-97 campaigns.

Ivy Players of the Week, Part Deux
Dartmouth had two more hot shots earn Ivy League Player of the Week honors following the 41-3 victory over Sacred Heart on Sept. 25, this time on offense and special teams.

Junior QB Nick Howard barreled through the Pioneer defense for a career-high 154 yards on just nine carries (17.1-yard average) with a pair of touchdowns. His 53-yard score in the third quarter boosted the Big Green lead to 27-3, and he added a 39-yard run to the end zone a few minutes later. All this in just the third game he has played in his college career.

Junior WR/PR Jamal Cooney electrified the home crowd with not one, not two, but three long punt returns, helping to flip the field. His first return in the second quarter was officially only 22 yards due to a penalty, negating the last 40 yards that he traversed to the end zone. But he added returns of 64 yards and 42 yards in the fourth quarter to give him 128 for the game, the most by any FCS player this year. But it's not a Dartmouth record. That belongs to Drew Estrada '20 who had 142 just two years ago against Columbia.

Kyler's Perfect Day
While Nick Howard was getting the accolades, Derek Kyler quietly had a perfect day throwing the football against Sacred Heart, connecting on all 10 of his passes for 106 yards and two touchdowns. It was the second time in his career he did not miss on a pass, having completed 9-of-9 at Columbia back in 2018. The fifth-year senior currently leads the FCS in completion percentage (.781) as well as passing efficiency (203.98).

Seven Sacks for Five Big Green
Not exactly the makings of a musical, but Dartmouth registered the grand total of seven sacks in the 41-3 win over Sacred Heart. Marques White and Bobby Jefferson each contributed two to the cause, while Seth Walter, Hank Knez and DeWayne Terry Jr. each posted one. For both Knez and Terry, it was the first sacks of their careers. The last time the Big Green defense recorded seven sacks? The final game of the 2018 season against Brown, a 49-7 triumph. The program record is 10 set against Cornell in 2010.

Another Quarter, Another Touchdown
With touchdowns in every quarter against Sacred Heart, Dartmouth has penetrated the end zone at least once in each of its last 11 quarters. That is the team's longest streak since the 2014-15 seasons (also 11). Since 1930, only the fabled 1970 squad has had a longer streak at 14 consecutive quarters with a TD. The longest of all-time, however, involved the 1925-26 squads that strung together 17 in a row. That 1925 team was also credited with a national championship.

Bair of a Ground Game
The Big Green running game against Sacred Heart racked up 286 yards, the team's most since that same Brown game in 2018, coincidentally that the defense recorded seven sacks. Not only did Nick Howard post 154 yards on a mere nine carries, but Zack Bair also topped the century mark with 103 yards on only 11 rushes, the first 100-yard game for either player. The last time Dartmouth had two top 100 was against Harvard (not Brown) in 2018 as Jared Gerbino had 183 and Rashaad Cooper 117 in a 24-17 win.

Camera Shy No Longer
There was a time when Dartmouth did not fare well when appearing on TV, but the Big Green have seemingly overcome their camera shyness. Dartmouth has won seven of its last eight televised games, and it has won all four contests that have been shown on ESPNU.

PAT Streak Ends, Another Still Alive
When an extra-point attempt missed the mark after the first touchdown against Sacred Heart, it ended a streak of 51 consecutive makes by Big Green kickers. But Connor Davis, who did not play in either of the first two games due to an injury, still has his PAT streak alive and well at 45, six shy of the school record held by none other than one of the most prolific kickers in NFL history, Nick Lowery. Davis's father, Judd, was a renowned kicker in his own right, winning the Lou Groza Award as college football's top place kicker in 1993 at Florida.

Stingy Defense
Dartmouth has made quite the name for itself the past few seasons as staunch defenders. In both 2018 and 2019 when the Big Green ended the season ranked among the FCS top 25, only one other team surrendered fewer points per game each season — Colgate in 2018 and North Dakota State in 2019. And Dartmouth was ranked second both years in the top 15 in total defense (4th and 14th) as well. Seems like the Green have picked up after the pandemic right where they left off; entering this game, Dartmouth is fifth in scoring defense (10.5) and eighth in total defense (255.0 yards).

Kyler Rising the Ranks
With his 10-for-10 day throwing the ball against Sacred Heart, Derek Kyler stretched his lead in a couple of career categories among all Dartmouth quarterbacks. He now sports a completion percentage of 69.2 (218-of-315), well ahead of Daly Williams at 62.7 percent. Kyler also boosted his career passing efficiency to 169.99 with Williams second at 142.09. By the way, the NCAA FCS record for efficiency is 176.68, based on a minimum of 300 completions. So not only would Kyler need to average about 11 completions per game the rest of the season to qualify, he has to boost his mark up about seven points. Kyler is also fifth all-time at Dartmouth with 30 touchdown passes (Brian Mann '02 is fourth with 33) and 12th with 2,720 passing yards (needs 223 to move into the top 10).