Dartmouth will be attempting to defend its Ivy League title and win a fourth crown in five seasons
By: Rick Bender
HANOVER, N.H. — Sammy McCorkle, the Robert L. Blackman Head Football Coach at Dartmouth College, today announced the Big Green's 2024 football schedule. The usual seven Ivy League matchups are among the 10 games listed, along with three non-conference tilts against teams Dartmouth has played a total of only seven times in its first 141 seasons of play.
"My first season leading this team is one I will never forget," the 2023 Ivy League Coach of the Year said. "The team fought through the passing of both [former head coach] Buddy [Teevens] and Josh [Balara, Class of 2024], and honored them by finding the will to finish atop the Ivy League standings. But this isn't the time to rest on our laurels; we need to start preparing for another title run next fall. The league is strong top to bottom, and everyone is capable of winning every weekend. Thankfully we have a non-conference schedule that will help us prepare for those battles once we begin to play in the league."
The season will open at Memorial Field on Saturday, Sept. 21 when the Big Green play host to Fordham, a team they have not squared off against in 27 years. Although the Rams got the better of Dartmouth in the initial meeting back in 1951, the other four clashes — between 1994-97 — have all gone the Green's way, the most recent a 31-10 decision in the Bronx.
The following weekend, Dartmouth will not get the opportunity to travel to Army West Point as originally scheduled due to the Black Knights' move to the American Athletic Conference. Instead, the Big Green will play closer to home in its first-ever game against Merrimack of the Northeast Conference in North Andover, Massachusetts. The Big Green have won 11 consecutive games when playing an opponent for the first time, the last being a 28-18 triumph at Valparaiso in 2021. Coincidentally, the last team to defeat Dartmouth in the first meeting was its opening-day opponent, Fordham.
"The game at Army West Point was first agreed upon in 2015, but its move to the AAC made it impossible for us to make it happen. Their athletics director, Mike Buddie, is a close friend and though we're disappointed we won't play in 2024, we are exploring the possibility of playing a game at West Point in the future," said Mike Harrity, the Haldeman Family Director of Athletics and Recreation who came to Dartmouth after serving as the deputy athletics director and chief operating officer on the Black Knights' staff for two years. "We are excited to play Merrimack, which has quickly established itself at the FCS level since moving up to Division I in 2019."
The Ancient Eight slate will open in Hanover when Penn comes to town on Oct. 5, the first of three Ivy League home games for the Green. After a trek to Yale the next Saturday, Dartmouth will host another NEC team in Central Connecticut State on Oct. 19. The first two contests in the series went the Big Green's way, 35-25 at Memorial Field in 2014 and 34-7 the following year in New Britain, Connecticut.
After a trip to the Big Apple to take on Columbia, Dartmouth will play its homecoming game against Harvard on Nov. 2. Consecutive road games at Princeton and Cornell will be followed up by "The Tussle" in the season finale against Brown in Hanover on Nov. 23.
The Big Green will be attempting to defend their 2023 Ivy League title next fall, not to mention secure their fourth title in five seasons and 22nd conference crown overall, more than any other team in the league. Deposits for season tickets can be placed through the Dartmouth Athletics Ticket Office website or by calling 603-646-2466.