The Title Defense Begins

Senior quarterback Jackson Proctor airs one out on Day One of the preseason.

HANOVER (Aug. 24) – It would have been completely understandable for there to be concerns about what the future held for the Dartmouth football team when it opened training camp a year ago at this time.

Longtime head coach Buddy Teevens was hospitalized, Sammy McCorkle was running the show as the interim and the Big Green was picked sixth in the Ivy League preseason media poll after coming in sixth a year before.

Flash forward 12 months and with the unfortunate passing of Teevens, McCorkle is now the full-time head coach and Dartmouth has been voted fourth in the Ivy poll. This time, however, the Big Green kicked off training camp Saturday morning as a defending Ivy League champion.

And yet, if you ask McCorkle how different it feels this year, he’ll tell you the more things change, the more they stay the same.

“To tell you the truth, it doesn't really feel that different this year,” McCorkle said after a brisk 2½ hour session under chamber-of-commerce skies on pristine Blackman Practice Fields. “We were going to come out here last year, and we were going to work and do what we do, and that’s what we did today. We coach the way we coach, we practice the way we practice, we play the way we play. We’ve made a couple adjustments this year, but nothing drastic.

“Definitely this preseason is a bit different than the last one because our players kind of know what to expect now. They know what the expectations are and they knew what the tempo was going to be like. I thought that maybe that was the biggest difference from a year ago, but it’s nothing huge to tell you the truth.”

One significant change is to the coaching staff, which remained stable for years before going through some turnover since last fall. Signing on in the offseason were wide receiver coach Dan Hebert, who replaced veteran David Shula. Braxton Chapman stepped in at running back in place of Danny O’Dea, now director of recruiting. And Grayson Kline has joined the program in an offensive quality control role.

Add in Joe Castellito coming aboard as nickels coach last year, Aashon Larkins taking over as secondary coach last summer and third-year tight ends coach Wendy Laurent being named associate head coach and the staff is a solid blend of old and new that McCorkle feels is benefiting the program.

“It's a great, great mix,” he said. “I tell you, the staff has done a phenomenal job working together. Obviously we've got coaches that have been here with us a long time, and we've got some new guys. But they feed off each other unbelievably.

“It’s been great listening to those guys in their staff meetings talking about different ideas, different ways of doing things. But at the same time, when it comes to our goals and things that we want to make sure we achieve, we're all on the same page.”

How Was The First Practice, Coach?

McCorkle: “We had some good spots. We had some spots that we've got to clean up, obviously. We mix up practice and switch it around, so that does cause a little bit of uncertainty. But that's the whole idea. And I think our guys are trying to kind of figure things out. We've got to get to a point where you just have to read, listen, react and go. 

“There were some ups and downs. I thought our offensive line looked good coming off the ball. And they had some good holes for our running backs. Our running backs did a good job with good vision.

“And I thought in the secondary we had some guys who broke on the ball and made some good breakups. Obviously we want to get better but this was a good start.”

Freshman Overview

It was just the first practice – and pads won’t come on for the next few practices – but McCorkle saw a lot that he liked of his first year players when they arrived on campus, and again when they hit the field for the first time.

“I was very impressed with our D-line,” he said. “All four guys looked good when they got got here. They all looked good when we recruited them and they’re in much better shape than I expected them to be coming in. You could see it today. I like the length of our secondary. Our safeties are some long guys and I like our linebackers. They worked hard in the offseason and in the summer.”

The Biggest Question Area

Anyone who listened to the Ivy League media day call can tell you coaches are pretty adept at dodging questions. But asked what area of the field has to prove itself the most this camp McCorkle took the assignment head on.

“I'd say probably the depth in our secondary,” he answered. “When I say depth, it's not numbers. It's just experience. We like the guys that we've got out there. The first group we run out there and our second group, to a point, have some experience. They're talented, confident guys but there isn’t a lot of depth of experience at that position.”

The Green Green Grass of Blackman

As has been the case for at least the past decade, Dartmouth will spend as much of the preseason on the thick, cushy and this year remarkably green grass of the Blackman Practice Fields as it can. And it will be doing so in morning practices.

“I love it out here,” said McCorkle. "We’ll be out here as much as we can be unless the weather is bad and we tear it up. We don’t want to put anybody in danger.

“Talking to the players, they love coming out here, just like we do. It’s beautiful and there’s a lot more space. That was an adjustment today too.”

Practicing in the stadium and the even closer confines of the indoor practice facility transitioning from period to period is easy. This was a little trickier.

“There is so much space out here guys need to know where they have to get to (each period),” McCorkle said with a laugh. “We're used to just taking a couple steps and being at the next place.

“It’s different out here. I mean, look at this scene, man. This is paradise in the woods. “

About the Preseason Poll

As is often the case, Dartmouth was picked down in the preseason poll, tied with Princeton for fourth. McCorkle almost smirked at mention of the Big Green’s placement, fully aware that Dartmouth has finished higher than projected almost every year for the past decade.

“I showed it to the team last night,” he said of the poll. “I actually called it fifth (because Princeton also earned a first-place vote). Does it matter? Not unless you let it dictate what you do. 

“It’s like championships. It’s great we've won the most championship and we've won three of the last four. But guess what? It doesn't matter. What we have done in the past is not going to help us do the things we want to do this season. Neither is the poll. We have a great tradition but that's not going to help you achieve what you need to achieve. We talked about 1-0. Win this day, then win the next day.”

Wait, Who’s Wearing No. 1 This Year?

Davis Golick wore No. 1 last fall and is on the roster as No. 1 this year. But the senior punter has been well-known for his long, flowing locks and the player in the 1 jersey Saturday had more of what used to be called the Ivy League look. But Golick it was.

“I didn’t recognize him at first,” McCorkle said with a laugh. “I was like, ‘Who is this guy sitting in the front row?’ He looks good. He looks professional.”

In fact, that’s what he is.

Asked about the new ‘do, Golick shrugged and with a smile said, “Got to get a job.”

Two Familiar Faces

Running around Blackman in street clothes were former Dartmouth tailback and captain Tevita Moimoi, and graduated center Thomas Hartnett.

McCorkle explained: “Hartnett was here in the spring and will help with the offensive line this fall. Tevita’s going to be helping (Cade Bettinger, manager of creative content) with our social media and all that good stuff.”

McCorkle is happy to have the former players as adjunct staff members and thinks it says good things about the program. 

“It’s great having them here,” he said. “They're obviously both unbelievable guys, and they realize how much of an impact Dartmouth football had on their lives. It's tough to all of a sudden go from doing it and loving it and just walking away. This is a way for them to stay involved. They're very professional about it and very mature. 

"It's good to have them around because they're kind of a little bit of big brothers, mentors. They'll be able to help even some of our experienced players who come across hurdles and stuff. They'll be able to lean on those guys a little bit, and those guys can help them as peers.”

Missing

Tight end Nic Sani, who entered the portal and then withdrew with thoughts of playing this fall as a fifth-year senior, has instead graduated and moved on.

Wide receiver Isaac Boston, who originally committed to Marist as a grad transfer rather than finish his career as a fifth-year senior in Hanover, will indeed be on Memorial Field this fall. But he'll do it as a grad transfer for Central Connecticut, which plays at Dartmouth on Oct. 19. 

On Tap

Per McCorkle, who had to think about it because NCAA preseason regulations change frequently, the Big Green will again be in just helmets Sunday, then in uppers for three days before being allowed to go “full” pads.